By Dr Gregg Barry, BDS (UCC), Docklands Dental, Dublin 2. Updated 24 September 2026.
Some people put off the dentist for years. Not because they do not care about their teeth, but because the appointment itself feels unmanageable. If that is you, sedation is one of the ways we can help — and it is worth understanding what it actually involves before you decide you need it.
How common is real dental anxiety?
More common than most nervous patients assume, which is the first thing worth saying: you are not an unusual case, and nobody here is surprised by it.
A 2026 systematic review in the British Journal of Clinical Psychology pooled nineteen studies and 9,267 adults and put the proportion with high dental anxiety at around 18% — though the studies varied widely, from roughly one in ten to nearly one in three. That spread is the honest part: it depends heavily on where and when the research was done. What is consistent is that a substantial minority of adults find dental care genuinely difficult, not mildly unpleasant.
What is IV sedation, and what does it feel like?
Intravenous sedation uses a drug called Midazolam, given through a very fine needle in the back of the hand or the arm, in a controlled and carefully monitored setting. It is not a general anaesthetic: you stay conscious, you can hear us and respond to what we ask, and you keep breathing for yourself. There is no airway tube.
What it changes is how the appointment feels. Most patients describe being calm and detached, and many remember very little of it afterwards. The gag reflex settles. Time passes quickly. You will still need local anaesthetic to numb the tooth itself — and if needles are the part you dread, that injection can be given once the sedation has taken effect, so you are unlikely to be aware of it.
Who is it actually for?
Sedation suits people for whom fear is a genuine barrier to getting treated — those who have avoided care for years, who cannot tolerate longer appointments, or who have a strong gag reflex. It also suits patients facing a long or complex visit who would simply rather not be present for all of it.
It is not the answer for everyone who feels nervous, and we will say so. Several of our dentists have a special interest in treating anxious patients without sedation at all: Dr Sarah Mangan and Dr Ahmed Khaled both work regularly with nervous patients, and Dr Anne Elliott spent four years in Western Australia in cosmetic and restorative work before joining us. For a great many people, what actually helps is a longer appointment, a clear explanation of every step, and a dentist who stops when you ask them to.
Is it safe?
The honest answer is that it depends on you, which is why it starts with your medical history rather than with the drug. We go through your health, your medications and any previous experience of sedation or anaesthetic before agreeing to it, and there are people for whom we would recommend against it or refer on.
On the day it is given in a controlled, monitored setting: you are conscious throughout, breathing for yourself, and we are watching you rather than the clock. That is the practical difference from a general anaesthetic, which is a hospital procedure and something else entirely.
What does sedation cost at Docklands Dental?
Sedation is €350, charged in addition to the treatment itself. A new-patient examination is €80. We will give you the full figure for your own treatment in writing before anything is booked — no pressure, no hard sell, and no quote that changes later.
What happens on the day, and afterwards?
Arrange for someone to collect you. The effects wear off gradually, so you should not drive, operate machinery, or make decisions that matter for the rest of the day, and it is better not to be on your own that evening. We will go through the specific instructions for your appointment with you beforehand, in writing, so there is nothing to remember on the day.
Do you have to be sedated to be treated here?
No. Sedation is one option among several, and for most nervous patients it is not the first one we reach for. If you have been avoiding the dentist, the useful first step is simply a conversation — you can book an examination, tell us what you are worried about, and decide nothing else on the day. You can read more about how we work with nervous patients on our sedation dentistry page.
Docklands Dental, 1 Forbes Street, Grand Canal Dock, Dublin 2.
Call us on 01 636 0192 or book online. If it is easier to write than to phone, email hello@docklandsdental.ie and say what you would like to talk through.
Nervous about the dentist? You can book an appointment online.
