The majority of people hate dentists, but people always make it seem like this 'hate' stems from fear or that dental unpleasantness is just inevitable.

After all, the dentists are not to blame - or are they?

In actual truth, I have found many dentists that I liked, however, the same cannot be said for their dental hygienist. First of all, it seems like most dental offices change dental hygienists faster than I change toothbrushes.

Every time I go for a teeth cleaning, there seems to be a new dental hygienist there.

And while it is not as difficult to find a good dentist, it is extremely difficult to find a dental office that has consistently good dental hygienists. In fact, I just came back from an awful dental visit with yet another new dental hygienist, with terrible bedside manner.

The problem with these dental hygienists is that they always try to be dentists. Often, they say the exact opposite thing as the dentist, and then insist that they are right.

Dental hygienists also love scolding their victims - "You are not brushing right", they declare proudly, as if they are the first ones to notice that you have plaque on your teeth. They always 'know' a lot about everything, and like pretending that they actually own the dental office

I understand that dentists probably have more important things to attend to than who their dental hygienist is - but that is a very important part of the dental visit. One of the key reasons why most people hate dentists is because of these crappy dental hygienists, who are extremely rough on your teeth and gums, and have extremely poor bedside manner to go with it.

Your crappy dental hygienist may try to convince you that extreme roughness and extreme gum bleeding is just part and parcel of the teeth cleaning experience.

Do not believe it!

Before this latest crappy dental hygienist, I actually had someone who was a practicing dentist clean my teeth, and she was awesome! There was no roughness, it was all very painless, and there was a minimal amount of gum bleeding. She has now moved offices, so I got stuck today with another awful hygienist newbie.

Extreme pain is not a necessary part of teeth cleaning and WE have the right to demand that from our dentist. Do not take any more crap from yet another temporary dental hygienist.

Demand more from your dentist.

It is not ok for them to hire crappy hygienists to poke at us, do a poor job, and at the end of it, have the audacity to scold us for their crappy lack of skills. And above all else, do not listen to your dental hygienist.

If you have any questions, ask the dentist. He is the one that is most qualified to answer your questions, and you deserve to have the best answers.

Dentists and dental hygienists are always saying different things. Different dentists will often give me conflicting information, and of course the dental hygienists know everything.

Here is the thing - you have to properly brush at your gum line to get rid of dental plaque, but if you brush too hard, and for too long, your gums may recede. If you don't brush enough, plaque will build up, and cause your gums to recede. It is one of those damned if you do, damned if you don't things.

I still do not truly know how hard I should brush.

My dentist had recommended that I use the Philips electric toothbrush, which I really like, but according to the crappy dental hygienist today, I was still not doing it right and don't understand the basics of teeth brushing. I left in the middle of the session, because I did not feel like listening to drivel, while being tortured by the producer of such drivel.

I have also had a dentist perform root canal on two of my molars because he told me that root canal was the best way to address my teeth sensitivity issues.

Before you agree to any dental procedure, do some research first and don't just take your dentist's advice. There are many more crappy dental hygienists, but there are also a fair number of crappy dentists.

Make sure to always ask your dentist a lot of questions - especially if he is recommending certain procedures. Do no agree to those procedures until you have done some of your own research.

What I have learned, a bit too late, is that it is generally best to preserve as much of your own teeth as possible. If sensitivity toothpaste is sufficient - then a dentist should never recommend root canal. If a filling is all that is necessary, then a dentist should never recommend a crown. You want to preserve as much of your natural teeth as possible, and only perform procedures that are absolutely necessary.

Some dentists are arrogant and will talk down to you or make you seem foolish for asking questions. We do not need to take that from our dentists. There are many dental offices nowadays, and they need out business.

A good dentist will always answer your questions and give you both the pros and cons of various procedures. If you are unsure, do some of your own online research.

Always remember that you are the paying customer.

I was just looking through my local newspapers, and there were more dental advertisements than any other kind of advertisements. There were more dental advertisements than restaurant advertisements!

These dental offices need your business, so you have the power.

Rather than avoiding visits, demand more from your dentist, so that visits are more pleasant and less painful. Contrary to common belief, teeth cleaning and dental visits need not be a hellish, last resort action.

In fact, these crappy dental hygienists may have been loosed upon us by our insurance companies so that we will stay away from the dentist.

Ok, maybe not, but what a brilliant strategy that would be!