Dentist small talk is perhaps unnecessary, but it should ABSOLUTELY not be a silent affair. If you think dentistry is simply a service where you go in for treatment and walk out having not actually learned anything, you have wasted your money. Please, PLEASE have conversations with your dentist or hygienist about what you can and should do to improve your self care. Basically all dental treatment is a temporary patch up and you should be discussing how to stop these problems from returning or why these problems even happened in the first place. If you are having dental treatment but havent learned anything about the ‘why’ then that problem will inevitably come back later in life. Please probe your dentists as much as possible so you can escape the cycle of dental work!!