From the article: Trypanophobia
The fear of needles can have long-lasting detrimental effects, causing you to skip needed vaccines and medical tests. A severe phobia can actually lower blood pressure, possibly causing you to pass out. Whether you are diabetic and need to test your blood sugar or simply need a tetanus booster, most people eventually have to confront the fear. Have you successfully battled needle phobia? Share your story. Share Your Story
Definitely got this
- My mom tells a funny story all the time. When I was maybe two or three, a doctor gave me a shot and i straight out pulled the needle out of my arm crying. Ever since then, ive had a huge fear of needles. Im 17 now, and its embarrasing! The doctors that i go to think i have blood pressure issues, because my heart rate goes way up whenever i just enter the office when i know i, giong to have to get a shot. Im paraniod every time i see a doctor and i hate it. I want to stay healthy and go off to college but im dreading the shits even though theyre months in advance. Just even talking about it makes me nervous and my heart rate go up. Im so glad that theres other people that go through this and its not just me, because i honestly was beginning to think i was ust unreasonable and crazy.
- —Guest Nicole Bliss
u have no idea
- every time i see a needle my lips turn white. if i havent eaten anything i faint. the second the needle goes in, my head begins to swim and everything gets blurry. there was only one time that i kept myself from fainting, but i threw up.
- —Guest CCC
I am classed as pathetic
- I am a 56yr old female and have suffered from trynanophobia all my life. It has always been a curse but when you are younger you have less cause to have any medical proceedures. blood tests or injections. Unfortunately as you get older a few more things go wrong and you might need to face needles more than before. I had a spinal lamenectomy 10 years ago which was a nightmare as was stiched down my stomach and big clips in my spine. I unfortunately fainted on many occasions. Now I have bee experiencing severe pain in my groin and hip but unfortunately too scared to have the tests doe to find out what is causing it. During an xray a few months ago it was discovered that one of the bolts in my spine has broken and the spinal surgen that I had an appointment with told me that is not the cause of the groin pain. He was quite unimpressed when I started crying when he offered to inject me into my hip to eliminate of of the causes of the groin pain, then told me to go home and think about it.
- —JustEddie
Panic attacks
- I am a 48 year old man who has a paralyzing fear of needles and doctors as well. I recently was scheduled for a physical (something I haven't had in over 30 years) and the anxiety has become overwhelming. The only reason the appointment was scheduled is because my employer is now requiring physicals for health insurance which I feel is a violation of my personal rights. I know it's not rational but nothing can be said or done to get me to overcome the fear. When I was 11 my mother decided to get free vaccination shots at some sort of clinic and I had to be held down to be given the shots while I was in a full blown panic attack. Since then I have avoided almost all contact with doctors of any kind. In the end this will probably cost me but I don't know what can be done to overcome it.
- —Guest Derek
Does anyone else experience this?
- I'm 18 years old and have had an ongoing fear of needles ever since a visit to the doctors in Grade 2, after which I think I scared myself by over describing the experience to my friends. I feel that this description is what I am actually afraid of, because I don't remember actually feeling pain from it. However, as I look up trypanophobia and aichmophobia symptoms, I haven't seen any about scratching and am wondering if anyone else experiences this. Just about every time (I've gone through good and bad spells) I see/hear/am aware of any sort of needle or injection I scratch at certain areas where vaccinations are most common. For example, most of the time i'll scratch at my outer arm, inner elbow, and about two years ago I began scratching the tops of my thighs (I have Epi-pens to thank for that). It's really annoying to me and it makes it difficult to live comfortably in any situation. I just want to know if any one else is like me?
- —Guest Terry
I think I need help:/
- I really don't know what it is but I can't stand injections!I'm crying whilst writing this because just thinking about them makes me shake cry and have a little panic attack type thing:/ in school we can have cervical cancer jabs and I have told my mum I'm not having them and have avoided all 3 of them and aswell about 2 weeks ago my mates went in to have there tetness jabs and my other mate Shannon was really scared so she asked me to go with her and I said yeah and then when I went over with her I had to walk off cuz I felt sick and started crying even though I hadn't even seen the needle and it wasn't me that was having the injection! My friends are like it's not even bad and I tell them to shut up cuz they dint understand how scared I am if them and if they talk about them I cry , I've been like this since I can remember and when I was 11 I had an ependicitus. I wasn't scared if the opp I was scared of the injection I had to have for it, it took half an hour + I had to be restained
- —Guest Mell
GgUWOxFcpCYiqtpLw
- I also sfefur from trypanophobia, but my dentist has nitrous oxide or whatever it is (laughing gas) and because my mother hid the paperwork from me when I got my top two extracted I didn t know about the needle until I was under the gas, also semi conscious, you should ask if they can give you the gas. And I can tell you that it will kill no matter how much Valium you take because mine did during and after. Sorry:( but atleast you only have to go once, I had to split mine up, so im Getting my bottom two teeth extracted August 24. Good luck tho.
- —Guest MvpkYtBaUpMzMJWEL
Pain is easier than Fear.
