Are you afraid of blood?

[khb]

Anybody here was afraid or felt uncomfortable at the sight of blood?

How did you overcome this fear and got used to it?

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[geogil]

Draw lots of it, then you think nothing of it.

 

[inside_edition]

Anybody here was afraid or felt uncomfortable at the sight of blood?

How did you overcome this fear and got used to it?

develop a fetish for it j/k

 

[SeventhSon]

Draw lots of it, then you think nothing of it.

amen. That was my strategy.

 

[cfdavid]

I'm not afraid of blood or needles at all. However, I sometimes pass out when I get my blood drawn (not from volume depletion either, just a few vials). There's a poorly understood thing called the vaso-vagal response where the vagus ends up getting stimulated when veins get poked. Thus, the PS response lowers HR to the extent that you can pass out.....lol Not cool. I guess it effects something like 2% of the population.

 

[geordon]

I'm not afraid of blood or needles at all. However, I sometimes pass out when I get my blood drawn (not from volume depletion either, just a few vials). There's a poorly understood thing called the vaso-vagal response where the vagus ends up getting stimulated when veins get poked. Thus, the PS response lowers HR to the extent that you can pass out.....lol Not cool. I guess it effects something like 2% of the population.

Vaso-vagal response is a REAL pain in my ass... Mainly because I live with it, too. Scared the jeebus out of my wife the first time it happened around her. I warned her about it, but she didn't realize how sudden it can be.

Then, when I was being treated by a pain specialist for neck pain (herniated C5/6 and C6/7), I told him that I'd likely vagal. He didn't believe me and had me sitting up for trigger point injections. He was rather surprised when I started tilting forward.

IF you know what to expect, it's not much more than a slight inconvenience, unless "someone" doesn't take your word for it. All the more reason for patients to advocate for themselves, within reason.

 

[Allerian1004]

I spent the year drawing blood as a phleb and I don't flinch at anything. I would get blood everywhere when I first started doing finger and heel sticks.
Are there remedies to the vagal response other than lying down for the procedure? I've never had a patient faint while lying down. My favorite was when people ended up on the floor and we would ask them, "has this ever happened before?" they say, "yeah everytime I give blood." Stupid person! Tell us this before we stick you with the needle so we can lay you down. Per procedure manual we had to clear the patient with the doc b/f we could let them leave the clinic if they actually passed out.

 

[humuhumu]

Not afraid of blood but I am afraid of drawing it. I've even thought about taking a phlebotomy class sometime before the 3rd year, just to confront my fears head on. I'd be short about $300 but I'm almost convinced that it's worth it....

 

[Allerian1004]

You really don't need a class. My job hired me w/o experience and trained me. They gave me this fake arm hooked up to an IV bag of koolaid and I stuck it with straight needles and butterflies until I used up all the liquid. That afternoon they had me draw my first patient. I was taught at a hospital which is not the best place to learn because most people have terrible veins in the hospital. I am usually a very easy stick but when I was in the hospital they pocked me a ton of times. When you are sick, dehydrated, non active etc. veins just suck. So, I pretty much learned with butterflies first and then with straight needles. It really isn't hard. And most patients are nice and let you try. However, I had some patients who had me when I first trained and wouldn't let me try them again even after months. Their loss I guess because now I can almost everyone. Sometimes the hard ones just need a 23 guage and a syringe. Really don't worry about drawing.

 

[Ashers]

Butterflies are a crutch. Avoid them if you can. Unless you're drawing blood on me. Once you start using them, it's hard to stop because they're so nice. I worked as a phlebotomist before med school; hated looking at needles then, definitely hated them going into me. Now, I can stick people (while I was working it was only after this one doctor at the hospital had a talk with me and told me "It took me 6 months in med school to figure this out. It doesn't hurt YOU to stick someone else.") I still feel bad anytime I stick someone though. I absolutely refuse to give blood because of my fear of needles.

 

[Critical Mass]

Butterflies are a crutch. Avoid them if you can. Unless you're drawing blood on me. Once you start using them, it's hard to stop because they're so nice. I worked as a phlebotomist before med school; hated looking at needles then, definitely hated them going into me. Now, I can stick people (while I was working it was only after this one doctor at the hospital had a talk with me and told me "It took me 6 months in med school to figure this out. It doesn't hurt YOU to stick someone else.") I still feel bad anytime I stick someone though. I absolutely refuse to give blood because of my fear of needles.

