BELENOPHOBIA (PHOBIA OF NEEDLES): SYMPTOMS, CAUSES - ARTE - 2024

The fear of needles is an anxiety disorder characterized by experimentation irrational and excessive fear of needles and other objects that can cause injury, such as pins, knives or razors.

It is a specific type of phobia that can often be related to other phobic disorders such as hemophobia (blood phobia) or trauma (phobia of wounds).

As a result of belonephobia, the subject is totally unable to use sharp utensils such as needles and knives, for fear of hurting himself.

It is a type of phobia that is especially prevalent among children, although it can also appear in adults. In the latter, it usually generates a certain incapacity, since it deprives them of using everyday utensils.

Characteristics of belenophobia

Belonephobia is a specific type of phobia in which the feared element is mainly needles, but it can also be any other type of sharp utensil that can cause a wound on the skin.

People who suffer from this alteration irrationally fear these objects, a fact that motivates a total avoidance of their use and contact with them.

In belonephobia, fear of objects that can cause injury occurs in non-threatening situations. That is, the fear of needles and other sharp utensils does not appear when the person must draw blood or perform any activity that affects their integrity.

The fear of belonephobia appears in passive situations. That is, when the dreaded object must be used for purposes other than performing operations on the skin. Likewise, phobic fear can also appear when the object is totally immobile and is not going to be used at all.

Thus, the feared element in belonephobia is the sharp object itself, regardless of use. However, the subject fears the object due to the possibility that it will cause him some harm.

Through these aspects it is shown that the fear of belonephobia is totally irrational. There is no reason to experience fear when the subject suffers from it, however, there is nothing he can do to avoid being afraid.

Symptoms

The symptomatology of belonephobia is characterized by being anxious. The person with this alteration experiences high feelings of anxiety every time they are exposed to their feared elements.

The anxiety symptoms of belonephobia are usually intense and generate extensive discomfort in the person. Likewise, they are characterized by affecting in three different planes: the physical plane, the cognitive plane and the behavioral plane.

Physical plane

The manifestations of anxiety always cause a modification of the functioning of the organism. This modification responds to an increase in body tension and occurs through increased activity of the brain's autonomic nervous system.

In the case of belonephobia, the physical symptoms can be markedly different in each case. It has been established that the manifestations that can be presented are always one of the following:

• Increased heart rate.
• Increased respiratory rate.
• Palpitations, tachycardia, or feelings of suffocation.
• Muscle tension and body sweating.
• Stomach and / or headache pain.
• Pupillary dilation.
• Dry mouth.
• Feeling sick, nausea, and vomiting

Cognitive plane

Cognitive symptoms define a series of irrational and incongruous thoughts about the threat or danger of feared objects.

The person with belonephobia generates a series of negative and distressing cognitions about needles and other sharp utensils, a fact that increases their alertness.

Anxious thoughts about objects motivate the appearance of phobic fear towards them and are fed back with physical sensations to increase the person's state of anxiety.

Behavioral plane

Belonephobia originates a series of modifications in the behavior of the person. The fear and anxiety caused by feared objects is so high that they cause a total avoidance of them.

The person with belonephobia will avoid its use whenever possible and will even avoid being in contact or near the feared objects.

Causes

The causes of belonephobia can be highly variable and in most cases they are difficult to identify. Some factors have been detected as especially important:

Traumatic experiences

Having sustained injuries or significant damage from needles or sharp objects can be an important factor in the development of belonephobia.

Verbal and vicarious learning

Having received educational styles during childhood in which special emphasis is placed on the danger of needles or knives is an element that can also predispose to the development of belonephobia.

Genetic factors

Although there is no conclusive data, several studies suggest that specific phobias may contain genetic factors in their development and appearance.

Personality factors

Finally, presenting a personality marked by anxious traits and styles of thinking in which special attention is paid to the damage received can condition fear of sharp objects.

Treatment

The first-line treatment for anxiety disorders consists of a combination of drug treatment and psychotherapy. In the case of specific phobias, psychological treatment has proven much more effective than drug therapy.

In this sense, cognitive behavioral treatment provides tools and interventions that can be especially useful in treating belonephobia and overcoming the fear of needles and sharp objects.

The main strategy used in this treatment is exposure. Through a gradual hierarchy of stimuli, the therapist will expose the subject to the feared elements, with the aim of getting used to them.

On the other hand, to prevent the anxiety response during exposure, it is often useful to incorporate relaxation strategies and, occasionally, cognitive therapy.

References

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4. Choy Y, Fyer A, Lipsitz J. Treatment of specific phobia in adults. Clin Psychol Rev 2007; 27: 266–286.
5. Muris P, Schmidt H, Merckelbach H. The structure of specific phobia symptoms among children and adolescents. Behav Res Ther 1999; 37: 863–868.