3 Reasons Why Your Dentist Won’t Judge You For Your Teeth

Unfortunately, many of the people who are most in need of routine dental care are the least likely to actually get it. People who go a very long time without visiting the dentist naturally wind up with more oral health problems, which for some people can be a source of shame. That drives them away from the dentist, which only makes the problems worse.

If you’re living through this cycle, there’s good news: no matter what condition your teeth are in, a good dentist won’t judge you. If you have trouble believing that, here are a few reasons why that’s the case.

1. Your Dentist Has Seen It All

To become a practicing dentist, or even a dental hygienist, you need to go through years of intense study. In that time, they’ve seen picture after picture of the worst teeth imaginable. No matter how bad your teeth are they almost certainly aren’t the worst that your dentist has seen. Even if they were, it doesn’t matter, because…

2. Your Dentist Has a Job to Do

When you talk to your dentist about your teeth, there are only two things on their mind: what problems are you having, and how can they solve them? While many dentists do want to form personal connections with their patients, the things at the forefront of their minds are diagnosis and treatment. To put it bluntly, your dentist isn’t going to judge you because they have more important things to think about.

3. Your Dentist Wants You to be Comfortable

At the end of the day, no dentist wants their patient to be tense and uncomfortable. Dentists want you to keep coming back to their practice, and to listen to their advice when they give it to you. Neither of those things is served well by shaming or ridicule. You may have had a bad experience with a dentist in the past—did that make you want to see them again, or to hear what they had to say? Probably not. Any dentist worth their salt will work just as hard to make you comfortable as they will to treat your oral health problems.

There are good and bad dentists, and many people have had an experience with a provider that made them feel judged. But that’s the exception, not the rule. For the most part, your dentist doesn’t want to shame you; they want to help you.

About the Author

Dr. Shandy Condie is a dentist who helps patients to become as passionate about their teeth as she is. She often works with patients who are nervous at the dentist’s office, and she’s become an expert at making them comfortable. Dr. Condie received her Doctor of Dental Surgery from the Creighton School of Dentistry, and she has trained extensively at the prestigious  Las Vegas Institute for Advanced Dental Studies. If you have any questions about how dentists will work to make you comfortable, she can be reached at her website or by phone at (480) 279-3100.