How To Get Over A Needle Phobia Fast

Does The Person Faint With Needles

Try the following for people who faint from their vasovagal reflex:

• Do’s
• Have the person lying down, or;have their legs;elevated while the needle is given.
• After the needle, the person;should stay lying or sitting and only stand up gradually and slowly.;
• Do ask the person to relax the ‘needle arm’, while tensing the muscles of the opposite;arms, torso and legs.

Strategies To Overcome Fear Of Ivs

Here are six steps you can take to minimize fear of IVs and relax throughout the process.

• Talk with your medical team. Dont keep your concerns to yourself. If youre scared, your body can tense up, making IV insertion more difficult for you and your medical team. Share your concerns with your care providers and ask for their tips on how you can get past your anxiety.
• Think differently. Often, the best way to overcome fear is to understand the root of what is making you fearful. Maybe you had a bad hospital experience as a child. Maybe youre afraid of losing control. The more you understand your fears, the faster you can cope with them.
• Ask for a numbing cream. These creams can reduce pain during IV insertion, keeping the area of the injection numb for a few hours. The cream will need to be applied 30 to 60 minutes before the IV is inserted.
• Lie down. If you tend to get lightheaded or faint, ask the medical staff if you can lie down while the IV is administered.
• Distract yourself. Distraction can calm you during the procedure if youre afraid of IVs. Try listening to music or watching a video on your phone. Close your eyes and picture a stress-free place!
• Breathe slowly and deeply. Use breathing techniques to relax your mind and body. When you focus on your breath, oxygen speeds to your brain and your body relaxes.

If you are interested in learning more about what to expect before, during and after IV therapy, check out our blog on Techniques to Prepare and Care for an IV.

Can You Ever Fully Overcome A Fear Of Needles

Research shows that a fear of needles does tend to . For certain segments of the population, however, that fear doesn’t go away if they aren’t proactive in overcoming it. The fact that a quarter of adults has a fear of needles and the majority of them are acquired in childhood tells you that they don’t just go away when you do nothing, says Taddio.

People with a fear of needles should start by speaking with a doctor or psychologist with expertise in cognitive behavioural and exposure therapy, ideally for needle phobias. If youre looking for a healthcare professional, McMurtry recommends this list of anxiety specialists in Canada. Another resource is Overcoming Medical Phobias: How to Conquer Fear of Blood, Needles, Doctors and Dentists, which includes exercises to work through at home. Anxiety Canada also has self-help strategies to help you learn how to manage your fear and phobia.

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How Many People Suffer From Needle Phobia In The Uk

Anxiety UK reports needle phobia in 3-10% of UK adults.

Although needle phobia is most common in children, Dr Lee says it often persists into adulthood.

One 2018 meta-analysis, based on 119 research studies, reported needle phobia to be present in almost all children, 20-50% of adolescents and 20-30% of young people, she explains.

The authors also concluded that 16% of adults avoided flu vaccination due to needle phobia. Furthermore, 27% of hospital employees, 18% of workers on long term care institutions and 8% of healthcare workers also avoided flu vaccinations because of needle phobia.

Even more common though, is a general fear of needles.

Although not as severe as needle phobia, more than 1 in 5 young adults are thought to have a fear of needles, Micklewright explains.

Before Heading Into A Shot Or Blood Draw Practice Deep Breathing

For people who just get really nervous or anxious around needles, employing relaxation techniques like deep breathing can help, says Brown. Doing what you can to relax your body physiologically can make a difference in how you experience fear. Specifically, it calms you down and minimizes the risk of hyperventilation, which is not only uncomfortable but also signals to your body that there is something to be afraid of, Brown says. Breaths should be slow, and your abdomen should expand with each one. Heres more information on exactly how to breathe deeply to best calm anxiety.

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You Can Also Reward Yourself For Facing Your Fear

We are more likely to engage in a behavior when theres a clear reward, says Dr. Spray. Theres no instant gratification from getting one flu shot or having your lipids tested for high cholesterol. By establishing a clear, immediate reward, you may be able to willingly face your source of anxiety and fear. Everybodys rewards are going to be different, so pick something thats enticing to you. Maybe its treating yourself to your favorite latte afterward, or meeting a friend for lunch. Whatever it is, telling yourself youll get X reward after can be motivation to face those uncomfortable feelings.

What Causes Needle Phobia

Needle phobia results from a combination of factors :;

• Genetics. An unusually large percentage of those with needle phobia have relatives with needle phobia, which suggests a genetic basis for it. Indeed, from an evolutionary perspective, it is protective to be fearful of having your skin pierced, because that would make you more careful about avoiding cuts, bruises or injuries. ;
• Life events. People with needle phobias may have had a bad, painful needle in the past; or hearing or witnessing someone with a bad experience.

