Immunizations/Lab Work for Pharm School

[OSURxgirl]

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Hi. I have a problem. I am a SEVERE needle phobic. (Goes back to childhood when I was very sick and constantly had to face needles.)Just thinking about getting a shot makes me feel faint and nauseous. Well, I have to go tomorrow to get 3 shots, a TB test, and a chicken pox titer. I am flipping out. The last needle I faced was my tetanus shot 10 years ago and I cried like a baby. I also had an ignorant nurse call me a baby that same day. Now I have to face a bunch of needles all at once and I'm terrified.

Does anyone have needle phobia like me? How do you deal with it? Any way I can make it any less traumatic? I'm so freaked out I'm wishing I applied to law school instead so I wouldn't need to get all this sh** done. Please help (I'd like constructive answers...not "suck it up" or "deal with it".)

 

[Mags]

ahhh.. the good old "lets haul in the 1st years and pin poke them to death".. haha.. i'm kidding.. i was nervous too

i'd suggest letting the nurse know who's serving you... make her/him aware that you ARE uncomfortable... so that way if anything happens, they know why

and well.. i dont know if this helps.. but i have a heart condition where i pass out sometimes... i used to be afraid.. but that only gave me anxiety which made it worse... then i just started thinking.. well.. whats the worst that can happen: you'll pass out.. and thats not so bad if you're around medical professionals ... so i just kina figured.. well.. thats the worst that can happen and thats not so bad...

breathe... breathing helps me when i'm around needles.. i dont like them either.... i dont mind giving immunizations.. but i dont like taking them...

maybe close your eyes??

one suggestion though.. i opted to get all in one arm and that sucked b/c the tetanus leaves an "aftertaste" of being sore.... so i'd suggest you ask the nurse to divide them up between your two arms...

 

[28657]

OSURxgirl - did you cry before your tetanus shot or afterward? Do you think the tears were due to fear that it would hurt or did it really hurt? I would say to just calm yourself down by relaxing, do not work yourself up over it. I had to get a lot of blood work when I was a kid too, and yes sometimes it hurt like a BITCH! But nothing bad ever came of it. The TB test doesn't hurt at all, I suggest not watching and you might not even know when they do it. When I went to get my TB test last year, the guy in front of me had like 6 tattoos but was freaking out about the little TB needle. That helped calm me a little because it got my mind off of my own apprehensiveness.

I went to phlebotomy school and let me tell you there's nothing to worry about a trained professional hurting you compared to students. It was the scariest thing of my life being someone's guinea pig.

FYI - ask for the MMR shot last. 😀

 

[dontworry]

i remember when i was young i was really afraid of needles. One time right before i got a shot i ran down the hallway to try and avoid it 🙁 But as ive gotten older they dont bother me as much. I found that if you close your eyes, or maybe look in the other direction you dont notice it as much. Def tell them you have a needle fear, they can try and be as quick and gentle as possible. Would listening to music help at all? just playing some of your favorite songs really loud into headphones so that you are distracted from the needle. well i hope it goes ok.

 

[off2skl]

For having blood drawn, I've heard of somethign called a "butterfly" i think they use it for children and it's possibly a smaller needle,/less painful. I don't know much about it, but it's an idea...

 

[64microbus]

Does anyone have needle phobia like me? How do you deal with it? Any way I can make it any less traumatic? I'm so freaked out I'm wishing I applied to law school instead so I wouldn't need to get all this sh** done. Please help (I'd like constructive answers...not "suck it up" or "deal with it".)

Go to a children's hospital and spend some time with little kids having to undergo treatments nobody should have to undergo.

Microbus out

 

[OSURxgirl]

Actually, I work in a Children's Hospital. Although I have tons of sympathy for what some of those kids go through, it doesn't really help with my phobia. Phobias are by definition irrational.

 

[jdpharmd?]

Just think that it literally will only take 2 seconds each. Can you handle 6 seconds of needle? It hurts worse to stub your toe. Welcome to the health professions. Your patients will expect you to give them confidence when they are nervous about needles/tests/colonoscopy/etc. Do it like you've earned it! You will need TB tests at least yearly for the next 4 years, so get used to that one. You should have hep B vaccine if you haven't already. It's a series of 3 shots, and it's usually required. 😀

 

[bananaface]

Valium?

 

[twester]

I'm not so good around needles either, although I probably wouldn't call it phobic. My approach is to watch the whole process with great interest. I make a note of the length of the needle, ask what the dose is and then watch them stick it in my arm. My reaction is (usually) "Oh, that wasn't so bad."

The one exception was having to have a digital block in a toe a few weeks ago. It hurt like hell. The assistant that was in the room at the time was good at holding my hand and telling me to breath. Good advice, I thought. It really did help me to get through 8 burning shots in one toe. 🙂

Good luck,
Troy