Needle Phobia

The challenge

My client, told me she is terrified of syringes & needles, this has been almost lifelong and impacts on her life as, due to health needs she has to attend the local hospital for injections & blood tests on a regular basis.

She had tried some relaxations & mindful techniques in the past

The effect

At our initial meeting regarding this issue, my client described the lifelong fear she experienced & I observed the anxiety & physical responses as she described the situation, she told me whenever she knew there was a blood test coming up she began to get anxious, feeling fearful, sometimes tearful, constantly picturing the hospital, the chair, the syringe and the needle, feeling more & more fearful & upset and in the days leading up to her appointment she couldn't stop thinking about it, she said 'I worry that I wont be able to get through it'  she couldn't focus on everyday activities and got little sleep the night before.

On the day of the blood test she said she felt panicky, physically shaky, couldnt think of anyting else and considers  cancelling the appointment or just not going. 

She says any injection, even thinking about booking to go for a flu jab triggers these anxious thoughts & physical responses.

Once my client had identified the problem, after that we did not speak directly about the trigger (needles) again, thus helping her to feel relaxed and safe throughout the treatment.

Solution

With my client seated in a quiet room and a comfortable chair, I started by gently supporting her to identify the problem (the anxious state triggered by the idea of a syringe needle) ensuring she stayed safe without associating into the unwanted state.

I enabled her to identify what she would like instead, how she would prefer to respond  - she identified this as: 'I'm  going for a blood test or jab and its just ok'

To give reassurance I helped her to create a 'safe & supported' anchor, enabling her to be assured she would remain safe and suppported throughout the process. I checked with her that she was feeling ok to proceed & that making this change would be right for her in all areas of her life,  she readily agreed it would.

As my client remained seated & relaxed I used the Fast Phobia process, to help to change her experience of medical appointments and replace the old unwanted anxious response with a new positive and more helpful response.

After this, as my client remained seated & relaxed, I used the New Behaviour Generator another NLP process to enable her to strengthen & embed the changes. 

Result

'This is a phobia i have had since age of 4 and it really has interfered with my life. But today I was able to go for a blood test and not experience the anxiety I usually do in the run up to an injection...even when the numbing cream failed to stick.. I still didnt panic - in the past that would have caused a massive anxiety attack and tears. 

Thank you so much for making such a difference to a very real phobia. '