I agree with this.

Ash, somebody should tell my boss that bacteria don't exist. Of course then I'd be out of a job.

<-----microbiology med tech all summer long

 

[cfdavid]

I spent the year drawing blood as a phleb and I don't flinch at anything. I would get blood everywhere when I first started doing finger and heel sticks.
Are there remedies to the vagal response other than lying down for the procedure? I've never had a patient faint while lying down. My favorite was when people ended up on the floor and we would ask them, "has this ever happened before?" they say, "yeah everytime I give blood." Stupid person! Tell us this before we stick you with the needle so we can lay you down. Per procedure manual we had to clear the patient with the doc b/f we could let them leave the clinic if they actually passed out.

Really? I could see how that would work, given that it would maintain BP in the head better than sitting upright. But, it's truly a neuro response, so I could see how nothing could really counter the increased PS activity on the heart. That's encouraging though, because it's truly not a phobia, but rather this weird "response" to some object puncturing your vein. Hard to describe really.

 

[cfdavid]

Vaso-vagal response is a REAL pain in my ass... Mainly because I live with it, too. Scared the jeebus out of my wife the first time it happened around her. I warned her about it, but she didn't realize how sudden it can be.

Then, when I was being treated by a pain specialist for neck pain (herniated C5/6 and C6/7), I told him that I'd likely vagal. He didn't believe me and had me sitting up for trigger point injections. He was rather surprised when I started tilting forward.

IF you know what to expect, it's not much more than a slight inconvenience, unless "someone" doesn't take your word for it. All the more reason for patients to advocate for themselves, within reason.

That's interesting, because I have no problem with IM injections or TB test pricks etc. It's only when my vein is punctured that does it (can't say it's universal cause I've only had my basilic and cephalic veins punctured). I'm assuming trigger point injections are not in the veins, right? That sounds different from the traditional vaso (hence veins)-vagal response I've read about, and that I personally experience.

 

[JohnnyOU]

That's interesting, because I have no problem with IM injections or TB test pricks .

The TB testers prefer to be called nurses

 

[cfdavid]

The TB testers prefer to be called nurses

with respect, i don't know what you're trying to get at, unless you're being sarcastic (benetfit of the doubt is in your favor given the smiley face.. lol). i didn't say tb "testers", but rather tb test.

 

[GodoShingo]

I have never been afraid of blood. I get my blood drawn with amusement, normally. And I draw blood with amusement too. But so far I have only tried on my classmates.

BUT!

I have one fear with butterflies on myself. During my practice (in Poland we have obligatory practice 4 months a year, in the first year it's nursing practice) the nurse wanted to take a blood test on all of us. The procedure was that she took blood, and then we put it in a meter thingy and if the blood separated too much from the plasma, you have an infection in your body.
This time my veins on the arm were exhausted, so she had to go with a butterfly. The thing was that she didn't use any kind of anastethics.
She took my hand and I was like "I can do it, nothing special". She sticks the needle in, and I'm immidiately like "AAAAAAAAH, STOP!!" in my head. I've never felt a pain so huge ever! I have broken my arms several times and I hurt myself all the time due to my clumsiness, but this time I was about to CRY! Then it got even worse when se took the needle out. I think I got tears in my eyes then.
Imagine how glad I was it was over.
I do not recommend butterfly needles without anastethics.
Think of it, she had about 20 years of experience.

 

[Cirrus83]

with respect, i don't know what you're trying to get at, unless you're being sarcastic (benetfit of the doubt is in your favor given the smiley face.. lol). i didn't say tb "testers", but rather tb test.

The joke plays on the word "pricks", so the lack of the word testers doesn't prevent the joke from working.

i.e. the joke is that you're calling people who give TB tests "pricks."

I don't think he meant anything else by it, just a wordplay joke.

 

[tulane06]

Anybody here was afraid or felt uncomfortable at the sight of blood?

How did you overcome this fear and got used to it?

Only if it's from a period.

 

[AmoryBlaine]

It's a conditioning thing. Yeah you might have to sit down the first time you're in the OR but then you'll be fine.

Seriously at lunch a few months ago I was watching a video on post-partum vaginal laceration repair with a bunch of residents. At one point I looked around and said to myself, "we are a bunch of freaks, anyone else would be vomiting."

