Nervous about dentists? You are in the right place.
Most of our patients are a little nervous, and some are very. That is not a problem to be solved before you arrive. It is the reason we work the way we do.
The stop signal
Before anything starts, we agree a signal: you raise your left hand. When you do, we stop straight away, take everything out of your mouth and wait. No sigh, no question, no "nearly done". Then you decide whether we carry on.
People who know they can stop almost never need to. But they can, and we will show you it works before we begin.
How we work
A stop signal, agreed first
Before anything starts, we agree a signal: raise your left hand. We stop, every time, and nobody asks why.
Every sound, named
Before an instrument goes near your mouth, we tell you what it is and what it will sound like.
A written plan and the price, first
Nothing is done on the day you hear about it, unless you are in pain. You get the plan and the full price on paper, and time to think.
Longer first visits
An hour, not twenty minutes. Most of it is talking.
Headphones and a blanket
Bring your own music or borrow ours. The blanket is heavy and warm, and people like it more than they expect.
No upselling
We will not suggest whitening, or anything else you did not ask about, at a check-up. If we recommend something, it is for your health.
Every sound, named
Much of the fear in a dental chair is not knowing what a noise means. Here are the six you are most likely to hear. Pavlos will name each one before it starts.
The whistle
Air and water syringe
A small nozzle that blows air or a little water to dry or rinse a tooth.
What you feel: A cool puff. Sensitive teeth notice it, briefly.
The gurgle
Suction
A thin straw that takes away water and saliva, so you never have to swallow it.
What you feel: Nothing, apart from the noise. It can tickle the tongue.
The hum
Ultrasonic scaler
It vibrates very fast to shake hard deposits off the teeth, with a fine water spray.
What you feel: Buzzing and cold water. On sensitive spots we slow it down or use hand tools.
The purr
Polisher
A slow rubber cup with a gritty paste, at the end of a clean.
What you feel: Tickly and gritty. It tastes of mint.
The high whine
Fast handpiece
The "drill". It spins very fast with water to cut away decay. By then the tooth is numb.
What you feel: Vibration and pressure, not pain. Raise your hand at any moment and it stops.
The beep
Curing light
A blue light that sets a white filling hard, in bursts of ten or twenty seconds. It beeps at the start and end.
What you feel: Nothing at all. Keep the sunglasses on.
A first visit, if you are nervous
An hour with Eleni, most of it talking. It costs the same as a normal check-up, €60, and less if we only talk.
Tell us when you book
Tick the box on the form, or just say it on the phone. You do not need to explain. Sofia books you a first visit of an hour.
The first half is a conversation
We start at a table by the window, not in the chair. What happened before, what worries you most, what would help.
A look, only if you want one
If you are ready, we move to the chair and look, naming everything as we go. If you are not, we stop there and you come back another day. That counts as a good visit.
A plan on paper, and time to think
You go home with a written plan and the price. Nothing is done that day, unless you are in pain and want it to stop.
Short visits, easiest first
Treatment starts with the simplest thing, in short appointments, so the first thing you do here is something that goes well.
What people ask us
I have not been to a dentist in ten years. Will you tell me off?
No. Most of the people we see after a long gap feel embarrassed, and it is the least useful feeling in the room. We will tell you what we see, plainly, and what we can do about it.
Can someone come in with me?
Yes, into the room and next to the chair, for as long as you like.
I gag easily. Is that a problem?
It is common and we work around it: smaller X-ray sensors, sitting you more upright, breaks, and a numbing spray for the back of the tongue if it helps.
Do you offer sedation?
Not in the practice. For the few people who need it, we work with a colleague in Thessaloniki who treats with an anaesthetist present, and we do the check-ups and cleans here.
What if the injection does not work?
Sometimes a tooth is hard to numb, especially when it is very inflamed. We test before we start and you tell us. If it is not numb, we add more, wait longer, or stop and try another day.