- ive had to have a few cavitys filled, and the first time my jerk of a redhaired annoying stuck up dentist decided to pretend that he was just cleaning my teeth, because at the young age of 11 i would never notice the NEEDLE he was about to shove into my gum. it didnt even numb me at all, i just told him i was fine and dealt with the pain, i do it every time. it hurts a lot but its better than a needle. i hate blood drives at my school. everybody walking around with the little cotton balls taped to there arms.... god thats so disgusting. i know what was there earlyer, i bet its all purple under that cotton ball. god its indecent wear a long sleeved shirt for gods sake! im not just scared of medical needles, tattoo needles are bad too. theyre injecting ink into your skin! injecting! thats gross.i dont like the idea of things draining my veins or putting something in it. its just pertifying.
- —Guest needles are the worst
How did it get this bad?
- reading these responses ive noticed a lot of you guys are either teenagers with no choice when it comes to needles, like me, or older and refusing medical treatment. The mean nurse at my doctor knows me, she has to hold me down every time. My mom never tells me when i'm going to have to get shots, she thinks that makes it better. its so much worse... now i just fear the doctor in general. its not even just when im actually getting a shot, its seeing it on tv. oh my god i hate it so much, i just instantly feel like my chest is lighter but sinking and i just close my eyes and gasp and its so awful because theyres never a freaking warning.... guys never watch the movie trainspotting, its so needly and horrible. i dont want to become like you crazy older people refusing medical treatment and giving up on traveling because of this fear, i dont want it to take controll of my life. but gaurdisil can just f off i'm not fing doing that okay?
- —Guest oh jeez needz
Needles, Needles, Needles....
- I have bradycardia, and so it takes me about 20 minutes o waiting in a chair for them to finally get all the blood, and sometimes the vein becomes constricted or fluids start to develop under the skin in a sort of ball. one time it took half an hour, then i nearly fainted, and the laboratory technition told me, that it was a pain in the arse to actually get my blood. I had to go today, they wanted 3 viles, and i broke down crying, refusing, until the doctor found out i recently had blood work done, and used that, it otherwise would have taken at least 40 or 30 minutes.... ugh.
- —elizebethelise
I am terrified of needles
- I have a terrible fear of needles,if i'm at a doctors appointment and have to take a shot i automatically start to cry. My doctor has known me my whole life, and understands my phobia for needles. I've tried EVERYTHING to get rid of my fear of needles, but my mom always had to be there. when i went for my first day at the doctors office, the only word i really payed attention of was the word "needle" and be -for i knew it i was around the corner from the room i was suppose to be in. i thought that this would ruin my life. it got to the point i would want to miss the vaccinations i needed. I'm still trying to live with it and take it one step at a time.
- —Guest Monica
I am terrified of needles
- I have a terrible fear of needles,if i'm at a doctors appointment and have to take a shot i automatically start to cry. My doctor has known me my whole life, and understands my phobia for needles. I've tried EVERYTHING to get rid of my fear of needles, but my mom always had to be there. when i went for my first day at the doctors office, the only word i really payed attention of was the word "needle" and be -for i knew it i was around the corner from the room i was suppose to be in. i thought that this would ruin my life. it got to the point i would want to miss the vaccinations i needed. I'm still trying to live with it and take it one step at a time.
- —Guest Monica
i'm from south africa & this is my story
- After a violent 8 year relationship with my 6yo daughter's father, gettng a tattoo is something I really want to have done, just because I can, just because my x would never have allowed it & killed me if I ever did, what tattoo do I want u ask, a big colourfull cupcake with my baby girl's name, Kelly, on a banner over da cupcake with her bithdate beneath it. Does it sound that bad? I can't imagine why it should! But, I'm petrified of needles, wht do I do? People think I'm crazy, because "there's nothing 2 be afraid of", it's killing me...
- —Guest megan
Would rather get sick
- SO I'm 13 and I have been trified of needles since before I can remember (I'm 13 now). I think that its because when i was little I had a Spine tap...but it may just be me. As I get older, instead of getting better, I get worse. Just the mention of needles makes me start to breath really fast, my lips go dry and after a couple of seconds I start to cry. I can't help myself. My friends would always tease me and do that trick with a machanical pencil, but now they can't because I will scream. In science class we did a test with a scringe and I ran out of the school building!
- —Guest Frost
How I got over my fear of blood tests
- I used to be really scared of blood draws. One time, I almost fainted, and I used to cry and scream a lot. I am 15 now. Anyway, I got over my fear by: 1. listening to an ipod. It always helps distract me. 2. Not looking at the needle. That just makes it worse. and 3. I went to Highland Park Hospital for a blood test one time, and, to this day, I think that they were the reason why I am not scared of blood tests. I was crying really hard because I was scared. The phlebotomists there are really nice and patient, and I have a few favorite ones. They are good at drawing blood, and they always get it on the first try. Over time, I began to trust them, and eventually get over my fear. I still am scared silly when it comes to shots, though.
- —kittykat505
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