That said, there are some things you may never get used to, grossly angulated fractures still make me queasy ever after rotations on Ortho and Trauma.

 

[da8s0859q]

Blood doesn't bug me, although I also have vagal'd twice. The first one was in high school after donating blood... that was fun. Yeah, I was later told by a friend that was far, far down a tiled hall that he could hear my skull smack against the ground.

 

[fahcphlebfem]

"AAAAAAAAH, STOP!!" in my head. I've never felt a pain so huge ever! I have broken my arms several times and I hurt myself all the time due to my clumsiness, but this time I was about to CRY! Then it got even worse when se took the needle out. I think I got tears in my eyes then.
Imagine how glad I was it was over.
I do not recommend butterfly needles without anastethics.
Think of it, she had about 20 years of experience.

GodoShingo's experience is not representative. Butterflies when used properly do not hurt more or less than straight needles. It sounds from your response that she hit a tendon and not your vein.

 

[Gut Shot]

Anybody here was afraid or felt uncomfortable at the sight of blood?

How did you overcome this fear and got used to it?

My biggest fear of blood is slipping in it. That's life down in the morgue.

 

[cfdavid]

The joke plays on the word "pricks", so the lack of the word testers doesn't prevent the joke from working.

i.e. the joke is that you're calling people who give TB tests "pricks."

I don't think he meant anything else by it, just a wordplay joke.

Oops. My bad. I didn't realize I put "prick" right after tester...lol

I was wondering why I wasn't quite "getting" the joke.....lol

 

[ChiGiVara]

Anybody here was afraid or felt uncomfortable at the sight of blood?

How did you overcome this fear and got used to it?

Personally I am not afraid of blood. But my friend Andrey loses consciousness only from a kind of a bloody wound on a picture in the textbook. I am assured, that the kind of blood will be not terrible if to not connect it with painful sensations which thus are tested by the patient. In general, to not transfer all of feeling on itself.

 

[khb]

should I study medicine even if I am afraid at the sight of blood and needles?will it be a disadvantage?

 

[sirus_virus]

should I study medicine even if I am afraid at the sight of blood and needles?will it be a disadvantage?

Maybe you need to see a psychologist first. Take me for example, I am am scared of the sight of tooth decay, and the smell of funky breath. That pretty much rulled out dentistry as a career choice.

 

[cfdavid]

should I study medicine even if I am afraid at the sight of blood and needles?will it be a disadvantage?

Many of the specialties don't require "interaction" with blood. So, as long as you can get through the training, you can always choose a specialty such as psych or neuro or something. Then again, after training, you'll most likely be desensitized to the point that it may not be an issue for you.

 

[eeyore spice]

I'm not afraid of blood or needles at all. However, I sometimes pass out when I get my blood drawn (not from volume depletion either, just a few vials). There's a poorly understood thing called the vaso-vagal response where the vagus ends up getting stimulated when veins get poked. Thus, the PS response lowers HR to the extent that you can pass out.....lol Not cool. I guess it effects something like 2% of the population.

Ahhhh, I'll bet that's what happens to my sister. She's been known to pass out from having a few mls taken, and swears it's not from fear. I'll ask her if he HR goes up or down when she gets blood drawn...

 

[Ashers]

I agree with this.

Ash, somebody should tell my boss that bacteria don't exist. Of course then I'd be out of a job.

<-----microbiology med tech all summer long

I'm even more adament that bacteria don't exist at the moment. Right now I'm taking a break from reviewing pharm for boards, and man, there are too many antibacterials. It's a lot simpler when bacteria don't exist. No antibacterials. That and all the stupid transposon, conjugation, phage questions for drug resistance transfer etc on Qbank that I keep missing. My percent would be a lot higher if it weren't for stupid bacteria.

Oh yeah, I did research in immunology in college. I do believe in an immune system. hehe

 

[cfdavid]

Ahhhh, I'll bet that's what happens to my sister. She's been known to pass out from having a few mls taken, and swears it's not from fear. I'll ask her if he HR goes up or down when she gets blood drawn...

The last time it happened, it was followed by an intense SS (not PS) response. I found this interesting. So, after the decreased HR and loss of consciousness (not out cold, but I'll fall forward as I'm sitting), I started sweating in a BIG way. I got all shaky and my HR went UP (perhaps compensatory, I think).

