The use of hypnosis can be, and usually is, extremely effective in the alleviation of many kinds of anxieties and phobias including those of dental origin.
What is it like and how does it work?
Being in hypnosis results in a very calm and relaxed state of mind and body.
Initially the aim is for bodily relaxation and as this is achieved there is a concurrent relaxation of the mind. When the mind is relaxed it is not overwhelmed by worries which would ordinarily prevent it from functioning properly, for example, one is able to focus clearly on pleasing imagery such as being at the beach, bushwalking, attending a play at the theatre and so on. In fact under hypnosis one is able, with very little effort, to so intensely focus on such situations that other experiences and sensations (even dentistry) become far removed from one’s awareness. This has been described as being similar to seeing a play when you are so intensely focused on the central characters that you become unaware of what may be happening at the periphery of the stage. In other words you become dissociated from your current experiences.
As you may think such focusing of the mind does require a certain degree of effort. As a result and contrary to popular belief weak-willed people make poor hypnotic subjects on account of their inability to focus the mind. The best hypnotic subjects are intelligent people who are not easily distracted.
Hypnosis can be used in dentistry to relieve pain and stop bleeding but its chief use in dentistry is to relieve dental anxiety which has one or more of several causes.
The following case history illustrates its use in this respect.
A person in her late 30’s attended our surgery in pain arising from a split root of a tooth which had a large cavity in it. She was very fearful, sweating profusely, barely able to speak and close to tears. She had several other cavities which had been unattended because of her dental anxiety, and of which she felt ashamed. The patient was eventually able to inform us that her terror began after a painful episode involving the surgical removal of her wisdom teeth some years previously, – a common originator of dental anxiety. It was suggested that as she had much work that needed to be done she should try hypnosis to help overcome the anxiety to which she readily agreed.
The following visit, the patient was introduced to hypnosis by imagining herself descending a series of steps and letting herself become more relaxed with each step. As the arms legs and body became more relaxed her mind became more relaxed and she was able to imagine herself basking in the sunshine on the beach listening to the gentle sounds of the waves as reached the shore and experiencing the pleasant smell of the salty sea air.
After being roused out the hypnotic state she remained very calm, was fully alert and able to relate her experience of becoming remarkably calm and relaxed.
Subsequent appointments were made for her fillings which were carried out with the help of hypnosis, becoming more and more confident with each visit. Eventually she was able to have the split tooth removed in the dental chair with no trauma. Later on she had the extracted tooth replaced with a dental implant and again with no trauma.
Today, she looks forward to attending our practice regularly for her dental check-ups keeping her teeth and gums in good condition having been freed from the overwhelming anxiety which very nearly ruined her mouth.