Afraid of Needles? You're Not Alone

Short Wave

NPR

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4.7 • 6.6K Ratings

🗓️ 20 September 2021

⏱️ 14 minutes

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Summary

Many people are afraid of needles in some capacity — about 1 in 10 experience a "high level" of needle fear, says clinical psychologist Meghan McMurtry. But that fear is often underrecognized or misunderstood. That's why today's show is all about needle fear: what it is, tools to cope, and why it's important to address beyond the pandemic.

Some strategies Meghan suggests to help cope with the fear of needles:

- the CARD System for adults: bit.ly/3nHIKlw
- muscle tension technique: bit.ly/3CBki9Z

Listen to Tom's reporting on needle fear: https://truestoriesinsound.wordpress.com/2021/08/09/needle-phobia/

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Transcript

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0:00.0	You're listening to shortwave from NPR.
0:06.1	Back in March of this year, Tom Tmesco got a call from his local CVS.
0:11.0	They could give him a COVID vaccine, the first of two doses, if he could rush over in
0:15.9	10 minutes.
0:16.9	And so that was actually pretty ideal for me because I didn't have the time to stress
0:21.1	about it.
0:22.1	It was kind of just like, go mode.
0:24.5	See, since he was a kid, Tom has always had a hard time with needles.
0:28.5	It's not really about the pain for him, he says, but the idea of needles.
0:33.5	And over the years, he's figured out some tricks to deal with this.
0:37.6	I am pretty well versed in getting myself through shots and vaccinations at this point.
0:43.3	So I grabbed a whole lot of water.
0:46.6	I grabbed mint gum.
0:49.6	I grabbed candy and I grabbed a bag of frozen peas.
0:52.5	And it sounds like a kind of silly collection of things, but I know for me right after I
1:01.8	get a shot, that's really when I feel it.
1:04.4	And that's really what is just distressing to me.
1:10.7	Right after any shot, Tom says his blood pressure crashes like an elevator with a cut cable.
1:16.6	He gets sweaty, dizzy, he'll sometimes pass out.
1:21.4	That's when his supplies come in handy.
1:23.5	And when he finally got to CVS for his COVID vaccine, he was ready.
1:27.9	So I put the bag of frozen peas on my head to cool me off and kind of keep me grounded
	...

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