Tips to Help You Remember to Floss
Many dentists (and patients) are concerned with brushing, flossing, and oral hygiene. They’re keen to teach and learn the right technique. Flossing is especially crucial because it’s easy to do it wrong and end up hurting yourself. Some of us floss the first time and have unpleasant experiences, so we avoid it ever after. Fortunately, flossing isn’t rocket science. You could watch online videos, or get a hands-on demo from your trusted Parramatta dentist.
But once you’re comfortable with your flossing style, another matter comes up. There are simply days when it slips your mind. It’s not that you don’t want to. You just forget to do it. So how do you fix that? You could start with the basics, like putting a reminder on your phone. Or if you’re good with brushing, just add flossing to the tail end of your daily teeth hygiene routine. It doesn’t matter what comes first, but you could use brushing as a mental trigger to floss.
Leave Yourself Dental Love Notes
Phone reminders are excellent, but sometimes, an analogue nudge works just as well. Put a sticky note on your bathroom mirror reminding you to floss. It doesn’t even have to be done while you brush. With the mirror note, you could essentially spend a few seconds flossing every time you’re in the bathroom. You could put notes in other places too, wherever your eyes drift.
For example, when you lose your train of thought at work or in the car, you’re stuck in traffic, you probably have a pattern. Maybe you glance at your rear view mirror, peer through your car window, or anywhere that usually catches your attention. Look into putting a sticky note there to remind you to floss as soon as you get to work. Making it a habit to take that note with you and writing up a new one for tomorrow can also help for the next time.
Make Your Flossing Mobile
There are lots of flossing options, but flossing forks or floss picks are the most portable, as well as flossing brushes that look like tiny bottle brushes. You can stash them anywhere – in your office desk, in the car, in your make-up bag … you could have two or three in all these spaces. Then every time you bump into one, it’ll remind you. They’re a convenient tool for flossing on the go. Other habits you could develop are flossing before bed, or after snacks and meals.
You might also add some flavour to it. In many products, added flavouring is a slippery slope, because the pleasant taste comes with extra calories and chemical additives. In floss, the flavour is benign, because you don’t swallow the string. That said, its tastiness makes the process more enjoyable, which means you’re more likely to do it. Get multiple variants, and try a new one each time. It’ll give you something to look forward to. But be careful how you dispose of your floss picks. You don’t want your dental hygiene habits to turn you into a litterbug.
For dental health tips on flossing and general hygiene, call Dental Avenue Parramatta today on 02 8004 0055 and our friendly team will be happy to help!
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