Drug differences UK and USA

[Miss Partial]

Can anyone tell me why in the USA you are so lucky to get pre dental appt chill you out meds.? I asked my dentist here in the UK for something to chill me out and they laughed me out the surgery...it seems so different ( i'm jealous). Its not NHS its private

 

[Moses]

Perhaps your family doctor would prescribe you a medicine for your pre-visit jitters.

 

[vicki]

Can anyone tell me why in the USA you are so lucky to get pre dental appt chill you out meds.? I asked my dentist here in the UK for something to chill me out and they laughed me out the surgery...it seems so different ( i'm jealous). Its not NHS its private

Dentists in the UK (both private and NHS) can prescribe medication to help you relax before appointments, however it depends on two things. Firstly, whether they have any experience of prescribing anti-anxiety medication (e.g. benzodiazepines such as Diazepam or Temazepam) and secondly, what sort of person they are and whether they actually like working with nervous patients or not.

In order for someone to prescribe a drug (whether that's a doctor, nurse prescriber or dentist etc), they have to know what the drug is, how it works, its effects and possible side effects, whether it would be suitable for you as the patient and so on, in order to be able to prescribe it. It could be that your dentist doesn't have any previous experience of prescribing drugs to help nervous patients with anxiety before and during appointments and is therefore hesitant to prescribe it (and instead of being honest and telling you, they've 'laughed you out of the surgery').

Alternatively, it could be that your dentist just isn't cut out to work with nervous patients - not everyone is unfortunately. Whilst they receive training in communication skills and 'anxiety management' at university, everyone is different and so some will be more naturally suited to working with nervous patients than others. Someone who doesn't appreciate how and why other people can be anxious or worried during a dental appointment, might not be able to easily understand and/or empathise with the desire and/or need for anti-anxiety medication. If this is the case and having something to chill you out before dental appointments is a 'must have' for you, then it might be time to find a different dentist.

Up until a few years ago, I used to go to an NHS practice and during pretty much every appointment, I would be absolutely terrified, even just for check ups. During the 10 years I was a patient there, I must've seen about 6 or 7 different dentists and not one of them offered to prescribe anything for me, even though I was obviously anxious and on occasions, extremely distressed. I tried asking my GP for something instead and they were most dismissive, even though I have had a lot of traumatic experiences in my past.

I now go to a private practice and last year was referred to an endodontist for root canal treatment, so I went to see a different GP at the practice who eventually agreed to prescribe some Diazepam. I ended up needing 6 root canals, but I'd only been prescribed enough tablets for about 5 appointments and I actually ended up needing about 17 or 18 appointments. Because the GP wouldn't prescribe any more Diazepam (he refused to believe that anyone could need so many appointments or root canals), my very nice endodontist offered to look into it and see if he could prescribe it instead. He said he hadn't prescribed it before, so I told him the dosage that I needed and he spoke to a local pharmacist to check whether he could prescribe it and what to put on the prescription. Ever since then, if I've needed any Diazepam for treatment, he has prescribed it. The difference is though, that he wants to help, is very patient and seems a lot more able to cope with my anxious behaviour (which I'm sure must drive him up the wall sometimes ).