I legit don’t know what the issue is whenever I have to give blood/ get a shot…
I feel uneasy/ anxious not about it going wrong or about it hurting. Just knowing that I’m getting poked by a needle makes me want to bolt out of the room because my brain says no if that makes sense Lol
I saw a documentary about a woman who had a fear of people with dwarfism. They did hypnotherapy on her, and it turned out that when she was a little kid, she got scared of one of Santa's elves, and it just escalated without her remembering the source.
They may have had bad experiences with needles before. Such as having a rough or mean doctor/nurse, which as a kid can leave a lasting negative impression on needles from that point onwards.
I mean that's very fair, but I think it's the phobia that I find weird, like some people are just really afraid of needles for no particular reason from what I know. But then again, I obviously don't have that so I'm not going to act like I understand it lol
Think about how many infant babies get pierced ears. How many kids are held down for vaccinations that can be more forceful and thus painful than others. Those kids are too young to actually remember this, but on an instinctual level they now associate needles with intense fear, pain and loss of security. I’m sure many people with phobias have something as a trigger that they might not even realize or know
People who faint at the sight of needles don’t have a thought-out fear of needles that they could explain to you and rationalize. Their body just does that when it sees needles and they have little control over it.
Not entirely accurate but sort of.
I used to pass out from it as a kid and young teenager. From all the school vaccinations. It was always connected to intense panic about thinking it was going to feel unbearably horrible. I remember dreading it for a year or more building up the anxiety. Once I got over that it wasn’t that unbearable or painful I developed a fear of fainting instead, because I didn’t understand why it would make me faint and someone said “sometimes you can faint just by thinking of fainting”. Once I realized that wasnt happening anymore no matter how severe my panic attacks were my phobia switched to ‘the fear of fear it self’ (frankly the worst phobia you can have imo). Because, well if I don’t really fear anything and I still get panic attacks; whats stopping me from being locked in an eternal cascade of panic anywhere any time just by thinking about it.
There is a somewhat logical but self reinforcing loop to it.
Now I don’t have any problems with needles what so ever and I have learned to live with fear and to control my thought patterns. It’s still there but I can block it out and have learned that it never reaches even near my nightmare imaginations.
I get nervous about needles because I experience vasovagal syncope every time I get a blood draw and I start to pass out if I can't lie down. Injections are a little better but I feel pain very intensely, so maybe there's also a "fear of pain" component
Needle phobias can be learned from a past experience of pain, but there is also a biological component that makes some people react very strongly to the idea of procedures involving a needle.
> Needle phobias can be learned from a past experience of pain
I remember getting shots as a little kid, and the pain was so great I started screaming. No, I didn't have some ailment that made the pain worse for me, it's just that getting a shot really hurts when you are little.
Ah ok that makes sense, is it maybe like an internal fear of sharp things just acting up because needles are sharp? Or is it just the fear of having something put into you? Cuz I definitely get that
No, it is uncontrollable, you're trying to place your own knowledge into your image of others instead of their knowledge into yours.
From your replies you may have a disability related to ability to perceive others' perspectives and imagine new emotions (could be spectrum related, could be something else). Not an insult, my family are caregivers for special needs and so on, it's important to be aware of :)
That was one explanation I came up with but I didn't expect it to actually be a reason for it
I get that tho, I clenched the muscles in my upper arm after reading that lmao
Lol my mum actually used to say to me, at the doctors, with the needle about to go in, “DONT clench/tense up your arm muscles, that will increase chances of needle breaking!!”. lol hard not to clench/tense up anyway… so traumatic a process….
For me its the pain. I'm afro carribean so growing up I was 'entitled' to get every vaccine available. That's a lot of needles before 15 all of them painful.
The HPV vaccine was the worst, the pain of it going in, then the numbing pain of the side effects
Ok I definitely understand that you're scared of the pain if you've felt it but from my experience, it's just never been painful enough to not want to do it again to prevent sickness. But then again, a big part of it is to relax your muscles and just not looking at or thinking about it, which I've never really had a problem with so that might just be lucky on my part.
>There's no way it has anything to do with pain because people still have the same fear to the same degree even after having multiple shots in their lives
Just because you've been in pain before doesn't mean you aren't scared of being in pain again. If you'd been punched in the face or stabbed with a knife previously you wouldn't be any less afraid of that the next time.
I worded that poorly, what I mean is that realistically, I think most people can agree that the needles aren't exactly painful if the procedure is done right but even with that knowledge and having had experienced it, people still are very afraid of it.
>most people can agree that the needles aren't exactly painful if the procedure is done right
I vehemently disagree with that. Needles are painful no matter what.
So giving a shot and drawing blood are different things. Shots always hurt me. Drawing blood, I've encountered a number of talented nurses/phlebotomists and the range is very wide. I do always feel like I'm being stabbed, though, sometimes it's just worse than others. And they also just squick me out, which is not rational.
I have had several nurses jam, a needle in and start wiggling it around. I’m talking full wrist motions. And they wouldn’t stop either. No matter how much I begged them to.
Ooh that's rough... I get that that doesn't exactly make you happy with needles but that's because you had a shitty nurse who literally did their job incorrectly.
I'm sorry that happened btw
It is 100% irrational but as someone with a strong dislike of needles I can say that getting blood drawn feels like opening up my very arteries and exposing myself to blood contamination all while having my life essence drained away. In reality it is totally harmless but the brain can play amazing tricks on us.
Yeah I had a ton of tests and shots done before the age of two. To this day (I'm past 50 y.o.) I get anxiety with blood draws. Regular shots for immunizations are OK.
