Blood-Injection-Injury Type Phobia

Blood-injection-injury type phobia is a type of specific phobia characterized by excessive, irrational fear in response to the sight of blood, injury or injection, or in anticipation of an injection, injury or exposure to blood; blood-like stimuli such as paint or ketchup can also cause a reaction. It is a common phobia with an estimated three to four percent prevalence in the general population, occurring more often in younger and less educated groups. When exposed to a phobic trigger, sufferers often experience a two-phase response, an initial increase in heart rate and blood pressure followed quickly by a decrease in both, which diminishes blood supply to the brain and often results in fainting; this pattern typically begins before the age of ten. The phobia can lead to avoidance of hospitals, doctor visits, blood tests and vaccinations, or necessary self-injections in people with diabetes or multiple sclerosis, and applied tension, in which a person alternately tenses and relaxes their muscles while exposed to a trigger, is widely recognized as an effective treatment.