Needlephobia - 'Junior Doctors'

[paul kersey]

Despite being a 49 year-old Man of a "comfortable" build, I confess to being a Needlephobic. It has affected my life to the extent that my teeth are not good and I avoid visiting a Doctor as much as possible. I have improved slightly over the past two years, as I have to inject my Step-father with Insulin twice a day.

I watch as many Medical documentaries on TV as possible, in an effort to cure myself of this condition. The latest
one is BBC3's "Junior Doctors, Your Life In Their Hands". The first thing that I have noticed, is the fact that I am not the only sufferer of this condition. The most frightening thing that I have noticed is the sheer "Bloody" incompetence of the newly qualified Juniors, when it comes to taking blood or installing a canula. It horrifies me that after being trained for five years and having passed their exams, they appear unable to perform these fundamental tasks without damaging their victims. In last nights episode, one of the juniors, who in a previous programme was the subject of a refusal by a patient after several unsuccesful attempts to install a drip, found herself having to instruct a medical student in the art of performing a blood test. This does not seem fair to the patients and does not inspire confidence.

This is not blaming the Junior Doctors in any way. I am too old now to become one and my needlephobia would have prevented me in any case. However I really wonder how they can have become qualified and yet appear to
be unable to perform such a basic task, I find it very worrying.

[Moor Larkin]

Imagine what they were like before all that Training..........


This strap-on simulator is a lifelike model of a right buttock with anatomical landmarks needed for injections. Correctly administered injections produce audiovisual feedback.
With Practice, You Too Can Administer Popular Posterior Vaccinations In Your Spare Time. « Tacky Raccoons

[Freddy]

Or you can use an orange, fill the syringe up with vodka, practise finding the right quadrant and afterwards you have a vodka and orange to celebrate.

[Steve Crook]

Despite being a 49 year-old Man of a "comfortable" build, I confess to being a Needlephobic. It has affected my life to the extent that my teeth are not good and I avoid visiting a Doctor as much as possible. I have improved slightly over the past two years, as I have to inject my Step-father with Insulin twice a day.

I watch as many Medical documentaries on TV as possible, in an effort to cure myself of this condition. The latest
one is BBC3's "Junior Doctors, Your Life In Their Hands". The first thing that I have noticed, is the fact that I am not the only sufferer of this condition. The most frightening thing that I have noticed is the sheer "Bloody" incompetence of the newly qualified Juniors, when it comes to taking blood or installing a canula. It horrifies me that after being trained for five years and having passed their exams, they appear unable to perform these fundamental tasks without damaging their victims. In last nights episode, one of the juniors, who in a previous programme was the subject of a refusal by a patient after several unsuccesful attempts to install a drip, found herself having to instruct a medical student in the art of performing a blood test. This does not seem fair to the patients and does not inspire confidence.

The difficulty is in finding real people to practise on

You can only learn so much by injecting oranges or fake bums

The veins in the back of my hands wander all over the place and during my one stay in hospital (so far) after an emergency appendectomy I was on a drip feeding me massive amounts of antibiotics. Some junior doctors had problems getting the cannula in so I would help them. As a long term blood donor needles don't bother me - even when they're being stuck into me

Steve

[Steve Crook]

This is not blaming the Junior Doctors in any way. I am too old now to become one and my needlephobia would have prevented me in any case. However I really wonder how they can have become qualified and yet appear to
be unable to perform such a basic task, I find it very worrying.

Many people are phobic about needles being stuck into them. Does your phobia extend to watching other people being stuck?

Steve

[batman]

You can only learn so much by injecting oranges or fake bums

While training to take blood these days you get to use fake arms complete with fake veins and 'kensington gore' these days .... it's great fun!

[Rowdon]

I confess to being a Needlephobic. It has affected my life to the extent that my teeth are not good

The only injection I cannot stand is the one in the gums. Maybe because it's difficult to look away. Anyway: late last year I had to have loads of work done removing and replacing broken and useless 70s and 80s fillings - 4 visits with masses of work each time. The dentist said I could have all the work done without anesthetic if I liked: I'd just bang the arm of the chair or scream or something if it started to hurt. So I did. And never had to bang the chair, even though at one point I had four hands in my mouth. He said that it shouldn't really hurt (not really hurt), and there's always a warning time for the patient to stop the drill - and obviously it's better for the dentist if you can feel your mouth. So I'd recommend going to the dentist and just putting up with it.
Good luck.

