Gag reflex and Dental X-rays

  People who gag while getting dental x-rays have a phobia about putting things in their mouth.  The gag reflex is a panic attack.  The tongue is like a bouncer at the bar door and will cause the gag reflex.  If you have a skiddish bouncer he will puff his chest out, ask no questions and block any suspect from entering through  the bar door!
  Phobias are unreasonable fears coming from the primitive(or reptilian) part of our brain. That's the fight or flight response...no reasoning just knee jerk reflex.
   I tell the patient they have a phobia or fear of things in their mouth...which comes from the primitive part of their brain ...and I touch the back of their head.  Then I put my hand on their forehead and tell them that's their pre-frontal cortex or human reasoning part of the brain.  The pre-frontal cortex can talk to the primitive part of the brain....tell it to relax and buy some time.  I show them with my finger where I will put the x-ray sensor(no surprises)...tell them I will go around the corner...punch a button ..they will hear a buzz..then they can do what ever they need to do with the sensor.
   I take full mouth x-rays every day and have no problems with my phobic patients.

Oral Hygiene for an Aging Population

 Now that the aging population are going into assisted living with their teeth, not dentures. I'm seeing adult children bring their parent into the office.  What you see is a person who took good care of their mouth all their life and now there is nothing happening...no brushing, flossing or tooth picking. The layman is intimidated with the idea of being in some one's mouth. There is a niche to be filled and a hygienist/dental assistant could make money and fill a need.  Example: I would enter into a contract with the adult child...for a fee I would,once a week,  brush the parent's teeth and gumline, use a end tuft brush between the teeth coming from the buccal and lingual, using mild flouride mouth wash instead of tooth paste which is messy, and finish with the parent rinsing with the mouthwash. I would communicate any complaints the parent had with the adult child about their mouth. I would put the brushes in a sterilizing pack with the parent's name to sterilize and reuse. It takes about two weeks after cleaning the mouth for the biofilm to reestablish its self. What if you had 15 patients at one rest home that you charged $40/mo. to brush their teeth once a week.....that's $600/ month for a half days work........just an IDEA if I ever retire from my day job!