It's OK: you're not alone. In fact, I've been seeing lots of clients recently who need an injection or other medical procedure... but they're apprehensive.
I had this text from a client a couple of days ago: 'Probably the most positive experience I've had getting a needle ever! Got the heart racing just beforehand but other than that it was good!' And then yesterday, this: 'My son had his second injection yesterday and it went so well. No tears or fainting or sickness. He concentrated on what you had said to him and, although not his favourite experience, there was certainly none of the trauma from previous experiences. I am so impressed and can't thank you enough.'
Actually, if you really want to know the truth, what to me is surprising is not that anyone feels uncomfortable (or even downright terrified) getting an injection. What surprises me is that we don't all feel this way. It is icky if you think about it. And you'll notice that even my first client (who when I first saw her could not even think about making a booking without shaking and bursting into tears) said she found her heart racing. But that is a long way away from a phobic response, and if that was the worst of it, you could handle that, couldn't you?
What to expect
Depending on your specific situation, I'd suggest we'd need probably three sessions (possibly only two or maybe four), during which we'd do the following:
Give you an experience of how you'd like to be feeling when you go for your injection - and practice at getting to that feeling;
Give you a way of accessing that feeling when you need to, and
Gently rehearsing how it will all go.
'Gently' is the key word here. You'll find we have plenty of time to go at your speed, and that you'll feel safe, secure and calm. And always it's you who's in control. There's no point in me asking you to do anything you find overwhelming, so let's just go at your pace and we'll get there.
Most of us have never really, closely observed our own experience when we're feeling uncomfortable - why would we? Yet when we do, we start to notice how and where it all starts and what it feels like. That's the time to use what you'll learn with me, rather than waiting till you're feeling overwhelmed and as if you can't cope.
It's like having a bucket of water. If you want to put out a fire, you'd better have the bucket ready and catch the fire when it's really just getting going. If you don't get to use your bucket of water until it's a raging bushfire, you've got no chance.
How does hypnosis help with all this?
I say to clients that it's time to create a new dialogue between the body and the mind. We want your mind to be saying to your body, 'Thank you for letting me know, for alerting me. I'll take it from here. Oh, and by the way: there's no need to shout. You don't have to be at 9 or 10 out of 10 - a 2 or a 3 will do.'
To get the body and the mind onto the same page, as it were, I use hypnosis to get you experiencing a really lovely, deep sense of wellbeing and calm, a quiet feeling where that new dialogue can take place.
Still not sure? That's OK. Book in a ten minute phone chat and we can discuss it: there's no cost, and it's entirely up to you whether you want to take it further.