How to overcome the fear of needles: 8 key ideas

Some tips and techniques to combat needle phobia, a very common disorder.

Many people are afraid of needles. We can even talk about many cases of needle phobia. Needle phobia is called belonephobia; in this article we will talk about it, as it is a rather particular phobia for a reason that we will not reveal yet.

In addition, we will describe several key ideas on how to overcome the fear of needles.. As you will see, the first of them focuses on psychological therapy (to overcome the phobia), and the following ones, on overcoming the moment in which we must be in contact with the needle (which can also help us to gradually overcome this fear).

• Article related: "Types of phobias: exploring the disorders of the fear".

Fear of needles: a particular phobia

Specific phobias are anxiety disorders, characterized by an irrational, disproportionate and intense fear of a specific stimulus or situation.disproportionate and intense fear of a specific stimulus or situation.

There are different types of specific phobias; the DSM-5 (Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) specifies up to 5 groups (subtypes) of specific phobias: to animals, environmental, blood/injection/harm (where we would place the fear of water), to various situations and other types of phobias.

Biphasic (vasovagal) response

Needle phobia is a particular phobia, since the physiological response that appears in it differs from the response that appears in the other types of specific phobias.

Thus, in the case of needle phobia, a biphasic response is produced in the individual, characterized by two phasesIn the first, there is an increase in different physiological parameters (heart rate, Blood Pressure and respiratory rate), and in the second, a sharp decrease in all these parameters.

As a result of this decrease, dizziness may appear, followed by fainting. It is worth mentioning that the biphasic response of this phobia was first described by Graham, Kabler and Lunsford (1961).

How to overcome fear of needles

How to overcome the fear of needles? If you really suffer from needle phobia and you want to overcome it, we recommend you to go to a specialized professional and to undergo psychological therapy.

In the first point (first key idea) we will talk about it. However, if you just want to get out of situations in which you have to be in contact with a needle, the following 7 ideas that we propose may be very useful.

1. Undergo psychological therapy

If you want to know how to overcome your fear of needles, the first thing to consider is to seek professional help. Psychological therapy is a useful and effective tool that can help you overcome your fear of needles. that can help you overcome needle phobia.

The psychological treatments that are usually applied in the case of specific phobias are two: on the one hand, exposure therapy, and on the other hand, cognitive behavioral therapy (these are the treatments with the most evidence and, therefore, the most effective).

However, in the case of needle phobia (which is part of the group of "blood/injection/harm phobias"), the treatment is different, and generally the so-called tension with or without application is applied.

This technique consists of increasing the patient's heart rate and systolic pressure before exposure to the phobic stimulusbefore being exposed to the phobic stimulus (in order to prevent the fainting typical in this type of phobia).

2. Try to relax your body

Entering already in the ideas focused, not so much on how to overcome the fear of needles, but rather on how to act before these key moments that generate so much anxiety, we will begin by relaxing our body.

At the moment of the injection, or when the needle is about to come into contact with your body (for example when getting a tattoo), it is best to try to relax your body. It is a very psychological issue, and the fact that you are in tension can cause the feelings of fear and anguish associated with needles to intensify.

3. Apply breathing techniques

Practicing slow, deep breathing (e.g. diaphragmatic breathing), can also help you to relax. Remember that there are different breathing exercises, mainly focused on treating different anxiety disorders, one of them being phobias (in this case, fear of needles).

You can apply them at the moment before receiving the injection or being in contact with the needle (and also during that moment).

4. Imagine other scenarios

In psychotherapy, especially in different anxiety disorders (such as phobic disorders), imagery techniques are widely used.

An example of this are the pleasant or positive images, which consist precisely in that, to imagine relaxing scenes, that we like and that take us momentarily away from the present moment. This will help us to be distracted, that is to say, to to decentralize our attention from the fear of the needleThe result is that we are able to redirect it to another stimulus, in this case, positive for us.

5. Talk to the staff in question

Another key idea on how to overcome the fear of needles is to talk to the staff that is attending us (e.g. the tattooist, the doctor, the nurse... We can explain our fear of needles from the beginning, to at least alleviate the initial tension.

In addition, they will be able to give us useful advice on how to face this dreaded moment (especially the health personnel), since they probably see cases of this type every day. On the other hand, we can also take the opportunity to explain something of our life to them, in order to distract us and not be so aware of the needle.

This may not help us to overcome our needle phobia, but it will help us to face the situation at that moment and to come out of it "unscathed".

6. Focus your attention on other stimuli

Somewhat related to the previous ideas, this other idea arises: directing attention to stimuli other than the needle. This we can apply it just before entering the room where we are going to be pricked and also during the and also during the moment of the needle prick.

Before entering we can, for example: listen to music, talk to someone, read a book, draw, write... and just at the moment of the injection (or tattoo), we can choose to apply some of the previous guidelines (practice deep breathing, imagine pleasant scenes or images, talk to the staff that is attending/treating us, etc.).

7. Take care of your inner speech (thoughts)

This means that you direct soothing messages and thoughts to yourself, which you have already practiced in the past.that you have already put into practice in the past.

For example, in the case of injections, you can think about the professionalism of doctors and nurses, the trust you can place in them because they do this on a daily basis and know how to do it so that it doesn't hurt, etc.

8. Lift your legs

Another guideline on how to overcome the fear of needles, which in this case, is more focused on overcoming the situation in question (an injection, rather than the phobia itself), is to lift your legs.

This action is useful to alleviate certain psychophysiological symptoms associated with needle phobia, since it has been found that in the case of needle phobia, the legs can be lifted to relieve the phobia.It has been seen that in this type of phobia a vasovagal response appears in the individual (this response causes fainting in approximately 80% of the cases).

Thus, by raising the legs we allow blood to reach the brain, which reduces the risk of fainting.

Bibliographical references:

American Psychiatric Association -APA- (2014). DSM-5. Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders. Madrid: Panamericana. Caballo (2002). Manual for the cognitive-behavioral treatment of psychological disorders. Vol. 1 and 2. Madrid. Siglo XXI (Chapters 1-8, 16-18). Pinel, L., & Redondo, M.M.. (2014). Approach to hematophobia and its different lines of research, Clínica y Salud, 25: 75-84.