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How To Overcome Needle Phobia On Vaccination Day

Vaccinators will have plenty of experience in supporting patients with Needle Phobia, so be honest about how youre feeling. They will help you through the process. Below are 4 additional strategies that you may find helpful on the actual day of your vaccination

Distract

Your actual contact with the needle will last 1-2 seconds. Therefore, it can be helpful to try distraction techniques to stop you worrying about it beforehand. You could watch videos on your phone, listen to music, or play a simple game with yourself, like counting how many green things you can see in the room.;

Accept

If you can feel the physical sensations starting in your body, dont try to fight them. They will pass quicker if you can accept and tolerate them. Explain how youre feeling to the vaccination team and if you feel faint, ask if you can lie down. Remind yourself, the feeling will pass.;

Relax

Taking slow, deep breaths and consciously relaxing areas of muscle tension, like the neck and shoulders, may help you feel more comfortable as you wait to be vaccinated.;

Applied Tension

Preparing To Overcome Needle Phobia

The good news is, there is plenty that you can start doing now to prepare yourself ahead of your vaccination date. Essential, is to begin changing the way you think about vaccinations.

Self Talk

Be mindful of the language you use in the run up to your vaccination. Telling yourself that it will be awful terrible or a nightmare will only add to your anxiety. Instead, use less emotionally-charged language, like it will be unpleasant but over quickly. Remind yourself of when you have had needles before and been fine. And consider how many millions of people across the world are in the same situation.

Perspective

When you find yourself worrying, bring a dose of perspective to the situation. Close your eyes and try to visualise the 5 minutes youll be at the vaccination centre for, marked on a timeline of your life. Try to zoom out, so that you can see your whole life on one timeline. Better still, keep zooming out, now seeing the timelines of your parents, your grandparents, your great grandparents, the Middle Ages, the Romans, all the way back in time. See that in the grand scheme of things, your vaccination is a blip in time and one youll soon forget about.;

You may also want to try the helicopter view exercise I outlined in previous blog here.

Exposure

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How Common Is Trypanophobia

Whether youre a child with type 1 diabetes who requires insulin injections or an adult needing a shot for a medical condition, needles spark fear. In fact, trypanophobia, or a fear of needles, is surprisingly prevalent. About 25% of adults are afraid of needles, and around 7% of adults avoid immunizations because of their fear. 1 The phobia is also called aichmophobia, which Merriam-Webster defines as a morbid fear of sharp or pointed objects .2

The majority of children have a fear of needles, while estimates for needle fear ranged from 20 to 50% in adolescents and 20 to 30% in young adults. Typically, aichmophobia decreases as people get older, and it is more common in females than males, according to one systematic review and meta-analysis. 3

Limits Of The Vital Signs

Although the four core vital signs offer a reliable, quantifiable way to evaluate a patients health, they arent perfect.

There are definitely limitations, especially when it comes to blood pressure, Ruff says.;

Ideally, blood pressure is measured in a dim room when a patient is seated with feet flat on the floor after five minutes of rest, Ruff says.;

We know that is totally not how it happens in the doctors office or hospital, she says. If youre in the ER, chances are youre lying on a stretcher, youre super anxious, youre in the exact opposite setting of a relaxed, calm situation.

The reason why vital signs are so vital is because they are not subjective. Your heart rate is your heart rate.

Ultimately, its important to interpret the vital signs in context, Johnson says.

We often try to use tools or systems that give us easy answers: If your heart rate is this high, or your blood pressure is this, then you have to be worried, he says. But you still have to take each one on a case-by-case basis.;

The signs of , for example, include elevated heart rate, respiratory rate and temperature. But those same signs could also indicate that you just got back from a jog. Vital signs have to be applied appropriately in the correct setting, Johnson says.

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How Fear Of Needles Starts

Let’s be honest. Nobody particularly enjoys getting shots.

But for some people, just thinking about needles can trigger a reaction that’s more serious than momentary discomfort. Full-blown needle phobia can induce extreme anxiety to the tune of dizziness, nausea, chest pain and a racing heart.

Worse, it can keep people from getting important vaccines or going to the doctor altogether.

Dr. Timothy Hendrix, medical director of AdventHealth Centra Care Urgent Care, says being afraid of a shot is normal.

“Most people who I’ve encountered don’t like needles,” he said. “Some have a fear that prevents them from getting immunized, which can affect their long-term health.”

Grace-Ann Sutherland, MSN, an AdventHealth nurse practitioner, said she’s seen that fear prevent patients from getting shots and lab tests.

“I’ve seen people pass out,” she says. “It’s a real fear.”

A new study out of Atlanta shows that in teens, fear of needles may correspond with the number of vaccine injections they received in a single doctor visit as young children . The more shots they got in one sitting, the more severe their fear became.

