Back from the doctors

[wellinghall]

with nothing done.

They couldn't get anything out of the first puncture, and by then I was too keyed-up for them to continue.

I said that I would be having an IV in a few weeks, and the nurse agreed that they could take blood then. I will write to them about this as soon as I have a confirmed appointment.

Apart from her failure at actually getting the blood out, the nurse was very nice, had me laying flat from the start, had damp cloths and drinking water at hand, and let Creatrix come in to hold my hand.

I will also see whether I can find a hypnotherapist or similar to help me; this really can't go on, as I will have to have both blood tests and IVs for the rest of my life.

I'm still dopey from the sedative, but I am coming out of it.

Thank you for all the hugs, good wishes and positive karma; they did help, honest!

Comments

[the-marquis.livejournal.com]

Oh drat! Hope it goes better next time.

[kargicq.livejournal.com]

Bah... sorry it seems to have been a waste of time and cause of stress. What an annoyance!

[beckyc.livejournal.com]

Oh, it's rotten when that happens! I can see why they'd stop then. It's much easier and nicer to have blood taken from a canula that you've got to have in anyway.

I've been through a phase of extreme anguish and angst over blood tests (well, it's mostly arterial blood samples which I hated), and now I'm completely cool about it, so it is possible to change. I didn't even have hypnotherapy.

[wellinghall.livejournal.com]

Ooh, how did you do it? Any advice?

(If anything, I seem to be getting worse over time, not better!)

[beckyc.livejournal.com]

A few things helped:

Firstly, I think that having regular (3 monthly) injections means that I got used to the concept that needles aren't bad. Alas, I'm not sure this is a help to you :-(.

Secondly, working out what it was that was bothering me, then rationalising things helped. In my case, I think it was mostly fear of pain and blood. Well, I figured blood is no big deal, unless it's a symptom of something that needs fixing (in which case, time for the quacks), and there are *heaps* of things that hurt worse than a needle, which really isn't that bad on the scale of things that hurt. It's not damaging pain, and it's limited in duration, so it's not something to be bothered by. Or so the rational self-explanation goes ;-)

Thirdly, when in the actual process of having it taken, think about how important it is to keep still (doubly so if they are taking it from the back of your hand), how it will be over quicker if you just get it done. And look, focus with all your might on something interesting in the room that isn't where the needle is.

Fourthly, detatch. If you don't think of it as something that is happening to you, but just zone out, it helps. Let any fear or discomfort be not yours. Now I can even watch, and chat, and not be bothered. It's similar to the state I'm in when I travel, or when I'm bedridden, where I just let everything wash over me and just exist and be one with the world.

I can't say that these are entirely foolproof - I still think in horror of my trip in a dugout canoe with mosquitos and wasps (wasps are a phobia I have never properly overcome) buzzing around my face and ears on a lake full of piranha! But they worked well enough that I didn't cry or scream or otherwise lose my cool, however much I was screaming inside.

[chainmailmaiden]

Sorry to hear you didn't manage to get the blood taken this time, hope things go better when you have the IV. Thanks for the books by the way, they arrived yesterday. I haven't had a chance to have a good look at them yet, but I'm sure I'll have a chance sometime over the weekend.

[pellegrina.livejournal.com]

Sorry all that stress was to no immediate avail! If you do want to try hypnotherapy, I may be able to recommend a couple of names, having an old friend in the field.

[wellinghall.livejournal.com]

Thank you; I may well contact you about that off-list.