Tips from psychologist for dealing with fear of shots
Interested in receiving a COVID-19 vaccine but not feeling great about that needle?
You’re not alone.
Dr. John Ernst, a psychotherapist with a practice in West Allis, frequently treats patients with a variety of fears and phobias. He said the fear of getting a shot ranks high on many patients’ lists of worrisome life events.
The fear, he said, can range from mild situational distress to the daunting-sounding trypanophobia, an extreme fear of medical procedures involving injections or hypodermic needles.The good news is it’s potentially treatable.
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Ernst provided 12 strategies — both cognitive (thinking) and behavioral (action) — to reduce and manage one’s fear of needle procedures. Here they are, in no particular order:
- Re-think and perceive the procedure as something you are choosing for your ultimate benefit, rather than something that is being forced on you. You are in control; the situation is not controlling you.
- Remember that a quick ‘pinch’ of discomfort can protect you for a very long time. Consider the difference between a brief procedural moment versus an extended stay in a hospital. Two seconds out of your life is astonishingly small compared to how long you’ll eventually live.
- Get “healthy angry’” at your fear and win the battle. Do not let fears and anxiety intimidate and manipulate your existence. Go to “war” with negative thinking and be the proud champion of the moment.
- Rather than expecting your anxiety to completely and instantly vanish, minimize and manage its existence. A recognized anxiety “hamster” that might occasionally “nip” you is certainly easier to pet than an exaggerated anxiety “monster.”
- Admit you may have fears as a part of being human and then take steps to accept and normalize them to take away their (undeserved) power over you. Have the courage to be imperfect.
- Create helpful distractions as coping tools. Focus on items in the medical procedure room and identify similarly colored objects or count ceiling tiles.
- Close your eyes and visualize a pleasant thought (mental picture) from the past while taking slow, deep breaths.
- Admit to the “shot-giver” that you might feel nervous’ they are trained to help, and they care about your welfare.
- Hum a favorite song or simply “think it in your head” for a while.
- Plan a reward for after your shot, such as getting a favorite coffee, going to the zoo, buying a new book, or going out to lunch with a friend.
- Increasingly pinch your thumb and forefinger together as hard as you can on your non-injection arm. It can distract you from being hyper-focused on the inoculation; this technique has worked for many of Ernst’s patients.
- For persistent and significant fears, consider consulting with a mental health professional who can help you with cognitive-behavioral strategies that examine how thoughts affect emotions and ultimately shape a person’s behavior.
Contact Bob Dohr at 262-361-9140 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter at @BobDohr1.
