Are you someone who is always worrying about the dentist? You are not alone. Far from it, as a matter of fact. Anytime you stand in a room with a handful of people, you’re likely sharing space with someone (or multiple someones!) who shares your dental office phobia. Anywhere from nine to 20 percent of Americans are so anxious about going to the dentist that they DON’T go to the dentist.

Of course, getting together to talk about how you are all worrying about the dentist is nobody’s idea of a good time. And worrying about the dentist, as crippling a fear as it can be, doesn’t do you any good in the short- or long-term. Regular dental care is an essential part of maintaining good overall health.

Here are some common reasons for dental office phobia as well as some tips on how to overcome these fears and begin going to the dentist:

Fear of pain: Let’s face it, most dental procedures—with all that drilling, filling and scraping—SOUND painful. And it can be discomforting to look at the array of sharp-edged tools at a dentist’s chair. But advances in dental anesthesia allow patients to experience little to no pain while undergoing these intensive procedures. Most dentists will put a patient at ease by agreeing to stop a treatment immediately he or she raises a hand. If your dentist won’t agree to this, find another dentist.

Fear of needles: Alas, even with anesthesia, feeling the pinch of a needle is unavoidable at the dentist. Novocaine is delivered with a dose between the gums. But this is a very brief pinching that is over before the patient knows it, and he or she will yield benefits throughout a pain-free procedure!

Fear of giving up control: This dentist office phobia is completely understandable—after all, the patient is sitting there, mouth agape, and at the mercy of a dentist who is doing things that are impossible to see from a prone position.

While there’s nothing a dentist can do about how a patient has to lie in the chair, he or she can put the patient at ease and reduce any worrying about the dentist by explaining exactly what will happen during the procedure as well as how long it will take.

The dentist will be displeased either because you’ve waited so long to see him and/or because there’s so much work that needs to be done. The first part of this is a classic procrastinator’s response—continuing to put something off because you fear the response you’ll get FOR putting it off so long. But the dental problems you need to address won’t get fixed with inaction. Take comfort in knowing dentists are well-trained in putting nervous patients at ease—and in treating patients who have been worrying about the dentist for years and haven’t been in a dentist’s chair in a long, long time. Dentists take pride in restoring someone’s smile and returning him or her to good dental health. Don’t worry about how long it’s taken you to visit the dentist—conquering your fear and heading into the office for a long-awaited checkup will pay dividends immediately!