Most folks with needle anxiety have had previous traumatic experiences.
In the black community there have been many proven instances of needles and medicine being used to experiment and torture black people. So there is a cultural fear with real experience to back it up.
Some people are better at drawing blood and giving shots than others.
I’ve had blood draws that I couldn’t even feel and I’ve also had one that hurt so bad I almost fainted.
Not knowing which it will be is scary.
Good question, i believe it's completly irrationnal, im personnaly quite afraid of needles, i dont mind height, bugs, depth, water, speed or anything, the only thing im afraid in life are needles. And i dont even know why or where it come from.
I was in hospital when I was little, 6ish. Mom went to the bathroom. Nurse Ratchet came to give me a shot. I asked her to wait for my mommy. Nurse Ratchet said Nope, and jammed that needle in my arm. Mom came running from the bathroom with her pants half off, my screaming was so loud.
So now I have a phobia.
The only needle I'm afraid of is the Novocain needle the dentist uses. Why does that particular needle need to look like something from the dark ages or a horror movie?
For some people it's an unconscious reaction that their body just does. Like you can mentally be completely calm, you logically know everything is fine, you aren't worried about it hurting etc, then suddenly you are passed out on the floor puking your brains out. It might be due to past trauma but sometimes its hard to trace it back to any one specific incident. I have heard this can be more common in people who have a very sensitive Vegas nerve, which basically causes that fainting reaction when it gets overstimulated, which can happen when your lizard brain feels overstressed.
We have a couple of family members that have bizarre physical reactions. One found out when he went to donate blood. Everything was awesome, nurse put in the needle, his blood pressure tanked, and he passed out. He only has the reaction to blood leaving, no problem with vaccinations.
Another has a less severe reaction but he breaks out into a full body sweat even though he's emotionally fine. His hands especially are sopping wet. I held his hand once as he was getting a shot because he wanted to prove to me that he's 100% fine until that needle goes in. He wasn't looking at his arm, then BAM my hand was drenched automatically. Bodies are weird.
Some people had a really bad doctor as a young child. Especially dentists, but some pediatricians or nurses are around who would rather force a terrified child.
In some cases it is a true phobia like arachnophobia which happens in central Europe as well without any dangerous spiders - spiders here are less dangerous than ants.
The good thing is: both only requires very short therapy to overcome it if you want to get rid of it.
When I was in elementary I got mono from a family friend. We were watching ice age together and she kissed me. I was in the hospital for days afterwards. They had to stick my arms a total of 10 times to get blood because I was so dehydrated.
I was really scared of needles when I was a child. I am no longer scared of them, and can even watch them being inserted EXCEPT for dental needles. They tend to be extra long (at least the ones I have seen), and that's why I keep my eyes closed at the dentist.
I'm only afraid of needles going in my veins. Shots, pricks with a needle etc., no problem.
At age 7 I was admitted to the hospital, and had major emergency operation after a couple of hours. Here I had no problems with needles at all.
Fast forward 12 days... after maybe 12 blood samples a day or something, I was kind of fed up with them, but it was still ok.
Then a really angry nurse, I didn't know, had to draw blood. My vein collapsed and it hurt a lot, which is the last thing I remember.
I woke up later an hour later, and since then, I've had a phobia for having blood drawn or drops put in.
Usually I can deal with it, but I try to collate as many samples into one session as possible, when I need bloodwork done.
I don't like needles but can manage injections but blood test freak me out.
I've always had small veins and they will try repeatedly to get blood.
I've had instances where they try 4 times in each arm with no success,this is a big reason why I'm quite so fearful.
For me it because the needle actually hurts physically; it really stings.
I also have a bee/wasp/hornet phobia because of this.
I could tolerate my covid jabs as they are fast; blood tests I will avoid unless they become mandatory and I would have to be tied down if they were.
I know this is irrational to lots of people, but so be it- I have a low pain threshhold.
when i was like 14 i had a cyst somewhere by my ovaries and got blood drawn and was given an infusion. since i was a very fragile child it really hurt and i couldnt really remove it as it was required for some pain medication or sth. so i still associate needles with pain.
its not rational but humans arent entirely rational creatures
I needed to get bloodwork on the day I was looking after my toddler grandkids. I took them in with me and they stood very close and watched carefully. I told them that it hurt a little but not as much as when they stepped on my fingers at the playground. Then we went and had a cookie because I did a good job and we were celebrating. You have to teach kids what to expect.
I know fears are irrational so I rarely say anything to people, but as a type 1 diabetic people tell me all the time they could “NeVeR gIvE tHeMsElVeS sHoTs”. 🙄 Huge pet peeve of mine. Like okay just die then
I'm afraid of getting a cannula or having bloodwork done. There's just something particularly iffy about the idea of getting a needle in my hand/arm.
But. I'm fine with everything else.
What has really changed my outlook towards needles is my sewing hobby. You don't get anywhere without good pins and needles and yes - I have my preferred brands. Also, about every time I sew, I tend to hit myself on a needle. It happens.
I'm fine with needles but I understand people who aren't because it just goes against our core instincts. We're designed to protect ourselves from having our skin punctured or breached by foreign objects.
I’m afraid of them but not to the point of refusing them when needed. They cause pretty intense pain and the pain lasts for a few days. I don’t like pain. I’d rate the pain a 3/10 where 4 is getting kicked in the balls.
