Fear of blood and it's concequences

**Posts:** 1 · by **LenaLena** » Mon Nov 23, 2020 11:08 pm

Hello everyone. Excuse my poor English :C
But I really want to share what just happened. I truly do not know how to deal with this. I mean, how to explain other people my condition these moments
I'm 30 y.o now, and since the very childhood i'm suffering from insane fear of blood. Nothing I remember could've triggered this fear. Truly got no clue why i started having these panic attacks. I just faint every time i'm giving my blood for tests (from arm/finger), if someone cuts his finger while cooking, if i accidently cut myself while cooking.. Even if i see a movie character getting hurt, or if someone's telling me about their past injuries or surgeries. The least i feel is racing heart, body temperature's raising, i get all sweaty, and extremely dizzy, can't keep standing anymore, and can't even move. Or simply faint.
So, getting back to the topic.. Today i was on a call with my boyfriend, and he cut his finger really bad while cooking, and told me about it (i have to mention that i warned him a bunch of times, that i can't control myself if someone's bleeding). And he got SUPER mad with me because i started having my body's reaction (fast breathing, and almost crying). He told me that it's "IMPOSSIBLE to be frightened by something you don't even see!". And then he got really mean with me. He also blamed me in "being selfish and caring only about myself". But how can i help it if my body just freezes from fear? I have really vivid image of his finger bleeding in my head. I mean.. I was totally fine until he started describing me how deep and bad the cut was. If he only told me that he cut his finger without any details, i'd react normally.
And i also got some episodes of people getting mad at me, because they've just never experiences anything like that ever in their lives! How we say it in Russia: "Doctor will never understand how the patient feels, unless he suffered the same".
So what am I asking for.. Please, give me an advice on how should I act with people, when they are flipping out on me due to my panic attacks?

**Posts:** 12131 · by **Richard@DecisionSkills** » Tue Nov 24, 2020 12:38 pm

LenaLena wrote: Please, give me an advice on how should I act with people, when they are flipping out on me due to my panic attacks?

Distance yourself. This means as politely as possible remove yourself from the situation so you can calm down. It is bad enough you are experiencing panic. You do not need the additional issue of a person flipping out.

After the incident, when things are calm you can explain that you need help dealing with your fear. Your fear is irrational.

To deal with irrational fear use cognitive-behavioral or exposure therapy. This is where you intentionally expose yourself to very small amounts of things you fear, e.g. the sight of blood.

Start with a 2-second exposure to a picture of blood. Then reflect on what bad really happened. The answer will be "nothing bad happened". You were not injured, the picture of blood didn't cause any harm to you. Consider the absolute worst case scenario. How did a 2-second exposure to a picture of blood negatively impact your life? The answer, it doesn't. It is you being irrational.

Repeat the 2-second exposure until you stop getting fear/anxiety/panic from the picture. Then 5-seconds, then 10-seconds, then 30-seconds, etc.

Eventually, if you continue building and practicing, you will be capable of handling exposure to actual blood.

**Posts:** 21 · by **Alpha90** » Fri Nov 27, 2020 12:07 am

Try to guide your exposure to your fears on an ongoing basis, you can desensitize.

**Posts:** 105 · by **bawdyheated** » Tue Dec 15, 2020 8:59 am

You will learn to replace your fearful self-talk with healthier responses to the sight of blood.

Fear of blood and it's concequences

#1

#2

#3

Main Menu

Panic Attacks and Anxiety Resources

Recent posts

Active topics

Contact Us