I am very scared of the dentist too!! I hate being "trapped" in the chair with his hands in my mouth. I always feel very nervous and even physically ill. And that's just for my regular exam and cleaning! The anesthetic injections are a whole other story! I have a bad reaction to the anesthetic. It makes me feel EXTREMELY anxious and sick to my stomach, on top of the anxiety I'm already feeling.

I just want to let you know to ask your dentist about the different types of anesthetic. For example, any anesthetic with the word "-caine" at the end, contains epinephrine (adrenaline). This really does make your heart beat faster. And some people cannot tolerate this. Either because they have a heart condition, or because they have Panic Disorder (the adrenaline can bring on a panic attack). Therefore there is also a different type of anesthetic which does not contain epinephrine. I have to say, I even feel anxious with the other type of anesthetic, but at least I know that is in my head! Whereas lidocaine genuinely does make my heart beat faster. Also, I have to say that apparently this non-epinephrine containing anesthetic does not last as long as the standard anesthetic and is not as powerful. But your dentist can advise you about all that.

I also wanted to say that some people have to take a sedative to visit the dentist (Ativan etc) and I don't think there is anything wrong with that if the anxiety is really bad. Some dentists actually administer Valium as part of the injection when they are doing something major like a root canal. So there are options!!!!!! And intravenous sedation for major dental work is something I would definitely ask for personally!

As Lynn and Gus have said, it's very important to tell your dentist that you are phobic. Many, many people have this fear of dentists so dentists are well used to hearing this and many of them are especially equipped to handle very nervous patients.

Good luck to you!! ((((((((((((cthomas))))))))))))))