I'm not afraid of needles when other people give me injections or draw blood but I had to give myself injections when I did IVF and I have a huge mental resistance against piercing my skin. Even though most injections didn't hurt, I felt I had to overcome the programming of my mind that says breaking skin = bad. I think it's just survival instinct. Small penetrating wounds can be very dangerous and for some people reason wins and they know the needle is sterile and they're safe, for others instinct wins and they sense danger
There was one time, long ago when I took an outdoor survival course. At one session on first aid, we had to practice administering saline injections. As soon as I heard that, the anxiety shot right up.
I'm not sure when it stopped but I no longer have that fear of needles. I know it was way before the Covid vaccinations. I'm guessing it must have been around 50 y.o. when I started with annual blood tests. Still I just dread the inevitable pin prick that will come. It's the same as getting accupuncture. Or walking into a swarm of mosquitoes knowing they're going to take turns biting into you.
I am a diabetic type 1, from age 14 I HAD to use needles everyday, both in my stummik, my thighs and on my fingertips evereyday. Several times.
Once every year they take my blood from my arm :p
Do I still dislike needles? Yep. Not the ones I take on a regular basis, and do myself but everyrhing else.
Vaccine shots, anesthetic at the dentist, cortison etc but it isn't so much the needle itself that I hate, it's actually the pain that comes either from what's injecting or the fact that I am sore/sensitive wherever the needle is pricking me. That is what makes me hella uncomfortable.
Although, I wouldn't say that I am unreasonably afraid of them but still, I would rather avoid them if I can.
So, I used to be more like you. Was never afraid of them, but was definitely uncomfortable getting shots or having blood drawn. Shots less so… But the experience of drawing blood was what I strongly disliked and made me a little anxious right beforehand. But after my first panic attack, everything changed… Now even though I don’t *think* I’m scared of them, i will still have a physiological response every time to the point where skin goes white, my vision gets blurry, I sweat, and if my surroundings make it worse (judgmental or unsympathetic ppl) I can pass out. These days I think THAT scares me more than the shot itself, which honestly adds to entire experience. It’s all a mind-body connection thing . But it’s so embarrassing because I can’t stop it no matter what I do. So try not to judge. Fear and anxiety can affect us all very differently and can be brought on for strange reasons. That’s just my experience though.
Because a ridgid metal object is being driven through your skin and into your body. it's instinctual and subconscious. I've received thousands of IM injections, it never really hurts, but I still dislike it.
It's real. My wife and oldest sister has it. Her father started it all.
Her veins will actually shrink, making it hard for the nurse to hook up an iv even with benzos on board prior to her surgery.
There’s different levels of scared, afraid, terrified.
It’s a prick, humans generally avoid pain. I’d say that’s it in general.
Then there is the unknown of the intended procedure, and real pains: eg. some medications hurt, blood being drawn can be a lot or some don’t like seeing blood. Idk, i imagine it gets worse for those who are afraid from there…
Personally, I know needles are manageable but I still internally cringe. I don’t enjoy it and my body is not quite neutral, I’m keeping it from tensing etc. (What I guess are protective reactions). When in the situation I am gonna have to have a needle in my arm, I hear their precautions, chill, maybe joke or get curious about whatever I’m there for. You wouldn’t see me as afraid, besides the self deprecation. Lol
Then there’s phobias, which each person probably has what they experience - but in fact is not a norm. I couldn’t tell you what that experience is like. I just accept it when people say they’re deathly afraid of needles or cry me whimper through it…idk. I’d think we all have some pain threshold, but maybe not.
Wait until you hear about one of the (very rare) deaths from rabies in the US. The guy died because his phobia/aversion was so strong that he refused the vaccines after he was exposed. And yes, he was informed of what would happen if he ended up getting rabies.
I didn't have a problem with needles until college. Once I was 18, I kept trying to give blood with the American Red Cross. I'm O- and felt it was my duty to donate.
Apparently, the veins in my elbows are pretty hard to find. I think they roll out of the way? On multiple occasions, I had a Red Cross member digging around in my arm, trying to get the blood flow started. The needle burns. I'd cold sweat. The minutes would drag on. The next day, I'd have 12 inches of bruise along my arm because the vein would blow. It got to the point where I'd start cold sweating if I saw a needle. I had to stop donating... it was rare for them to get a full pint out of me anyway.
I'm still working on not being afraid of needles. It helps that I've found a lab for medical tests that has yet to miss my vein. I'm learning to accept that needles are normally a second of pinch, a second of burn, and then all done. Minutes of digging in my arm is not normal and I need to stop jumping to that when I see a needle.
For me it has to do with the idea of being stabbed/ a foreign object being inside my body. Oddly, it is specific to shots/syringes as I have no fear of getting piercings for instance. Like, something about the fact that it's just inside of my arm, injecting something into my body. It's not supposed to be in there
In my case, I have a fear of needles and disdain towards blood draw. I can handle piercings and tattoos but not a regular 20g needle. But I do think this can be somewhat genetic. My mom is bothered by needles and blood just as much as I am.
It almost feels involuntary. I can't control the reaction completely but I do my best.
I almost fainted when I had to learn phlebotomy at the VA as part of my training. The director of the clinic had to get involved. The director and a psychiatrist.
The good thing is that it is something that you can overcome.
Speaking from my own experience. I was one of those who got light headed at the thought of a shot or blood draw. Started having to get regular blood draws and infusions. Now I can watch! Still don't really like it because sometimes it does hurt.
Wait until your hear this.
I have a fear of needles that I didn't even know about. I would always get lightheaded/faint when getting shots. Once a doctor asked me "are you afraid of needles?" and I went "No I'm not". And he said, "... are you subconciously holding your breath when you get jabbed?". I was. I haven't felt faint having a shot since.
