Fighting with fears and phobias

The way Pakistani people have been raised and brought up is different than the west. During the childhood years, kids are afraid of being scold by their parents for doing minor mistakes. The outcome is that they hardly experiment new things because they are not appreciated for bringing creative ideas. Even in the schools, there is no any proper learning system for these children where they can explore new things, create new ideas and where they are given space for learning on their own. They are just forced to read their course books, ratify the notes and follow the homework deadlines. When a child returns home, he is again pressurized to complete his homework and study to secure position among others. I don't understand why in our society position holder students have been treated extraordinary and an average student is being dejected. We need to understand that every child is different. Some are academically strong, some are good at sports, some love arts, some love music and some like doing new experiments. You have to treat each of them equally and appreciate for what they are doing. Give them their space to grow and you will ultimately realize that they have talent in subject of their own interest. Unfortunately, we as parents do not allow them to grow according to their wishes and brainwash them to act according to our instructions. When they grow up they become professional doctors and engineers, hold good labels and posts but they actually do not enjoy their work due to which they become frustrated and unhappy. It is more important that they enjoy what they do and only then they become more successful. Alas! many of them are not working according to their choices and many don't know about their interests. They are just going with the flow and pursuing their career without knowing their destination. We cannot blame solely on our parents but actually the system of our society needs to be changed.

I think parents should motivate their kids to do every kind of activities rather than focusing only on their studies. Kids should be encouraged to attend summer camps, computer programs, sports activities along with studies. In schools, there should be credits for extra curricular activities and teachers should observe the child's interest individually. 

The other crucial factor which become an obstacle in our way of success is "FEAR". Parents should not scold their kids for doing minor mistakes because the fear of doing mistakes makes man dastard and he could not be successful and this will remain in his personality for the rest of his life. A person could only be successful when he commits mistakes and learns from them. But fear in advance of doing mistakes make person stagnant. We should focus on changing our schooling system in a better way  and then we will find our new generation more courageous, bravado, and strong.

Love God, Love humanity, Love yourself.

How to overcome patient's fears or phobias for dental treatment.

I am myself a dentist and i have encountered a number of patients who are afraid of dental treatment or procedures. It is very important that to deal these patients gently and politely. There are certain tips that I want to share with you that helped me overcoming my patients fears from needles, drills, files, probe and sometimes only the sound of triple syringe :) .

1. Always be on time , do not let your patient wait for long intervals between appointments. This will increase their level of stress and anxiety. Try to give appointments to new and nervous patients in advance.

2. Always introduce yourself to your patient first and then ask about her bio data in a very polite and friendly way. Do not rush towards knowing the patient complaint and his clinical examination. Wherever possible keep the conversation flowing about daily life stuffs.

3. After building friendly environment, ask about his concern and his reason for visiting you. You really need to listen all the patient story with patience . In this way you will get the clues about patient fears, his triggers, his past bad experience of visiting dentist and then u can find a way to deal with his fears. Ask questions from patient in a manner that you are here to help him finding the solution to his problem.

4. After all the question answer session, Ask patient if he is comfortable enough to let me look into his teeth ? Tell him about the dental unit that it will move like a swing and he will enjoy it.

5. It is very important that all the sharp instruments should be out of sight of the patient. Before putting the dental mirror , assure patient that it will not cause any pain or discomfort. If you sense that the patient is in any kind of discomfort however mild, stop and remind them that it is OK to raise a hand at any time. Remember that some patients have fears or histories that prevent them from actually doing this even if you give them permission. So respond to a raised hand immediately but don’t rely on it.

6. You have to be very honest with your patient before doing any treatment. You must have to inform the expectations of the treatment done, you have to tell about different options and its cost and about multiple visits if necessary for that treatment. In this way your patient will build trust and confidence on you.

7. Some patients are not interested about what dentist doing while others are very picky and ask every minor details. In either way communication is the key of helping nervous patients. Sometimes a slow music in the clinic setup is very helpful in making patient's mind relax.

8. Give frequent breaks to your patient. Let patient breathe , give them chance to move and spit if required. This might waste your precious time and you may do few patients a day rather than hundreds but those patients will be very happy and satisfied with your work in the end. This reminds me of my teacher words " Its the quality that matters not the quantity ".

9. Last but not the least , treat patients as a whole rather than confining yourself with only oral cavity. It means you should know about his medical status , drug allergies, past dental visits etc. Also you should take proper measures of sterilization to prevent cross infection. Moreover treat every patient as a human respecting his emotions and concerns even if its a minor thing for you.

Love God, Love humanity, Love yourself

WHAT MAKES HEALTHY TEETH OF YOUR BABIES?

It is very important to realize that crowns of all teeth are formed inside the tooth buds before birth and its is during that time mother should take healthy diet which is vital for strong teeth. Among the food elements Calcium and Phosphorus , Vitamin D , Vitamin C are essential.

Flouride in a minute amount in the water ( 1 ppm ) is crucial for children when the permanent teeth are about to erupt ( at 6yrs) . In those parts of world where flouride is not incorporated in water, it is vital to recommend flouride in tooth paste or formulations to help prevent the decay. But always remember that excess flouride is also dangerous so its quantity should be strictly checked by Public Health services.

Another thing that should be kept in mind is your baby should never put to bed and fall asleep with a bottle of juice or milk because it gives bacteria to enjoy producing lactic acid and destroy enamel by creating holes. So always keep the gum pads of your children clean by using wet cotton pads.

It is recommended that babies teeth to be brushed or at least properly cleaned with wet towel when the first tooth erupt in the mouth that is around at the age of 6 month. Parents usually neglect to clean the milk teeth thinking that they will ultimately fall down and new teeth will replace them. It is very true that new teeth will replace the old milky teeth but milky teeth are the basic guide for proper eruption of permanent teeth. If you didn't take care of your primary (milk) teeth then they will fall off before time and leads to later crowding of your child permanent teeth.

Proper Dental checkups should also be done every 6 months so that early caries can be prevented by giving pit and fissure sealants , to restore the carious teeth with GIC, to correct the detrimental effect of certain habits on the positioning of teeth, those include thumb sucking, tongue thrusting and mouth breathing. Moreover, growth modification appliances can be used if your child has under developed lower jaw and head gears can used to restrict the over growth of upper jaw.

Having good and healthy teeth boost your child confidence and help him to spread the smile of life.

Love God, Love humanity and Love yourself.