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This article was co-written by Sarah Gehrke, RN, MS. Sarah Gehrke is a Licensed Nurse and Massage Therapist in Texas. Sarah has over 10 years of experience teaching and practicing intravenous and intravenous (IV) surgical therapy using physical, psychological, and emotional support. She received her Massage Therapy License from the Amarillo Institute of Massage Therapy in 2008 and her MSc. College of Nursing at the University of Phoenix in 2013.
There are 8 references cited in this article that you can see at the bottom of the page.
Are you afraid of needles? Remember that you’re not the only one who feels it! But unfortunately, you will have to deal with it if you want to protect your health. Start by facing your fear and learning some coping techniques. When you visit your doctor’s office, you can take steps to overcome your fear.
Steps
Face your fear
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Practice changing your mind. Often, the best way to start overcoming a fear is to try to change that thinking pattern. For example, thoughts like “Needles are the worst thing” or “I’m afraid of needles” will only inflame your fear.
- Instead, say something like, “The needles hurt a little, but it helps keep me healthy.”
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Write down situations that scare you. For some people, even a drawing of a needle can make them shiver. Write down situations involving needles that scare you, such as seeing a drawing of a needle, watching an injection scene on TV, seeing someone giving an injection, and when you were injected yourself.
- Some other situations you can think of are: holding a needle, listening to someone talk about injecting, or just touching the needle.
- Rank them in order from least frightening to most frightening.
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Start small. Start with the situation you are least afraid of. For example, if a picture of a needle is the least scary thing for you, try searching online for pictures of needles. Let your anxiety peak. Don’t stop watching until you feel less tense than at first, because eventually the feeling of fear will pass.
- After completing the challenge, you can relax a bit.
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Try to level up. Once you have overcome a situation, move on to the next step. For example, maybe your next level will be seeing other people giving injections on television. Try watching internet videos or health programs on TV. Practice the same method as above – let your fear rise and fall naturally. [1] X Research Source
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Continue to pass each level. Work through situations where you feel scared until you’re ready to take the shot. First, try to work through the situation in your imagination, letting the fear rise and fall. Then, when you’re ready, go to your doctor’s office. [2] X Research Source
Learn relaxation and coping techniques
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Practice breathing to overcome fear. One way to deal with anxiety is to learn breathing techniques that you can apply while getting an injection or having blood drawn. Try closing your eyes and inhaling through your nose. Take a deep breath and hold for 4 hours counting. Exhale slowly through your mouth. Repeat 4 more times.
- Use this technique several times a day to get used to it. Then, when facing the needle, you can apply to regain composure.
Lie down during the injection or blood draw. Lie down and elevate your legs to avoid feeling dizzy during the injection. Tell the medical staff that you became dizzy during the injection and that you would like to be given the injection in this position if they don’t mind. [3] X Harvard Medical Schop Trusted Source Go to Source
- Elevating the legs is also a pose to help stabilize blood pressure.
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Practice meditation (visualization). Meditation can help calm you down, and visualization techniques while meditating will take your mind off your current fears. Start by imagining a place that makes you feel good, a peaceful place like a park, the beach, or one of your favorite rooms in the house. [4] X Trusted Source HelpGuide Go to source
- Close your eyes and imagine you are there. Use all your senses. What image do you see? What scents do you smell? What do you feel through your skin? What sound do you hear? What flavors do you taste? Build your own world with vivid details.
- For example, if you picture a beach, picture the blue waves, the smell of the ocean, and the feeling of hot sand under your feet and warm sunshine on your shoulders. Taste the salt in the air and hear the waves crashing against the shore.
- The more detailed and vivid the picture, the easier it is to forget reality.
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Use stretching exercises to raise blood pressure. Some people are afraid of needles because they are dizzy. If this is the case, you can use a technique called stretching to increase blood pressure. Increased blood pressure will help you reduce the risk of dizziness. [5] X Trusted Source Cedars Sinai Hospital Go to Source
- Get into a comfortable sitting position. Start by contracting all the muscles in your arms, legs, and upper body. Hold for about 15 seconds. You will feel your face begin to warm up; then relax the muscles.