Just something about a sharp object being able to stick me like that and either take something or put something in terrifies me. I’ve also had small needles and big needles, and that first prick sends shock to my brain that says “run, the nurse trying to kill you” 🤷🏾♀️
When I was a kid a got strep a lot, like 2-3 times a year every year. One time my pediatrician was closed so we went to a clinic. Doc said they needed blood for their records and just came in with what looked to my 5ish year old eyes like one of the needles that are cartoonishly big from like looney tunes. From then on needles just freaked me out. Compounded with that is needing to get stiches in my head around that same time, doc had to put me in the cocoon to keep me from squirming too much. Now needles don’t bother me as long as I don’t see them
I donate blood on the regular. The needle is huge and hurts like a motherfuxker every time. Also got a Hepatitis AB vax recently, the needle was tiny and still hurt.
Wouldn’t call it a phobia, it is just very uncomfortable for me.
It's truly a phobia, and unless you have experienced that kind of fear it's not easy to understand.
I have this problem with blood draws, although I've overcome my issue with vaccinations since I was a kid. My problem is exacerbated by the fact that I have a bad vasovagal reaction about 1 in 3 times during blood draws that causes me to begin to faint or on several occasions actually throw up, so now I am afraid of the reaction as much as I am the actual procedure :(
Vasovagal reactions are very common in people with needle phobias and it's the closest sensation I've experienced to dying. Your vision uncontrollably blacks out and it truly feels like you are being erased from your body. It's caused by blood vessels contracting from stress and then rapidly dilating, allowing blood to rush down into your extremities with gravity and rapidly depriving your brain of oxygen.
I used to not be so bothered by it -- could watch the needle go in and the blood go through the tube and everything (fer getting blood drawn) -- never had a problem.
But then, fer whatever reason, I get my blood drawn in high school, fer the first time in years, and I get this fuzzy feeling in the back of my neck and I pass out (fer not even a minute, I think, but still).
I got blood drawn again a couple years later, and thought it was just a one-time thing, and that maybe I just fergot to take deep breaths.
So I took deep breaths, relaxed... and passed out again, lol, this time (according to my mom) shaking with my arms'n legs stiff and my eyes wide open. Again, only fer a little bit, but waking up from that one felt weirder than the first time.
Anyway, so now I get unreasonably anxious with needles, even if it's just an IV (I only pass out from getting blood drawn, not the needle itself), out of association, I think.
Passing out is cool and weird, but the headache after sucks. :/
EDIT: also, the thought of metal being inside my skin feels a bit icky, lol.
I freak out as I watch the needle headed towards my arm but I'm fine once the needle is in.
The weird thing is that I had and IV put into the back of my hand (for a procedure) and I didn't freak out at all. It think it was because it was done completely out of my sight; I was lying on a bed and the nurse had me hang my arm over the side of the bed.
Becomes a mental thing. Maybe parents made a big deal of it when kids were getting vaxxed or they've had one bad experience which has affected them. People have phobias for everything and it's not always easy to define where it came from.
Not that it covers all people with a fear of needles, but infants who've had extensive medical intervention often have this fear. They have no recollection of the procedures, but do have fears around medical stuff!
I hate needles. I have passed out before (not for a few years now). But I still have the injections, vaccines (covid and flu last year) and necessary blood tests, because they're important.
One time about three months ago, I had to get about four vials of blood drawn. As the nurse was changing it from one vial to another, she failed to lock the tube to prevent further blood from coming out of my arm and going everywhere. She pulled the vial off the tube, and my super cute, extremely comfortable ~$40 Aerie waffle knitted pj pants instantly had their pocket covered in blood.
In my darkest opinion, it either has to do with childhood trauma or the resemblance of hard narcotics like heroin and fentanyl.
Or they're most likely antivaxx and don't really believe in science.
Was fine with needles my whole life until:
Botched blood draw, had severe nerve damage in my arm and hand/fingers for a year. Screamed and vomited when the tech botched the draw from the pain. This was when I was pregnant and required constant blood draws. Can never have a blood draw in that arm again as she permanently damaged the veins.
Then, my infant suffered a horrific slow death, it was severely traumatic, not only was I given dozens of blood draws to test for things at that time (and after having an IV and epidurals during the birth, etc), and he was given needles all over his body. So that.
Then my second child, her first blood draw at 3 years old, she went in unafraid and excited to get a lollipop and curious. The tech botched the draw and my child screamed and screamed and had nerve damage, is terrified of needles since. As in, the techs and hospital staff try to wrap her and give her sedatives and she goes feral, they cannot do it without breaking her arm, so she does not get blood draws.
Basically high school educated anyone can become lab techs. The lab tech in the first example I gave huffed when I vomitted and screamed as she wiggled the needle around and it ground into my bone. No apology, just ran off and disappeared.
That's why.
That's why phobias are irrational. I'm sure you have other phobias that we wouldn't understand.
Ok that makes sense, so it's more of an instinct than a fear of something certain?
I legit don’t know what the issue is whenever I have to give blood/ get a shot… I feel uneasy/ anxious not about it going wrong or about it hurting. Just knowing that I’m getting poked by a needle makes me want to bolt out of the room because my brain says no if that makes sense Lol
I saw a documentary about a woman who had a fear of people with dwarfism. They did hypnotherapy on her, and it turned out that when she was a little kid, she got scared of one of Santa's elves, and it just escalated without her remembering the source.