[BristolUK]

My stepkids are the same. Stepdaughter all but fought staff off at a blood test and has recently had dental treatment where she was put under.

I went with my stepson to a blood test and he panicked. There was no one there with patience and we left, returning next day when an older person was there who was brilliant. He still convulsed and sort of fainted.

I asked him what happened when he had school jabs. "I faint" he said matter of factly.

[Steve Crook]

While training to take blood these days you get to use fake arms complete with fake veins and 'kensington gore' these days .... it's great fun!

But it's still not as good as having a real body to practice on. Real veins in real bodies are liable to be harder to find and are liable to be different sizes or wander all over the place

Steve

[batman]

But it's still not as good as having a real body to practice on. Real veins in real bodies are liable to be harder to find and are liable to be different sizes or wander all over the place

Steve

I never said it was good .... I said it was fun!

Also, real people move and talk and do all sorts of other annoying things while you are trying to stick needles in them. No consideration some people .... anyone would think that having a big hairy geezer like me comin' at ya with a needle was scary or something.

[paul kersey]

Sadly, I even feel bad watching others have blood tests, on TV. I have managed to harden myself to watching my Step-father having blood tests which is odd. Perhaps the strangest thing of all is that I can watch operations on TV without any bother at all. I also enjoy a really gory Horror film although this maybe because I realise that they are not real.
My dental phobia is probably due to having had some dodgy experiences as a child. I am alergic to laughing gas and yet have had two lots of extractions via gas depite the Dentist being aware of my alergy.I also had the permanent stage of a root filling without anaesthsia because I was told that it would be painless. The Dentist proceeded to drill through the tooth and struck the jaw-bone.

[Freddy]

Irrational fear is a strange thing, I knew a retired soldier, a Marine, who refused point blank to go into the tube for an MRI scan.

[Freddy]

I never said it was good .... I said it was fun!

Also, real people move and talk and do all sorts of other annoying things while you are trying to stick needles in them. No consideration some people .... anyone would think that having a big hairy geezer like me comin' at ya with a needle was scary or something.

That's the benefit of having a lumbar puncture, you cannot see the 'big hairy geezer' coming at you.

[karen]

I worked in the NHS for years and have watched and participated in all sorts of procedures but I can't watch anyone have an injection on the telly! It makes me go all funny.

[ShirlGirl]

Cannulas are horrible. Not long ago a nurse had a lot of trouble getting one into a vein in my hand and it hurt like hell. This went on for several minutes. Then she started all over again in the other hand and eventually got it right. Meanwhile a young first-year nurse who was present and watching the procedure came over all funny and asked permission to go and sit down, as she thought she was going to faint!


I was in hospital overnight and the darn thing had to stay in till the next morning. It never stopped hurting and I didn't get much sleep at all. Such a relief when it was eventually taken out!

On the other hand, I've had several blood tests over the last few months and the needles didn't hurt in the slightest.

[Steve Crook]

anyone would think that having a big hairy geezer like me comin' at ya with a needle was scary or something.

Surely not. I've had some big hairy people sticking needles into me, but other nurses with the blood donor service aren't overly hairy

But they're all very nice, even the big hairy ladies

Steve

[batman]

.... a nurse had a lot of trouble getting one into a vein in my hand .... she started all over again in the other hand .... On the other hand, I've had several blood tests ....

You've got three hands?

[Moor Larkin]

I recall a young diabetic lad I once knew who had learned to inject himself several times a day and he was only about 13 at the time I knew him. All of this stuff is really only in the mind - a little therapy might be helpful, or hypnotism maybe, for a quick fix.

[paul kersey]

Perhaps what I need to help my Dental phobia, is a Dentist who uses a Tranquiliser dart gun from a distance.
I have never been tempted to take drugs. What put me off, was hearing about an addict who's veins had collapsed through being injected so many times. Having developed callouses beneath his finger and toenails he took to injecting heroin directly into his eyeballs.

[Rowdon]

Perhaps what I need to help my Dental phobia, is a Dentist who uses a Tranquiliser dart gun from a distance.
I have never been tempted to take drugs. What put me off, was hearing about an addict who's veins had collapsed through being injected so many times. Having developed callouses beneath his finger and toenails he took to injecting heroin directly into his eyeballs.

Nice. I recommend The Naked Lunch for a little light reading.