Dentist Jargon

Today in the mail I got a reminder postcard for my dental appointment. This is the first in a three step treatment program. I have never had dental work done on my teeth before and I'm starting to get a little nervous. The thing I am wondering is do dentists know they have an unpleasant (painful) reputation to uphold? Why do dentists have to use words like "scaling" and "planing". Do they like to scare patients? Wouldn't it be a lot less intimidating to say "remove tarter build up" or "deep clean", instead of "plane and scrape your teeth with a chisel". (I admit, I did add the chisel part.) At my initial check up they told me they would numb the gums so that it would be "bearable". Maybe I should just stay home and loose all my teeth before I'm fifty.