{"id":781,"date":"2026-08-18T14:19:17","date_gmt":"2026-08-18T14:19:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/?p=781"},"modified":"2026-08-18T14:19:18","modified_gmt":"2026-08-18T14:19:18","slug":"what-happens-at-the-dentist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/what-happens-at-the-dentist\/","title":{"rendered":"What to Expect if You Haven\u2019t Been to the Dentist in a While"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\"A<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

You know how sometimes the longer you put something off, the harder it gets to just do it? Whether it\u2019s cutting the lawn, checking your bank balance, or finally getting your dental exam and cleaning<\/a>, the lengthier the wait, the more anxious you\u2019ll likely get. The good news is that when it comes to seeing the dentist, there\u2019s no need to be afraid. Here\u2019s a closer look at what might occur during your appointment, and why when it comes to your oral health checkups, there\u2019s nothing to fear but fear itself!<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Arrival & Check-in<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Prior to your visit, your dental team may have sent you some paperwork to fill out, either online or in person. If you haven\u2019t already done this, be sure to allow some extra time before your scheduled appointment (usually about 30 minutes) to complete it. If you have, you should still aim to arrive about 15 minutes early.  When you get there, check in at the front desk. Then, you\u2019ll either be invited to wait in the waiting room until your exam room is ready, or they may take you back immediately so you can get comfortable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Professional Cleaning<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

After you\u2019ve gotten settled, your dental team will prepare you for teeth for their exam by cleaning them with a scaler. If it\u2019s been a long time since your last visit, this could take longer than usual. While in most cases it should only last about 15 minutes, teeth with more buildup could take 30 minutes or more to get clean. In some cases, you may need to schedule a return appointment for a deeper cleaning or scaling and root planing if there is gum disease present.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

X-Rays<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Once your teeth are sparkly, your dentist will likely request some X-rays to check for decay and damage not visible to the naked eye. This step may also be performed before your cleaning, depending on the availability of the equipment and your dental hygienist\u2019s preference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Oral Cancer Screening<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Your dental exam includes an oral cancer screening. It is completely painless and could even save your life. In fact, of the 54,000 new cases of oral cancer diagnosed annually, nearly 80 percent of them are discovered during routine oral cancer screenings during dental checkups!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Comprehensive Oral Exam                    <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The final step in your checkup is the dental exam itself. This is when your dentist evaluates the condition of your teeth, gums, and jaw, looking for anything abnormal that may or may not be noticeable on your X-rays. If everything looks healthy, you\u2019ll be escorted to the front desk where you can schedule your next preventive exam for six months out. If you require any restorations, your team can schedule those at this time, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Remember, while it\u2019s certainly understandable that you\u2019d be a little anxious to return to the dentist after a long absence, the good news is that your dental team wants what\u2019s best for you and isn\u2019t here to judge. So, don\u2019t let fear of the unknown hold you back from taking charge of your smile! Book your dental exam and cleaning today and get back in the routine of having a healthy, happy mouth!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About Our Practice<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

At Distinctive Dentistry<\/a>, we understand the importance of a healthy mouth. That\u2019s why we\u2019re so proud to offer preventive dental exams and cleanings along with all the other incredible treatments we provide. If it\u2019s been a while since your last visit, don\u2019t let anxiety or fear keep you away. Visit our website<\/a> or call us today at 770-445-6606 to book your checkup and cleaning and enjoy a healthier, happier smile!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

