Top 10 reasons Americans avoid the dentist (and what we at Crystal Lake Dental Associates do to improve your experience)

• Fear of painful treatment
• We treat every person with the same care we would treat a family member using every comfort available like blankets, pillows a soft touch, spa hand treatments, in room TV,  special comfortable anesthetics, advanced numbing procedures,topical pre-anesthetics, a gentle touch in all procedures, nitrous oxide (laughing Gas), oral premedication, and sedation medications, pain management prescriptions as needed.
• Fear of pain after treatment
• We routinely give pain management instructions for procedures where there might be discomfort afterwords. In addition we routinely prescribe additional medication if it is needed for pain and infection prevention as well as special antibiotics rinses.
• Noise of the dental drill
• Dr Neal uses special advanced low noise drills because they provide a superior result.
• Negative past experiences
• We see this a lot and we have seen thousands of patients who once had an extreme fear of the dentist and have overcome it after their positive experiences with our great team who understand how fear can devastate a person.
• That the anesthetic won’t work
• Dr Neal and his team have been able to to numb patients who claim they either cannot get numb or that they still feel some pain. Dr Neal has many tricks that other dentists have not figured out. He uses a special pre-anesthetic that takes the sting away and a special machine called (The Wand) to deliver anesthetic with virtually no feeling. Many patients claim they did not even know that he had been numbing them.
• Dental instruments
• Our treatment rooms are designed with a pleasant view of the area with a large screen TV to watch. Yes we have dental instruments, but Dr Neal and his team are trained to use loupes magnification and a gentle touch as well as liberal amounts of topical anesthetic and regular anesthetic to insure a comfortable visit. We also have Nitrous Oxide and sedation medications for the more fearful patient which can be used for any visit including a professional cleaning appointment.
• Gag easily
• Yes we see gaggers and we have successfully cared for them. We can use topical and other medications to eliminate the gag reflex. We have ways to alter our care to make gaggers very comfortable. we h use nitrous oxide and sedation for severe gaggers who require more extensive care with great success.
• Afraid of being poked with a sharp object
• We are all afraid of being poked with a sharp object. Our team is very aware of this and makes every effort to always insure that we will NEVER carelessly poke someone. We take all of the above mentioned precautions and take it to a higher level with a patient who has been hurt and has a HIGH fear of being hurt again.
• Feelings of helplessness
• We understand this fear and assure every patient that they are in charge of the visit. all patients are encouraged to raise their hand if at any time they want to stop, need to swallow, go to the bathroom, want to be more numb or for any other reason. The patient is in charge.
• Embarrassment due to oral hygiene
• We get this and we have so many patients who are so embarrassed by the condition of their teeth. We have seen just about anything you could imagine, and we will help you from where ever your are to the level of health you want and deserve.

Top five excuses Americans make to avoid or delay the dentist

• It’s too expensive
• We have many financial options and ways to help reduce your costs. Remember dentistry is not expensive.... neglect is.
• Nothing hurts so there’s no need to go
• Waiting till you have pain or swelling may seem to be smart, but often the damage done will be much more involved, time consuming and expensive.
• My insurance may not cover it
• Dental Insurance is a misnomer. It is a benefit that usually only covers a few basic procedures ( and less of them all the time). Every person's dental needs are unique to them and the solutions your dentist offers are the best for your situation. The dental insurance industry has a contract with your employer for a level of coverage based on how much you and  your employer are willing to invest. Your insurance should never dictate the care need for your circumstance as they have no real interest in your dental health individually.Their first interest is in their shareholders and being as profitable as possible. 
• I can’t take time out of work
• We are very aware that families have limited times that they can be available for dental care. Whether is because of work, school, after school activities, or other things, we get it. Because of this,  we offer extended and evening hours. to 
• I have more important things to do
•  If you have a car, you know that regular oil changes, and inspections of tires, fluids and the like will insure that your car will not suffer a major very expensive, and inconvenient breakdown.  The same goes in dentistry. We understand that today's pace of life is crazy. That is why we are committed to lifetime dentistry. The best dentistry is no dentistry at all. How do we do that? By being thorough and handling problems when they are small and less costly, as well as having regular maintenance to keep things in good order.