A visit to the dentist can be an uncomfortable experience for everyone, but especially for children and adults with autism it is often extra difficult. The dentist’s practice room alone offers an explosion of sensory stimuli, such as the bright lights, the unfamiliar sounds. Not to mention the strange sensations in the mouth area when the dentist is busy with your teeth.

I would like to wish you a positive experience at the dentist. With these 3 simple tips you will feel more comfortable when visiting the dentist.

1. Speak to the dentist prior to the consultation

Fortunately, there are more dentists who delve into special care and are a little more familiar with people with autism. That means most dentists can make the patient with autism more comfortable. Call the dentist or practice before making an appointment. In this conversation you can discuss your needs and concerns before scheduling an appointment. In most cases, the dentist will reassure you and take your wishes into account. If not, I advise you to find another dentist.

Here are a few things a dentist can do to help you cope with preventing overstimulation

• Schedule an introductory appointment
• Schedule your main appointment on a rest hour or on a rest day so that there are fewer patients and employees in the office
• Use a favorite toothpaste flavor you’re already familiar with
• Provide a comfortable blanket (or weighted blanket) to use during the appointment
• Make sure you have sunglasses so that the bright lights don’t appear so bright
• Use a noise-cancelling hearing protector (or earplugs) that plays soothing sound effects or music

2. Practice familiarity at home

This is advice that we especially recommend to children who are going to the dental office for the first time. As you no doubt already know, many people with autism struggle with overstimulation when they are forced to spend time in an unfamiliar location, having to process too many unfamiliar experiences at once.

Learning sensory calming strategies at home can help children feel more comfortable with the idea of the dental office. Some parents use videos or photos found online, or possibly storybooks about going to the dentist, to make their children more familiar with the office and with what happens during a dentist appointment. Some make it a game, where the parent acts as a dentist and the child plays himself and goes through the steps of a normal appointment procedure. This is a particularly good way to process some of the physical aspects of their visit: Have your child lie flat with their hands on their stomachs and practice opening their mouths as wide as possible.

By doing everything you can to familiarize yourself with the dentist’s appointment at home, you won’t have to worry once you’re in the dentist’s chair.

3. Schedule an introductory appointment

An introductory appointment is perhaps the best way for patients with autism to prevent overstimulation at the dentist. This is simply an appointment where no dental work is performed, but where the dentist can show the patient the operating room, introduce him to the staff he will work with and explain the function of each device in the room . As the name implies, the idea is to become familiar with the sensory “feel” of the environment so that it is less overwhelming during the control appointment.

Most dentists want to do everything they can to make patients’ visits a positive experience. They know how frightening it can be to go to the dentist, especially for those who suffer from overstimulation. So talk to your dentist regularly so he or she can take your special needs and concerns into account.