- Rest for about 30 seconds and then try again.
- Do this technique several times a day for a pleasant feeling when blood pressure rises.
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Consider psychotherapy. If you can’t find a way to cope on your own, a therapist can help. Therapists can teach you tips and coping strategies to help you overcome your fears because they are trained to help people with similar problems. [6] X Trusted Source HelpGuide Go to source
- Find a psychotherapist who specializes in treating phobias.
Communicating with medical staff
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Talk about your fears with a healthcare provider, nurse, or doctor. Don’t hide your fear in your heart. Instead, tell the person who is injecting or drawing blood for you. If they know you’re afraid of needles, they can distract you from the needle and make you as comfortable as possible.
- Ask them to accommodate if you have a specific need, such as if you want to be told to look away before they remove the needle or count to 3 before inserting the needle.
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Ask about alternative methods. In the case of an injection rather than a blood draw, you can sometimes use a different form. For example, some flu vaccines are given as a nasal spray instead of an injection. [7] X Research Sources
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Smaller needles are recommended. Unless you need to draw a large amount of blood, it’s usually safe to use a smaller needle, usually a butterfly needle. Ask the healthcare provider who is drawing your blood to use a smaller needle if possible, remembering to explain why. [8] X Trusted Source PubMed Central Go to Source
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Tell them you can only tolerate needles once. If you’re afraid of needles, you probably don’t want someone to poke a needle in your arm again and again. Ask your healthcare provider to take the required amount of blood the first time.
- If the medical procedure requires you to have multiple injections, ask if you can come back another day to complete the injection or draw blood. That way you will have time to rest.
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Ask the best person to give you an injection. If you are worried about someone injecting poorly, ask a good technician to give you the injection, especially in a large medical facility. If you have a fear of needles, people will understand why you would want someone who can inject neatly and quickly. [9] X Trusted Source Harvard Medical Schop Go to Source
Coping when going to the clinic
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Remind yourself that the pain will pass quickly. Reminding yourself that the pain will only happen for a second can also help when you’re afraid of needles. You might say, “It’s going to hurt a bit, but it’ll go away quickly, just a few seconds. I can stand it.”
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Try numbing cream. Anesthesia cream works to numb the area of skin where you will be injected. Make sure your doctor agrees before using numbing cream and ask where you can apply it. [10] X Harvard Medical Schop Trusted Source Go to Source
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Distract yourself. Distraction can help you deal with the feeling of being pricked by a needle. Try listening to music or playing games on your phone, for example. Bring a book to read so you don’t notice what’s going on. [11] X Research Source
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Apply a coping method. Tell the medical staff what you are about to do, then perform one of your coping techniques. You can use breathing or visualization while receiving the injection, or wait until the injection is complete to perform stretching exercises. [12] X Research Source
Advice
- Try to think about the benefits of needles. For example, “The injection may hurt a little but only sting for a few seconds and save you pain later on.”
- Try to recite the alphabet in your head in reverse order during the injection. This tip will keep your brain busy and don’t have time to feel nauseous or dizzy.
- Try pinching somewhere on your body during the injection, like pinching your leg. You will focus on the pain there instead of at the injection site.
- Distract yourself to forget what’s going on. Try to focus on something else, like where you’re going after the injection is done.
- Do not be stressful! Try to relax the injection site.
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This article was co-written by Sarah Gehrke, RN, MS. Sarah Gehrke is a Licensed Nurse and Massage Therapist in Texas. Sarah has over 10 years of experience teaching and practicing intravenous and intravenous (IV) surgical therapy using physical, psychological, and emotional support. She received her Massage Therapy License from the Amarillo Institute of Massage Therapy in 2008 and her MSc. College of Nursing at the University of Phoenix in 2013.
There are 8 references cited in this article that you can see at the bottom of the page.
Are you afraid of needles? Remember that you’re not the only one who feels it! But unfortunately, you will have to deal with it if you want to protect your health. Start by facing your fear and learning some coping techniques. When you visit your doctor’s office, you can take steps to overcome your fear.
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