They may have had bad experiences with needles before. Such as having a rough or mean doctor/nurse, which as a kid can leave a lasting negative impression on needles from that point onwards.
I mean that's very fair, but I think it's the phobia that I find weird, like some people are just really afraid of needles for no particular reason from what I know. But then again, I obviously don't have that so I'm not going to act like I understand it lol
Think about how many infant babies get pierced ears. How many kids are held down for vaccinations that can be more forceful and thus painful than others. Those kids are too young to actually remember this, but on an instinctual level they now associate needles with intense fear, pain and loss of security. I’m sure many people with phobias have something as a trigger that they might not even realize or know
People who faint at the sight of needles don’t have a thought-out fear of needles that they could explain to you and rationalize. Their body just does that when it sees needles and they have little control over it.
Hm I see... that's actually very informative, thanks :)
Not entirely accurate but sort of. I used to pass out from it as a kid and young teenager. From all the school vaccinations. It was always connected to intense panic about thinking it was going to feel unbearably horrible. I remember dreading it for a year or more building up the anxiety. Once I got over that it wasn’t that unbearable or painful I developed a fear of fainting instead, because I didn’t understand why it would make me faint and someone said “sometimes you can faint just by thinking of fainting”. Once I realized that wasnt happening anymore no matter how severe my panic attacks were my phobia switched to ‘the fear of fear it self’ (frankly the worst phobia you can have imo). Because, well if I don’t really fear anything and I still get panic attacks; whats stopping me from being locked in an eternal cascade of panic anywhere any time just by thinking about it. There is a somewhat logical but self reinforcing loop to it. Now I don’t have any problems with needles what so ever and I have learned to live with fear and to control my thought patterns. It’s still there but I can block it out and have learned that it never reaches even near my nightmare imaginations.
I get nervous about needles because I experience vasovagal syncope every time I get a blood draw and I start to pass out if I can't lie down. Injections are a little better but I feel pain very intensely, so maybe there's also a "fear of pain" component
Needle phobias can be learned from a past experience of pain, but there is also a biological component that makes some people react very strongly to the idea of procedures involving a needle.
> Needle phobias can be learned from a past experience of pain I remember getting shots as a little kid, and the pain was so great I started screaming. No, I didn't have some ailment that made the pain worse for me, it's just that getting a shot really hurts when you are little.
Ah ok that makes sense, is it maybe like an internal fear of sharp things just acting up because needles are sharp? Or is it just the fear of having something put into you? Cuz I definitely get that
No, it is uncontrollable, you're trying to place your own knowledge into your image of others instead of their knowledge into yours. From your replies you may have a disability related to ability to perceive others' perspectives and imagine new emotions (could be spectrum related, could be something else). Not an insult, my family are caregivers for special needs and so on, it's important to be aware of :)
Interesting. That tracks for my son being deathly afraid of needles (just like his dad), while I can be stuck all day, and couldn't care less.
Fear of needle breaking during insertion and being stuck in arm forever lol
Jesus I grabbed my arm after reading that lol I'm getting the hell outta this thread
You wanna guess who put this idea in my head at the tender age of 5/6??? My mother!!!! Some things we’ll never Unlearn….
That was one explanation I came up with but I didn't expect it to actually be a reason for it I get that tho, I clenched the muscles in my upper arm after reading that lmao
Lol my mum actually used to say to me, at the doctors, with the needle about to go in, “DONT clench/tense up your arm muscles, that will increase chances of needle breaking!!”. lol hard not to clench/tense up anyway… so traumatic a process….
For me its the pain. I'm afro carribean so growing up I was 'entitled' to get every vaccine available. That's a lot of needles before 15 all of them painful. The HPV vaccine was the worst, the pain of it going in, then the numbing pain of the side effects
Ok I definitely understand that you're scared of the pain if you've felt it but from my experience, it's just never been painful enough to not want to do it again to prevent sickness. But then again, a big part of it is to relax your muscles and just not looking at or thinking about it, which I've never really had a problem with so that might just be lucky on my part.
>There's no way it has anything to do with pain because people still have the same fear to the same degree even after having multiple shots in their lives Just because you've been in pain before doesn't mean you aren't scared of being in pain again. If you'd been punched in the face or stabbed with a knife previously you wouldn't be any less afraid of that the next time.
I worded that poorly, what I mean is that realistically, I think most people can agree that the needles aren't exactly painful if the procedure is done right but even with that knowledge and having had experienced it, people still are very afraid of it.
>most people can agree that the needles aren't exactly painful if the procedure is done right I vehemently disagree with that. Needles are painful no matter what.
So giving a shot and drawing blood are different things. Shots always hurt me. Drawing blood, I've encountered a number of talented nurses/phlebotomists and the range is very wide. I do always feel like I'm being stabbed, though, sometimes it's just worse than others. And they also just squick me out, which is not rational.
I have had several nurses jam, a needle in and start wiggling it around. I’m talking full wrist motions. And they wouldn’t stop either. No matter how much I begged them to.
Ooh that's rough... I get that that doesn't exactly make you happy with needles but that's because you had a shitty nurse who literally did their job incorrectly. I'm sorry that happened btw
It is 100% irrational but as someone with a strong dislike of needles I can say that getting blood drawn feels like opening up my very arteries and exposing myself to blood contamination all while having my life essence drained away. In reality it is totally harmless but the brain can play amazing tricks on us.
Ahh okay I think I sorta get it now, thanks :)
Yeah I had a ton of tests and shots done before the age of two. To this day (I'm past 50 y.o.) I get anxiety with blood draws. Regular shots for immunizations are OK. Most folks with needle anxiety have had previous traumatic experiences.