You know how sometimes the longer you put something off, the harder it gets to just do it? Whether it\u2019s cutting the lawn, checking your bank balance, or finally getting your dental exam and cleaning, the lengthier the wait, the more anxious you\u2019ll likely get. The good news is that when it comes to seeing […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-781","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nWhat to Expect if You Haven\u2019t Been to the Dentist in a While | Distinctive Dentistry Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Wondering what to expect at your upcoming dental exam and cleaning? Here\u2019s a closer look at how it might go.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/what-happens-at-the-dentist\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What to Expect if You Haven\u2019t Been to the Dentist in a While | Distinctive Dentistry Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Wondering what to expect at your upcoming dental exam and cleaning? Here\u2019s a closer look at how it might go.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/what-happens-at-the-dentist\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Distinctive Dentistry Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-08-18T14:19:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-18T14:19:18+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AdobeStock_316558318.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1344\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"896\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"distinctivedentistry\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"distinctivedentistry\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/what-happens-at-the-dentist\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/what-happens-at-the-dentist\/\",\"name\":\"What to Expect if You Haven\u2019t Been to the Dentist in a While | Distinctive Dentistry Blog\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/what-happens-at-the-dentist\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/what-happens-at-the-dentist\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AdobeStock_316558318-1024x683.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-08-18T14:19:17+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-08-18T14:19:18+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/51eb183842a2bb503c77215f5eb4babb\"},\"description\":\"Wondering what to expect at your upcoming dental exam and cleaning? Here\u2019s a closer look at how it might go.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/what-happens-at-the-dentist\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/what-happens-at-the-dentist\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/what-happens-at-the-dentist\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AdobeStock_316558318.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AdobeStock_316558318.jpg\",\"width\":1344,\"height\":896},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/what-happens-at-the-dentist\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"What to Expect if You Haven\u2019t Been to the Dentist in a While\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Distinctive Dentistry Blog\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/51eb183842a2bb503c77215f5eb4babb\",\"name\":\"distinctivedentistry\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a52a9af473618da64feae706a82519d5027a561e5783cfa190393877eb84bcea?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a52a9af473618da64feae706a82519d5027a561e5783cfa190393877eb84bcea?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"distinctivedentistry\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/author\/distinctivedentistry\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"What to Expect if You Haven\u2019t Been to the Dentist in a While | Distinctive Dentistry Blog","description":"Wondering what to expect at your upcoming dental exam and cleaning? Here\u2019s a closer look at how it might go.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/what-happens-at-the-dentist\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"What to Expect if You Haven\u2019t Been to the Dentist in a While | Distinctive Dentistry Blog","og_description":"Wondering what to expect at your upcoming dental exam and cleaning? Here\u2019s a closer look at how it might go.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/what-happens-at-the-dentist\/","og_site_name":"Distinctive Dentistry Blog","article_published_time":"2026-08-18T14:19:17+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-08-18T14:19:18+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1344,"height":896,"url":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AdobeStock_316558318.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"distinctivedentistry","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"distinctivedentistry","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/what-happens-at-the-dentist\/","url":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/what-happens-at-the-dentist\/","name":"What to Expect if You Haven\u2019t Been to the Dentist in a While | Distinctive Dentistry Blog","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/what-happens-at-the-dentist\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/what-happens-at-the-dentist\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AdobeStock_316558318-1024x683.jpg","datePublished":"2026-08-18T14:19:17+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-18T14:19:18+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/51eb183842a2bb503c77215f5eb4babb"},"description":"Wondering what to expect at your upcoming dental exam and cleaning? Here\u2019s a closer look at how it might go.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/what-happens-at-the-dentist\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/what-happens-at-the-dentist\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/what-happens-at-the-dentist\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AdobeStock_316558318.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AdobeStock_316558318.jpg","width":1344,"height":896},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/what-happens-at-the-dentist\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"What to Expect if You Haven\u2019t Been to the Dentist in a While"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/","name":"Distinctive Dentistry Blog","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/51eb183842a2bb503c77215f5eb4babb","name":"distinctivedentistry","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a52a9af473618da64feae706a82519d5027a561e5783cfa190393877eb84bcea?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a52a9af473618da64feae706a82519d5027a561e5783cfa190393877eb84bcea?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"distinctivedentistry"},"url":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/author\/distinctivedentistry\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/781","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=781"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/781\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":783,"href":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/781\/revisions\/783"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=781"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=781"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bickfordandshirley.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=781"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}