{"id":295,"date":"2025-09-04T12:56:50","date_gmt":"2025-09-04T12:56:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/?p=295"},"modified":"2025-10-11T13:28:07","modified_gmt":"2025-10-11T13:28:07","slug":"dental-phobia-what-causes-them","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/dental-phobia-what-causes-them\/","title":{"rendered":"Behind the Fear: Revealing the Root Causes of Dental Phobia\u00a0\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"569\" src=\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/AdobeStock_345184039__1760187512_52475.jpg\" alt=\"woman experiencing dental phobia\" class=\"wp-image-296\" style=\"width:308px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/AdobeStock_345184039__1760187512_52475.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/AdobeStock_345184039__1760187512_52475-300x213.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/AdobeStock_345184039__1760187512_52475-768x546.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p>If you suffer from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/sedation.html\">dental phobia<\/a>, you\u2019re not alone. Unfortunately, this kind of anxiety and fear can affect your oral and overall health. Failing to receive dental care eventually leads to serious consequences, like cavities, gum disease, bone and tooth loss, and even health conditions that plague the body. Learn what keeps you from getting the care you need so that you can overcome your dental phobia for good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What Are the Reasons for Dental Phobia?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>In a 2013 study titled \u201cWhy Are People Afraid of the Dentist? Observations and Explanations,\u201d researchers found that dental phobia is often the result of \u201cexogenous factors,\u201d which can include trauma experiences, media portrayals, and even personality traits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Some of the most common reasons for this problem include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li>Past dental trauma<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Depression or generalized anxiety<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Fear of losing control or feeling helpless<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Invasion of personal space<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Fear of needles<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Inability to handle the sights, sounds, and smells of a dentist\u2019s office<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>A sensitive or strong gag reflex<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How Can You Overcome Your Fears?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>To avoid declining oral health as a result of your dental phobia, it\u2019s important that you identify ways to overcome your fear. You can practice deep breathing or meditation, but you can also inquire about bringing headphones so that you can listen to music as a form of distraction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Another solution is sedation. Nitrous oxide can help \u201ctake the edge off\u201d while in the treatment chair. Its effects come quickly once the odorless gas is inhaled, creating a comfortable experience. The best part is that once the gas is turned off and the nasal mask is removed, the effects wear off in no time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Oral conscious sedation is taken as a pill and produces a deep state of relaxation, keeping you unfazed by the events of your appointment. The effects do take longer to wear off and require you to have someone drive you home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>No matter which type of sedation your dentist recommends, or what other types of relaxation you may try to alleviate your dental fears, trust that there is a solution that will work for you. Allowing your dentist to be your ally in this pursuit will ensure you get the oral healthcare you need.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>About the Author<\/strong><br>Dr. Scott Olson attended the University of Florida Dental School, where he earned his dental degree. After passing his board exams, he and his wife returned to Missouri, and he has since pursued continuing education through the Kois Center, the Dawson Academy, and the Engle Institute. Offering sedation dentistry to those who suffer from phobias, fears, and anxiety surrounding dental care, we aim to create positive, healthy, and comfortable experiences in our office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you need help to overcome your dental phobia and enjoy life with better oral health, visit our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/contact-us.html\">website<\/a> or call <strong>(417) 823-4900<\/strong> to schedule an appointment with Dr. Olson.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you suffer from dental phobia, you\u2019re not alone. Unfortunately, this kind of anxiety and fear can affect your oral and overall health. Failing to receive dental care eventually leads to serious consequences, like cavities, gum disease, bone and tooth loss, and even health conditions that plague the body. Learn what keeps you from getting [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v24.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Dental Phobia | Sedation | Dr. Scott Olson<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Is dental phobia keeping you from the dentist\u2019s office? Learn what can cause it and how to overcome your anxiety.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/dental-phobia-what-causes-them\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Dental Phobia | Sedation | Dr. Scott Olson\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Is dental phobia keeping you from the dentist\u2019s office? Learn what can cause it and how to overcome your anxiety.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/dental-phobia-what-causes-them\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Olson Family Dental Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-09-04T12:56:50+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-10-11T13:28:07+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/AdobeStock_345184039__1760187512_52475.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"569\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"drolson\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"drolson\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/dental-phobia-what-causes-them\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/dental-phobia-what-causes-them\/\",\"name\":\"Dental Phobia | Sedation | Dr. Scott Olson\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/dental-phobia-what-causes-them\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/dental-phobia-what-causes-them\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/AdobeStock_345184039__1760187512_52475.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-09-04T12:56:50+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-10-11T13:28:07+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/1b08762875d7e0748fee4c4328ac62c4\"},\"description\":\"Is dental phobia keeping you from the dentist\u2019s office? Learn what can cause it and how to overcome your anxiety.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/dental-phobia-what-causes-them\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/dental-phobia-what-causes-them\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/dental-phobia-what-causes-them\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/AdobeStock_345184039__1760187512_52475.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/AdobeStock_345184039__1760187512_52475.jpg\",\"width\":800,\"height\":569},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/dental-phobia-what-causes-them\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Behind the Fear: Revealing the Root Causes of Dental Phobia\u00a0\u00a0\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Olson Family Dental Blog\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/1b08762875d7e0748fee4c4328ac62c4\",\"name\":\"drolson\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/496611b1c4a95add2ea5e431d65859b1?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/496611b1c4a95add2ea5e431d65859b1?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"drolson\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/author\/drolson\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Dental Phobia | Sedation | Dr. Scott Olson","description":"Is dental phobia keeping you from the dentist\u2019s office? Learn what can cause it and how to overcome your anxiety.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/dental-phobia-what-causes-them\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Dental Phobia | Sedation | Dr. Scott Olson","og_description":"Is dental phobia keeping you from the dentist\u2019s office? Learn what can cause it and how to overcome your anxiety.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/dental-phobia-what-causes-them\/","og_site_name":"Olson Family Dental Blog","article_published_time":"2025-09-04T12:56:50+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-10-11T13:28:07+00:00","og_image":[{"width":800,"height":569,"url":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/AdobeStock_345184039__1760187512_52475.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"drolson","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"drolson","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/dental-phobia-what-causes-them\/","url":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/dental-phobia-what-causes-them\/","name":"Dental Phobia | Sedation | Dr. Scott Olson","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/dental-phobia-what-causes-them\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/dental-phobia-what-causes-them\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/AdobeStock_345184039__1760187512_52475.jpg","datePublished":"2025-09-04T12:56:50+00:00","dateModified":"2025-10-11T13:28:07+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/1b08762875d7e0748fee4c4328ac62c4"},"description":"Is dental phobia keeping you from the dentist\u2019s office? Learn what can cause it and how to overcome your anxiety.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/dental-phobia-what-causes-them\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/dental-phobia-what-causes-them\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/dental-phobia-what-causes-them\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/AdobeStock_345184039__1760187512_52475.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/AdobeStock_345184039__1760187512_52475.jpg","width":800,"height":569},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/dental-phobia-what-causes-them\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Behind the Fear: Revealing the Root Causes of Dental Phobia\u00a0\u00a0"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/","name":"Olson Family Dental Blog","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/1b08762875d7e0748fee4c4328ac62c4","name":"drolson","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/496611b1c4a95add2ea5e431d65859b1?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/496611b1c4a95add2ea5e431d65859b1?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"drolson"},"url":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/author\/drolson\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/295"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=295"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/295\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":297,"href":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/295\/revisions\/297"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=295"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=295"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.springfielddentist.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=295"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}