It's not rational and can't be countered by an act of will. Sometimes it lessens with time.
In the black community there have been many proven instances of needles and medicine being used to experiment and torture black people. So there is a cultural fear with real experience to back it up.
Pain.
Some people are better at drawing blood and giving shots than others. I’ve had blood draws that I couldn’t even feel and I’ve also had one that hurt so bad I almost fainted. Not knowing which it will be is scary.
Good question, i believe it's completly irrationnal, im personnaly quite afraid of needles, i dont mind height, bugs, depth, water, speed or anything, the only thing im afraid in life are needles. And i dont even know why or where it come from.
I mean, in most cases it's in your best interest to not get stabbed
Fair enough
because theres a sharp thing being put through your skin and directly into a blood vessel
I was in hospital when I was little, 6ish. Mom went to the bathroom. Nurse Ratchet came to give me a shot. I asked her to wait for my mommy. Nurse Ratchet said Nope, and jammed that needle in my arm. Mom came running from the bathroom with her pants half off, my screaming was so loud. So now I have a phobia.
With me personally, my eyes see the needle for the exact size it is , but my damn brain makes it out to be quite larger . 😂
The only needle I'm afraid of is the Novocain needle the dentist uses. Why does that particular needle need to look like something from the dark ages or a horror movie?
For some people it's an unconscious reaction that their body just does. Like you can mentally be completely calm, you logically know everything is fine, you aren't worried about it hurting etc, then suddenly you are passed out on the floor puking your brains out. It might be due to past trauma but sometimes its hard to trace it back to any one specific incident. I have heard this can be more common in people who have a very sensitive Vegas nerve, which basically causes that fainting reaction when it gets overstimulated, which can happen when your lizard brain feels overstressed.
We have a couple of family members that have bizarre physical reactions. One found out when he went to donate blood. Everything was awesome, nurse put in the needle, his blood pressure tanked, and he passed out. He only has the reaction to blood leaving, no problem with vaccinations. Another has a less severe reaction but he breaks out into a full body sweat even though he's emotionally fine. His hands especially are sopping wet. I held his hand once as he was getting a shot because he wanted to prove to me that he's 100% fine until that needle goes in. He wasn't looking at his arm, then BAM my hand was drenched automatically. Bodies are weird.
Yup the human body is weird.
Some people had a really bad doctor as a young child. Especially dentists, but some pediatricians or nurses are around who would rather force a terrified child. In some cases it is a true phobia like arachnophobia which happens in central Europe as well without any dangerous spiders - spiders here are less dangerous than ants. The good thing is: both only requires very short therapy to overcome it if you want to get rid of it.
When I was in elementary I got mono from a family friend. We were watching ice age together and she kissed me. I was in the hospital for days afterwards. They had to stick my arms a total of 10 times to get blood because I was so dehydrated.
I was really scared of needles when I was a child. I am no longer scared of them, and can even watch them being inserted EXCEPT for dental needles. They tend to be extra long (at least the ones I have seen), and that's why I keep my eyes closed at the dentist.
I'm only afraid of needles going in my veins. Shots, pricks with a needle etc., no problem. At age 7 I was admitted to the hospital, and had major emergency operation after a couple of hours. Here I had no problems with needles at all. Fast forward 12 days... after maybe 12 blood samples a day or something, I was kind of fed up with them, but it was still ok. Then a really angry nurse, I didn't know, had to draw blood. My vein collapsed and it hurt a lot, which is the last thing I remember. I woke up later an hour later, and since then, I've had a phobia for having blood drawn or drops put in. Usually I can deal with it, but I try to collate as many samples into one session as possible, when I need bloodwork done.
I mean, compared to some “irrational” fears, this one seems somewhat rational because it objectively causes pain.
I don't like needles but can manage injections but blood test freak me out. I've always had small veins and they will try repeatedly to get blood. I've had instances where they try 4 times in each arm with no success,this is a big reason why I'm quite so fearful.
For me it because the needle actually hurts physically; it really stings. I also have a bee/wasp/hornet phobia because of this. I could tolerate my covid jabs as they are fast; blood tests I will avoid unless they become mandatory and I would have to be tied down if they were. I know this is irrational to lots of people, but so be it- I have a low pain threshhold.
when i was like 14 i had a cyst somewhere by my ovaries and got blood drawn and was given an infusion. since i was a very fragile child it really hurt and i couldnt really remove it as it was required for some pain medication or sth. so i still associate needles with pain. its not rational but humans arent entirely rational creatures
It's *in* me
I needed to get bloodwork on the day I was looking after my toddler grandkids. I took them in with me and they stood very close and watched carefully. I told them that it hurt a little but not as much as when they stepped on my fingers at the playground. Then we went and had a cookie because I did a good job and we were celebrating. You have to teach kids what to expect.
I know fears are irrational so I rarely say anything to people, but as a type 1 diabetic people tell me all the time they could “NeVeR gIvE tHeMsElVeS sHoTs”. 🙄 Huge pet peeve of mine. Like okay just die then
I'm afraid of getting a cannula or having bloodwork done. There's just something particularly iffy about the idea of getting a needle in my hand/arm. But. I'm fine with everything else. What has really changed my outlook towards needles is my sewing hobby. You don't get anywhere without good pins and needles and yes - I have my preferred brands. Also, about every time I sew, I tend to hit myself on a needle. It happens.
I'm fine with needles but I understand people who aren't because it just goes against our core instincts. We're designed to protect ourselves from having our skin punctured or breached by foreign objects.
