Can hypnosis cure dental phobias?

Does the thought of sitting in the dentist’s chair fill you with worry? Or perhaps it’s the smells and sounds of the treatment room that make you feel anxious and sick? If a fear of the dentist is stopping you from getting the dental care you need, it might be time to turn to hypnosis. In last week’s blog, we told you all about our new services designed to help those with dental phobias. Today, we’re taking a closer look at one of them – dental hypnosis – and sharing just how much of a positive impact it can have on your phobia.

What is hypnosis?

While it’s hard to describe hypnosis in just a few words, it’s essentially the quietening of the conscious mind. It’s here that you hold all your fears, anxieties and phobias.

Through the use of hypnosis, you can more readily access your subconscious mind. As your practitioner carries out the session you will fall into a trance state, whereby your normal awareness of the outside world is reduced. While you’ll still be awake, your attention is somewhat focused on something else, whether it be a fantasy, activity, or feeling.

Why use hypnosis in dentistry?

A huge number of us fear going to the dentist. In fact, around 50% experience some kind of anxiety when it comes to the bi-annual dentist trip while for up to 10% a dental phobia is life changing.

Hypnosis can be used to help rid you of your phobia and treat chronic dental pain. By muting all of those irrational thoughts in the human brain, hypnosis can create a feeling a calm confidence – enabling you to get through those appointments and treatments that have troubled you the most.

You will be taught how to relax through the use of visualisation. The process will also feature a number of stages, meaning you’ll never be pushed into something you’re uncomfortable with.

What’s more, hypnosis has also been proven to lower blood pressure. So in cases of dental work, you may also experience a speedier recovery time.

It’s important to note that not all phobias will be the same. Some will fear the smells and noises at a clinic or needles while others will fear the lack of control. Some phobias will also develop as a result of bad experiences that one might have had as a child.

hypnosis consultancy

The power of self-hypnosis

If you haven’t already tried self-hypnosis it might be worth giving it a go. Ideal for those with mild fears or phobias, self-hypnosis can help you to shift your focus.

Popular techniques include:

Meditation, where you focus on your breath, rather than the procedure itself.
Positive affirmations, where you repeat positive phrases to yourself such as “I am relaxed and feeling fine”.
Visualisation, where you focus on imagining something that has comforted you in the past – such as a childhood happy place. Visualisation also works well when teamed with music.

For more information about our hypnosis services, get in contact with the team today. You can give us a call on 01254 297 000.