Receiving several shots at once can be especially difficult for children, says Sutherland, the nurse practitioner.

Her own son developed an intense fear of needles that persisted into adulthood after receiving four immunizations at one time as a boy.

Dr. Hendrix notes there may be a trade-off between spreading out vaccinations and missing an opportunity.

What Happens During Needle Phobia

For those with needle phobia, a needle situation will activate their body’s alarm system , which leads to an increased heart rate and blood pressure. After this,;the body compensates with the opposite — a vasovagal reflex which causes a lowering of the heart rate and blood pressure. In some individuals, this vasovagal reflex is so extreme that the person may faint.;

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Tips On Climbing Your Fear Ladder

Overcoming your fear will take some time and practice, but it will make life less stressful and you will feel less anxious.

• Dont be ashamed of being scared of injections you are not alone.
• Tell health professionals about your worries.
• Think about what helps.
• Learn applied tension technique if you faint or feel very faint, or breathing for relaxation exercise if you feel panicky.
• Overcome your fear one step at a time.

*Information sourced from a;Guide to overcoming your fear of needles;from Guy’s and St. Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust.

You Can Overcome A Fear Of Needles

You or someone you know may fear needles, injections, blood draws, or IVs. Fear of needles is very common. Most children, as many as 50% of teenagers, and 20-30% or more of adults have some fear of needles.;

Fear of needles can limit your life and harm your health. It can keep you from getting necessary medical and dental care or becoming pregnant through in vitro fertilization . With COVID-19, many people want to overcome their fear of needles to get vaccinated.;

These 6 steps can help.

Step 1: Identify the Fears

Ask yourself what exactly you fear. For example, do you fear that:;; ;The pain will be intense or unendurable?;; ;You will faint?;; ;The needle will cause damage ?;; ;The healthcare worker will be incompetent and need to stick you repeatedly?

Step 2: Get the Facts

After putting your fears into words, see if the facts actually support your fears. Make a table with 2 column and several rows:;;; ;In the left column, write your fears, one per row.;;; ;In the right column, write specific facts, science, and logic that either support or disprove the fear.;

Correct misinformation about the procedure or the body. Answer questions like:;;; ;Is what the fear says true?;;; ;Does what the fear predict actually happen? And if it does, how long does it last?;;; ;How bad is it really in the larger scheme of things? Is it truly the worst that could happen?;;; ;Are healthcare professionals really sadists who enjoy torturing patients?;;; ;How can you cope with fear without giving in to it?;

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Anxious To Get Your Covid

As the mass vaccination effort against COVID-19 continues across the country, many Canadians are feeling relieved that soon it will be their turn to get the shot.

But for others, the thought of getting a needle or being exposed to photos and videos of others getting vaccinated can be anxiety-inducing.

In fact, a survey conducted in 2012 found needle fear was the reason for seven per cent of immunization non-compliance among adults and eight per cent of children.

• Global News

The study ultimately found needle fear was present in a quarter of adults and two thirds of children surveyed.

But what is needle phobia and can these feelings of and anxiety be managed during COVID-19 vaccination?

Here’s what experts say.

What Causes Needle Phobias

Needle Phobias are a learnt behavioural;response that can be caused by a number of different things.

For some people the fear started as a child due to being forced to have an injection. For others it stems from a panic attack when having an injection.

Some people developed the fear from watching someone else being scared having an injection.

Almost invariably anxiety is one of the major factors that causes & sustains the fear. Thereby producing a loop within the neurology that goes anxiety = Needle Phobias = anxiety = Needle Phobias, etc.

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Is It Possible For People To Overcome Needle Phobia So They Can Easily Get Vaccines

Yes. The strategies that work the best ranges from simple distraction to hypnosis or behavioral therapy. People of all ages can go through relatively short-term treatment to improve or overcome needle phobia.

For many people, once theyve completed treatment, theyre done and the phobia no longer impacts their life, while others may need regular tune-ups to get back on track, Rollins said.

The goal isnt to learn to love needles. Its to get to a place where you can get a shot or have blood taken with the mild discomfort everyone experiences.

She encourages people of all ages to seek help if they need it, especially kids who need to get vaccines frequently.

All kids can have a one-off experience with a shot where they are way more distressed than usual, but you know its turned into more of a phobia when the distress is happening more often than not, when everyone involved feels traumatized afterward, or if the child starts experiencing anxiety well before the doctors appointment, Rollins said.

Vaccines are essential to protect children and people of all ages. And COVID-19 vaccines for children under age 12 are being tested on small groups of children now and could be ready by the end of summer. So, Rollins said now is a great time to think about getting help for children who need it.

You have time to see someone, Rollins said. People can get past needle phobia.