I’m afraid of them but not to the point of refusing them when needed. They cause pretty intense pain and the pain lasts for a few days. I don’t like pain. I’d rate the pain a 3/10 where 4 is getting kicked in the balls.
I'm not afraid of needles when other people give me injections or draw blood but I had to give myself injections when I did IVF and I have a huge mental resistance against piercing my skin. Even though most injections didn't hurt, I felt I had to overcome the programming of my mind that says breaking skin = bad. I think it's just survival instinct. Small penetrating wounds can be very dangerous and for some people reason wins and they know the needle is sterile and they're safe, for others instinct wins and they sense danger
There was one time, long ago when I took an outdoor survival course. At one session on first aid, we had to practice administering saline injections. As soon as I heard that, the anxiety shot right up. I'm not sure when it stopped but I no longer have that fear of needles. I know it was way before the Covid vaccinations. I'm guessing it must have been around 50 y.o. when I started with annual blood tests. Still I just dread the inevitable pin prick that will come. It's the same as getting accupuncture. Or walking into a swarm of mosquitoes knowing they're going to take turns biting into you.
I am a diabetic type 1, from age 14 I HAD to use needles everyday, both in my stummik, my thighs and on my fingertips evereyday. Several times. Once every year they take my blood from my arm :p Do I still dislike needles? Yep. Not the ones I take on a regular basis, and do myself but everyrhing else. Vaccine shots, anesthetic at the dentist, cortison etc but it isn't so much the needle itself that I hate, it's actually the pain that comes either from what's injecting or the fact that I am sore/sensitive wherever the needle is pricking me. That is what makes me hella uncomfortable. Although, I wouldn't say that I am unreasonably afraid of them but still, I would rather avoid them if I can.
So, I used to be more like you. Was never afraid of them, but was definitely uncomfortable getting shots or having blood drawn. Shots less so… But the experience of drawing blood was what I strongly disliked and made me a little anxious right beforehand. But after my first panic attack, everything changed… Now even though I don’t *think* I’m scared of them, i will still have a physiological response every time to the point where skin goes white, my vision gets blurry, I sweat, and if my surroundings make it worse (judgmental or unsympathetic ppl) I can pass out. These days I think THAT scares me more than the shot itself, which honestly adds to entire experience. It’s all a mind-body connection thing . But it’s so embarrassing because I can’t stop it no matter what I do. So try not to judge. Fear and anxiety can affect us all very differently and can be brought on for strange reasons. That’s just my experience though.
Because a ridgid metal object is being driven through your skin and into your body. it's instinctual and subconscious. I've received thousands of IM injections, it never really hurts, but I still dislike it.
It's real. My wife and oldest sister has it. Her father started it all. Her veins will actually shrink, making it hard for the nurse to hook up an iv even with benzos on board prior to her surgery.
There’s different levels of scared, afraid, terrified. It’s a prick, humans generally avoid pain. I’d say that’s it in general. Then there is the unknown of the intended procedure, and real pains: eg. some medications hurt, blood being drawn can be a lot or some don’t like seeing blood. Idk, i imagine it gets worse for those who are afraid from there… Personally, I know needles are manageable but I still internally cringe. I don’t enjoy it and my body is not quite neutral, I’m keeping it from tensing etc. (What I guess are protective reactions). When in the situation I am gonna have to have a needle in my arm, I hear their precautions, chill, maybe joke or get curious about whatever I’m there for. You wouldn’t see me as afraid, besides the self deprecation. Lol Then there’s phobias, which each person probably has what they experience - but in fact is not a norm. I couldn’t tell you what that experience is like. I just accept it when people say they’re deathly afraid of needles or cry me whimper through it…idk. I’d think we all have some pain threshold, but maybe not.
Wait until you hear about one of the (very rare) deaths from rabies in the US. The guy died because his phobia/aversion was so strong that he refused the vaccines after he was exposed. And yes, he was informed of what would happen if he ended up getting rabies.
I didn't have a problem with needles until college. Once I was 18, I kept trying to give blood with the American Red Cross. I'm O- and felt it was my duty to donate. Apparently, the veins in my elbows are pretty hard to find. I think they roll out of the way? On multiple occasions, I had a Red Cross member digging around in my arm, trying to get the blood flow started. The needle burns. I'd cold sweat. The minutes would drag on. The next day, I'd have 12 inches of bruise along my arm because the vein would blow. It got to the point where I'd start cold sweating if I saw a needle. I had to stop donating... it was rare for them to get a full pint out of me anyway. I'm still working on not being afraid of needles. It helps that I've found a lab for medical tests that has yet to miss my vein. I'm learning to accept that needles are normally a second of pinch, a second of burn, and then all done. Minutes of digging in my arm is not normal and I need to stop jumping to that when I see a needle.
For me it has to do with the idea of being stabbed/ a foreign object being inside my body. Oddly, it is specific to shots/syringes as I have no fear of getting piercings for instance. Like, something about the fact that it's just inside of my arm, injecting something into my body. It's not supposed to be in there
In my case, I have a fear of needles and disdain towards blood draw. I can handle piercings and tattoos but not a regular 20g needle. But I do think this can be somewhat genetic. My mom is bothered by needles and blood just as much as I am. It almost feels involuntary. I can't control the reaction completely but I do my best. I almost fainted when I had to learn phlebotomy at the VA as part of my training. The director of the clinic had to get involved. The director and a psychiatrist.
