Medical Phobias

Are you afraid of pins or needles (belonephobia)? Or terrified by the sight of blood (hemophobia) or fear the hospital (nosocomephobia)? Or how about even scared of doctors (iatrophobia) or dentists (dentophobia)? If you find yourself fearful of any of the above, you suffer from a psychiatric disorder called medical phobia.

According to mentalhealthchannel.net, a "phobia" is an anxiety disorder in which the affected person experiences an excessive or irrational fear of a specific situation, object, or activity that disrupts their ability to function in normal daily activities. Fear arises when the situation, object, or activity is encountered or anticipated and has the potential to cause a panic attack. Adults who suffer from the disorder most often recognize that their fear is irrational. It has been reported that nearly 11 percent of the U.S. population, may suffer from any particular phobia during their lifetime.

Often, the cause of such a fear is the result of a traumatic experience in childhood. For instance, after a frightening childhood trip to the doctor, the mind associates the fear to the situation or object being feared. Children may also develop an excessive fear by learning the fearful response that was once expressed by a parent or adult because of a particular situation or object. Besides obvious symptoms of fear, symptoms that may signal a panic attack include: abdominal distress, chest pain, chills or hot flashes, fear of dying, shortness of breath and feeling of choking.

Unfortunately, the efforts to avoid such places as the hospital or a visit to the dentist can come at the expense of an individual's own health. Having a medical phobia may prevent you from doing the following: seeking medical treatment in a timely manner, maintaining healthy teeth, visiting family or friends in the hospital, donating blood or plasma, and giving yourself shots of insulin or other prescribed medication.

To date, there is no diagnostic laboratory test for phobias. However, diagnosis is primarily based on the patient's account of their experiences. Criteria for the diagnoses of phobias like agoraphobia (fear of public places), social phobia, and specific phobia such as medical phobia are provided by The American Psychiatric Association in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. The most effective treatment for medical phobia is simply exposure time to the object or situation and "positive thinking". The mind must be taught to switch the association of say, a doctor, from a negative association to a positive association in who they are or what they do.

Authors of the book, Overcoming Medical Phobias, psychologist Martin Anthony and Mark Watling, MD, offer a few points to ponder for those who need to find ways to cope while sitting in the waiting room. If a patient is feeling faint, it is suggested to try tensing all of the muscles in your body for 10 to 15 seconds. Such an exercise is to be repeated a few times with 15 second breaks in between. The exercise allows an increase in blood flow to the head, which will prevent fainting. A second suggestion is to think of the doctor visit as a small necessary step in overcoming the problem. Each time this is practiced, the visit to the doctor should gradually become easier. A third suggestion is identifying what it is that you're afraid will happen and to think about the evidence and decide whether the prediction is realistic. Lastly, look at the big picture of things. The whole procedure will be over soon.