It sucks. lol

 

[deleted77919]

It's a lot simpler when bacteria don't exist. No antibacterials.

Then we could just blame things on "evil spirits" like they did in the old days. It also makes management easier, about all you can recommend is prayer, bed rest, and isotonic fluids.

 

[Ashers]

Then we could just blame things on "evil spirits" like they did in the old days. It also makes management easier, about all you can recommend is prayer, bed rest, and isotonic fluids.

This is exactly why I told my dad he thought the boards were easy when he took them. Well, also the 4 humours and trephination.

 

[ChiGiVara]

should I study medicine even if I am afraid at the sight of blood and needles?will it be a disadvantage?

If you really wish be the doctor you should stop nothing! Even such fear! But while you still the student, this fear needs to be suffered. In the future you can choose any speciality which is not connected with necessity to work with blood. There you can find your calling! Do not worry!

 

[pagemmapants]

My only vagal response was during an autopsy of a woman who died of a PE but was also complaining of diffuse abdominal pain.
They literally sucked 3.7 L of blood out of her abdomen. Meanwhile, they had the bonesaw to her skull.
I'm not surprised I went a bit dizzy.

 

[subway5c]

I'm an MS0.8 and I've worked as a phleb for the past two years... I still need to lie down to get stuck myself and I wish I could get over it.

Although thats not as bad as this one pt I had who was afraid of cotton balls and gauze....

My best advice for anyone learning how to stick is to learn to feel for veins with gloves on. I started that way and I actually need the gloves to feel the veins properly. Really comes in handy when the pt is dirty/bloody/in isolation...

 

[geogil]

I second drawing learning to palpate with gloves on. WHen you're in an isolation room, you're not going to have a choice. I also second what folks have said about butterflies being a crutch. You should be able to get anyone with a syringe. Butterflies are also more dangerous, and they're expensive. In my opinion, if you want to get good at drawing, the hospital is the perfect place, because once you can draw hard inpatients, drawing some relatively healthy person in a clinic is cake. Then you can swagger around after hitting an 20 year IVDA.

 

[MartianOddity]

GodoShingo's experience is not representative. Butterflies when used properly do not hurt more or less than straight needles. It sounds from your response that she hit a tendon and not your vein.

I saw a girl get these butterflies and she always moaned and wrinkled her face out of utter pain wherever the nurse inserted them in the hand. Weird. The nurse I saw must've used the butterfly in an inappropriate way too. A sign of incompetence? Well, all the kids cried after being in that room of hers but one .

Seriously, she was good with needles, she even showed us how to use them on us without us experiencing much pain.

 

[45408]

honestly, I like blood. Whenever I'd have a patient with lots of it around, I got kind of a thrill. It hasn't worn off either...

 

[GodoShingo]

GodoShingo's experience is not representative. Butterflies when used properly do not hurt more or less than straight needles. It sounds from your response that she hit a tendon and not your vein.

Well, she got blood from me, LOTS of it too.

 

[DocOB]

The first autopsy I ever watched I got a little queasy because of the blood, but I got over that quick. Especially once he started letting me get my hands dirty.

 

[Ashers]

The first autopsy I ever watched I got a little queasy because of the blood, but I got over that quick. Especially once he started letting me get my hands dirty.

For path we had to go to an autopsy and do some write up for 5 extra credit points. That was probably THE most disturbing things I've ever seen. Worse than taking off the face in anatomy dissection, which up until then was the most disturbing thing. I didn't have to touch anything, but I felt sick, and I don't get queasy often.

 

[Papillon11]

I like this post. This is something that has been hanging over my head. I don't like when people stick needles in me for shots or taking blood. In the beginning, I thought I wouldn't be able to get over it, but I got used to the pain and the sight. I don't watch when the needle comes in, but once it's in, I can watch it with no problem. I usually watch surgeries and C-sections with no problem.

 

[da8s0859q]

The first autopsy I ever watched I got a little queasy, but I got over that quick. Especially once he started letting me get my hands dirty.

For path we had to go to an autopsy and do some write up for 5 extra credit points. That was probably THE most disturbing things I've ever seen. Worse than taking off the face in anatomy dissection, which up until then was the most disturbing thing.

I like this post.