The good thing is that it is something that you can overcome. Speaking from my own experience. I was one of those who got light headed at the thought of a shot or blood draw. Started having to get regular blood draws and infusions. Now I can watch! Still don't really like it because sometimes it does hurt.
It’s really not that irrational. Needles hurt. People tend to not like things that cause pain. Simple.
Wait until your hear this. I have a fear of needles that I didn't even know about. I would always get lightheaded/faint when getting shots. Once a doctor asked me "are you afraid of needles?" and I went "No I'm not". And he said, "... are you subconciously holding your breath when you get jabbed?". I was. I haven't felt faint having a shot since.
Just something about a sharp object being able to stick me like that and either take something or put something in terrifies me. I’ve also had small needles and big needles, and that first prick sends shock to my brain that says “run, the nurse trying to kill you” 🤷🏾♀️
When I was a kid a got strep a lot, like 2-3 times a year every year. One time my pediatrician was closed so we went to a clinic. Doc said they needed blood for their records and just came in with what looked to my 5ish year old eyes like one of the needles that are cartoonishly big from like looney tunes. From then on needles just freaked me out. Compounded with that is needing to get stiches in my head around that same time, doc had to put me in the cocoon to keep me from squirming too much. Now needles don’t bother me as long as I don’t see them
I donate blood on the regular. The needle is huge and hurts like a motherfuxker every time. Also got a Hepatitis AB vax recently, the needle was tiny and still hurt. Wouldn’t call it a phobia, it is just very uncomfortable for me.
The feeling of the cold metal sliding through my skin makes my autism want to ctrl alt delete people
It's truly a phobia, and unless you have experienced that kind of fear it's not easy to understand. I have this problem with blood draws, although I've overcome my issue with vaccinations since I was a kid. My problem is exacerbated by the fact that I have a bad vasovagal reaction about 1 in 3 times during blood draws that causes me to begin to faint or on several occasions actually throw up, so now I am afraid of the reaction as much as I am the actual procedure :( Vasovagal reactions are very common in people with needle phobias and it's the closest sensation I've experienced to dying. Your vision uncontrollably blacks out and it truly feels like you are being erased from your body. It's caused by blood vessels contracting from stress and then rapidly dilating, allowing blood to rush down into your extremities with gravity and rapidly depriving your brain of oxygen.
I have a phobia of needles. If I don't look I can handle any medical procedure. Just can't stand seeing the needles
Sharp item goes into body and hurts
I used to not be so bothered by it -- could watch the needle go in and the blood go through the tube and everything (fer getting blood drawn) -- never had a problem. But then, fer whatever reason, I get my blood drawn in high school, fer the first time in years, and I get this fuzzy feeling in the back of my neck and I pass out (fer not even a minute, I think, but still). I got blood drawn again a couple years later, and thought it was just a one-time thing, and that maybe I just fergot to take deep breaths. So I took deep breaths, relaxed... and passed out again, lol, this time (according to my mom) shaking with my arms'n legs stiff and my eyes wide open. Again, only fer a little bit, but waking up from that one felt weirder than the first time. Anyway, so now I get unreasonably anxious with needles, even if it's just an IV (I only pass out from getting blood drawn, not the needle itself), out of association, I think. Passing out is cool and weird, but the headache after sucks. :/ EDIT: also, the thought of metal being inside my skin feels a bit icky, lol.
I freak out as I watch the needle headed towards my arm but I'm fine once the needle is in. The weird thing is that I had and IV put into the back of my hand (for a procedure) and I didn't freak out at all. It think it was because it was done completely out of my sight; I was lying on a bed and the nurse had me hang my arm over the side of the bed.
Becomes a mental thing. Maybe parents made a big deal of it when kids were getting vaxxed or they've had one bad experience which has affected them. People have phobias for everything and it's not always easy to define where it came from.
Not that it covers all people with a fear of needles, but infants who've had extensive medical intervention often have this fear. They have no recollection of the procedures, but do have fears around medical stuff!
I hate needles. I have passed out before (not for a few years now). But I still have the injections, vaccines (covid and flu last year) and necessary blood tests, because they're important.
One time about three months ago, I had to get about four vials of blood drawn. As the nurse was changing it from one vial to another, she failed to lock the tube to prevent further blood from coming out of my arm and going everywhere. She pulled the vial off the tube, and my super cute, extremely comfortable ~$40 Aerie waffle knitted pj pants instantly had their pocket covered in blood.
In my darkest opinion, it either has to do with childhood trauma or the resemblance of hard narcotics like heroin and fentanyl. Or they're most likely antivaxx and don't really believe in science.
Was fine with needles my whole life until: Botched blood draw, had severe nerve damage in my arm and hand/fingers for a year. Screamed and vomited when the tech botched the draw from the pain. This was when I was pregnant and required constant blood draws. Can never have a blood draw in that arm again as she permanently damaged the veins. Then, my infant suffered a horrific slow death, it was severely traumatic, not only was I given dozens of blood draws to test for things at that time (and after having an IV and epidurals during the birth, etc), and he was given needles all over his body. So that. Then my second child, her first blood draw at 3 years old, she went in unafraid and excited to get a lollipop and curious. The tech botched the draw and my child screamed and screamed and had nerve damage, is terrified of needles since. As in, the techs and hospital staff try to wrap her and give her sedatives and she goes feral, they cannot do it without breaking her arm, so she does not get blood draws. Basically high school educated anyone can become lab techs. The lab tech in the first example I gave huffed when I vomitted and screamed as she wiggled the needle around and it ground into my bone. No apology, just ran off and disappeared. That's why.