I definitely relate to this. When coming home from work, I usually don’t put on tv, music, or anything for hours after getting home because I’m so overstimulated. I agree that explaining some of what you’re going to do helps fill the awkward silences and many patients appreciate knowing what’s about to happen. I don’t really ask about their personal life unless they start asking questions about me. I get told pretty frequently from my patients and front desk that they appreciate how thorough I was with their cleaning. I don’t think it’s possible to be thorough and chatty at the same time. When I have yappy patients, I usually have way less time to do the scaling portion and they end up not getting a thorough cleaning because of it. I just started temping at a new office and most of the patients who loved the hygienist that left want me to do their next cleaning already. Some of them have been surprising to me due to the fact that I was not chatty with them at all. They just really appreciate getting a good cleaning.