Spa+Clinic Team As I settled into myself, getting ready for the delightful (not!) treatment about to take place (more fillings!), my lovely dental nurse, Nicole Mansfield, informed me she was going to put an eye pillow on my eyes. But she did not just place it on my eyes – she gave me a deeply centreing experience simply through this humble gesture. I later asked Nicole to explain her technique so I could share it with you.
‘I begin by connecting to me first, focusing on breathing gently, feeling my breath. I then connect to the patient in the chair, noticing how they are feeling. Are they nervous, anxious, tight, worried? Are they talking or not talking? How are they breathing? I focus on noticing and feeling, but not thinking about it, just observing and connecting to myself.
‘Then starting just above their eyebrows, I gently and slowly lay the eye pillow over their eyes, ending just over their nose, making sure not to cover their nostrils. I lightly press around both eyes to ensure no light is peeking through, then once again, leaving two to three finger tips lightly over the eyes, I connect with the patient. Just feeling me in my body. Not thinking about the procedure we are about to do, or what I have to do after work, or what I’m going to eat for lunch. Just staying present and letting her feel that it is ok to relax here, to give herself permission to let go here and feel this stillness, even if it only be for a minute.
I will then feel whether to place more eye pillows in the same way over other parts of their body, for instance, knees, abdomen or heart. I then try to proceed like this, in this energy, throughout the whole treatment to stay connected with the patient.
We have had many patients commenting that they feel relaxed after their visit to us, and some fall asleep! The eye pillows we use are special too, they are Featherlight Eye Pillows which are made in the honouring of that energy that I connect to. Not all eye pillows are made with this integrity.’
Thank you Nicole for your care and sharing your heartbased approach. Nicole is part of the very special team at Bangalow Dental Health.
bangalowdental.com.au, featherlight.com.au
