Also be sure to talk to your doctor about a treatment plan before unlocking the gun cabinet. Type II diabetes (Athena has type I) can often be controlled with oral meds, diet and exercise. Someone so afraid of needles would probably be super good at watching their diet and getting plenty of exercise!
I used to be super crazy scared of needles. Then I had to get an emergency spinal tap and I am pretty sure a spinal tap needle is the biggest, scariest needle one uses on a human (it goes to eleven). My dad wouldn’t even stay in the procedure room with me (I was 13). Not long after that I got my ears pierced several times and eventually got a tattoo. I am a weird needle lover now, giving blood and getting vaccinations like I enjoy it.
I am hoping your relief from psoriasis symptoms will help you overcome your needle phobia! Keep going!
Doors, did you ask the doctor what happens if you’re a day or so late with the injection? Not that it would help you now, but if there’s a future weekend when she can’t be available.
Also, did it hurt worse than the times that MsRobyn does it?
I had a spinal tap once that took over an hour, during which the doctor constantly worked the needle into my spine, trying to find a way in. At one point she admitted it was her first spinal tap. I told her it should be her last.
My doctor wants to start me on Humira for rheumatoid arthritis. Right now the drug company is in discussion with my benefits plan insurer, and so far, it looks like my insurer is refusing to cover it. That stuff is incredibly expensive, and totally out of range for me to afford.
Meanwhile I have been in contact with the drug company, who seems very motivated to get me on this drug. Not sure what’s available to you, but is seemed to me that they would have been willing to provide quite a bit of support after the initial demonstration of how to inject the drug. I have no issue with needles as I have an iv drug use past, so I don’t anticipate issues with Humira, but in talking with the various people, having someone else inject the drug seemed to be a viable option. Contact your drug rep and see what’s available to you.
If I miss by a day or two it’s no big deal, but that wasn’t the point. The point was that I need to find a way to do this, because it’s ultimately my responsibility.
And HELL YES IT HURT MORE, because I did it. It always hurts, but this is more psychological than anything else. I concede that it’s irrational, but all phobias are.
As for the shotgun comment, that was more illustrative than realistic, simply illustrating the extent of my fear. My grandmother was even worse than me, she got teeth drilled without novacaine because that would have required a shot. I’m not that bad, but it’s not too far off.
I’m on blood thinners, and, if I have to have a surgical procedure, I have to go off of them for a few weeks. When I resume taking them, I have to use injectable Heparin for several days until the warfarin kicks in. Which means I have to shoot myself in the belly fat. Not pleasant.
Exactly. I’ve been giving myself insulin injections 3 times a day since I was 11 years old. When the alternative is death you stop whining and give yourself the fucking shot. :rolleyes:
It’s not so bad.My Dr prescribed cyanocobalomin, and after I gave myself the first shot, it was a piece of cake and there was no more anxiety or consternation after that. I even found it fascinating.
Here, you can get meds injections done for you at the clinic attached to the pharmacy you buy the meds from, if they have one. Costs like $2 more. Is that not an option?
I’d suggest therapy specifically directed at the irrational phobia. It may serve you well later in life, should it ever come to pass that you need needle sticks multiple times a day as I do, and as my daughter has since age 10. We’ve shared the ‘seppuku’ ritual together many times. It’s been a great way to bond.
I was going to mention the same thing. I’ve worked at various ‘walk-in’ clinics/ ‘doc-in-a-box’ places and we would always, for minimal fee (no doc-visit cost - usually about $10-20 ‘nurse charge’ or inj-fee, varied place to place), do the physical injecting of Rx’d meds patient provided. Rarely were there diabetics seeking such service, fwiw, but others often asked for help in getting the routine going (not really true counseling, but more of “Am I doing this the best way? or what helps me be less panicky?”, etc). Most folks took only a few visits before they mentally overcame their fear(s) and took over their injections themselves. A very few continued their visits to do their inject’s for at least four years at one Minor Emer Center. Just FYI.
Desensitization to the action(s) you gotta do is a big thing here Airman Doors, USAF, and I hope time/experience helps you. IME with many persons with this phobia, it quite often does. Best of luck! Oh, just remembered - a hospital I worked at had a diabetes-educator/nurse I knew well who would often help those who were having phobias from starting insulin (or other non-insulin injectables) - perhaps you know someone in that venue(or a place that does such patient-education) and ask for some literature they may have or Googling for suggestions from that aspect, etc?? Not diabetes, I know, but end result very similar, if that makes sense.
On preview, I see **Qadgop **saying kinda same thing - therapy to overcome the phobia (and to desensitize the person to the action). It can really help, obviously, in the quality of life overall with your medical need(s) right now. IMHO, if you feel capable of eventually going DIY, starting with a couple visits to a trusted ‘quick-care’ place can be helpful at a lowish-cost for positive experience(s) - you can just do the injections yourself at some point when you clear that mental hurdle. And it’ll help get you ready for the possible or probable need for self-inj’s later in life.
I do not know you personally, of course, Airman, but I’ve been around SDMB long enough to believe strongly that you can, and will, overcome this. Sincerely spoken
I am bemused by this thread. I, like many of you, have a needle phobia, although it has improved over the years. As a child i had most of my dental work done without Novocaine because I feared the needle more than the drill.
But I’m certain it would be easier to inject myself, if that wasn’t physically awkward. When the phlebotomist draws my blood, I need to know exactly when the needle is coming, or I will jump. I’m pretty sure I could use one of those injector guns on myself. Or an insulin syringe into the thigh.
I wonder if part of your problem is that the injection hurts, so you get negative feedback every time you do it. Most if the shots I’ve had in recent years were painless, and I’m sure that helped me.
Personally, i find meditation helps. I learned TM as a child, and if i need a big needle, like for a blood draw, i ask for a couple of minutes to meditate before they stick me. You might try it. Or take Quagdop’s advice, and find a formal class to help you cope.
I was a guinea pig in the Humira human trails when it was first introduced. Having to learn to give myself the shot was one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do. Now it’s just a bi-weekly chore. Please believe me when I tell you that the results are more than worth a self-administered stick.
Yeah, the sprog and I were both gone for the weekend, leaving Airman to fend for himself, and I am glad he gave himself the shot this week.
Qadgop, I will encourage him to look into counseling for his needlephobia. It’s a major reason why it took him so long to start treatment, and we’re also paying more for health insurance because he refused to have a tube of blood drawn for my employer’s wellness program. (Since he now has to have regular bloodwork because of the Humira, he can have the doctor’s office order the requisite lab tests and send them in in the fall. Problem solved!)
I will say this much. Thank Og that my health insurance is as good as it is. We only pay $25 per visit to the dermatologist and - get this - $27 for a three-month supply of Humira. That’s it. I pay more for my stuff than he does for his.
Only if you don’t mind driving to the pharmacy every other week. Since it takes the pharmacy an hour and a half to take a pre-packaged bottle of pills off a shelf and staple it into a bag for me, I’d hate to think how long it would take them to give me an injection.
Where are you injecting yourself? (which body part?)
If it’s in your stomach or thigh, here’s a tip that worked for me: Pinch the part of the skin that you are going to inject. So e.g. if you are injecting into your stomach, pinch about an inch of skin/fat very hard, then 1-2-3 jab the needle into the pinched skin -which will be somewhat numb if you pinched it hard enough, so you won’t feel any pain.
Just before you jab the needle in, think of someone you despise & imagine you are jabbing THEM. Sounds crazy, but it worked for me
I am also a psoriasis patient on Humira and have been for several years (in fact, I have an appointment with the Dermatologist today). Mine is not an auto injector, but a pre-filled syringe. I don’t have an aversion to needles, but that stuff is like injecting liquid fire! I never look forward to it, it never gets more fun. OTOH, I went from having psoriasis over about 65% of my body to now less than 5%. The burning only lasts 5-10 minutes, which is a small price to pay every 2 weeks for that much improvement…
Stick with it Doors, it is most definitely worth it!
