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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Suspect I am. Psychological inability to swallow pills or have injections-really?

30 replies

madamezouzou · 04/03/2013 16:18

Is this a real thing?

Have been looking after an adult colleague through the course of my work (I don't work in healthcare or any other caring profession!) who's been a bit ill- necessitating blood tests, numerous pills a day etc.

Bloody nightmare. Breakdowns at sight of needles, pills needing to be crushed up and can't take them even then because they taste bad. Liquid versions not available here (not in UK).

My patience has been tested and I can't help thinking- oh for gods sake, get on with it. Very sympathetic to her face though.

So is this really a genuine psychological condition?

Moreover- is it something that is not culturally specific? I don't imagine children living in poverty in eg an Indian village suffer from this, if they're lucky enough to get the medicine they need...

OP posts:
CloudsAndTrees · 04/03/2013 16:20

You can have a phobia to just about anything, so of course it's a genuine thing. Do you just think she's being a really good actress? Don't you think that would take more effort than it's worth?

TaggieCampbellBlack · 04/03/2013 16:21

DD2 can't take any sort of medicine. Never has done. Not even calpol.
She ended up having massive, painful, in muscle injections of antibiotics last year because of this. She just can't.

cornycruzcampo · 04/03/2013 16:22

yes it is a 'real thing'

LRDtheFeministDragon · 04/03/2013 16:22

Yes, it's real, and I don't imagine it's culturally specific - why would it be?

I don't know about injections, but the pills thing may well by physical, not psychological. My granny couldn't swallow big pills, it was a right pain but not remotely psychological, just to do with the formation of her throat. She had to cut food up tiny, too.

I don't quite follow why you're looking after an adult colleague if you're not a medic - I'd be tempted to tell your boss it's not your job and you're not comfortable doing it, rather than getting cross with someone who's not well.

greenandcabbagelooking · 04/03/2013 16:23

I really struggle to take tablets. I know it is all in my head, that I swallow bigger lumps of food and am fine, and that I need to take the tablets. Still struggle. I have found that eating some biscuit, then at the last second showing the tablet in and swallowing works.

I am also needle phobic, but only if the needle is going in me.

Original poster
madamezouzou · 04/03/2013 16:26

We're on a graduate scheme abroad, so not much of a support network in this country for either of us. We've been allocated to share a flat, too. Think I'd be a bit of a cow not to look after her a bit under these circus...

OP posts:
dinkystinky · 04/03/2013 16:27

I struggle to take pills - but if I'm eating and chewing something then chuck them in my mouth at the last minute I can take them no problme.

lurkedtoolong · 04/03/2013 16:27

I have a very sensitive gag reflex and it can often take me several attempts to take one tablet, which is one of the reasons I'll pay for branded tablets with a smoother coating. For years it really preyed on my mind and made taking tablets quite upsetting, it's not so bad now but I can imagine it being quite distressing for someone who suffers more than I do.

mrscog · 04/03/2013 16:38

I think it is a very real thing for some people. However, like all phobias, you will get people describing themselves as 'phobic' when they really mean scared or dislike. I know someone who described themselves as an arachnophobe but was able to pick up small spiders, it was just big ones made her scream!

RedToothBrush · 04/03/2013 16:41

So is this really a genuine psychological condition?

No they are doing it deliberately to piss you off, annoy you and try your patience.

What do you think? Of course its genuine. Do you really think someone would fake something like this, or do it because they just being awkward?

molly199 · 04/03/2013 17:42

Yes I have a slightly phobia about taking pills, for example if i was to force my self to take them..Ill hold the pill in my mouth for ages until I get the guts to swallow (even with loads of water), most of the time ill choke from the fear of it

GalaxyDefender · 04/03/2013 17:52

It may not even be psychological - I really struggle to swallow pills because of a hyperactive gag reflex. I'm not scared of taking pills - in fact it annoys me that I can't just down them, because it would make my life so much easier!

When I was suffering from the worst bout of flu I've ever encountered at Christmas, I literally had to take the same tablet eight times, drinking about two litres of water and eating several biscuits in the process, just to get it down me. Even then I had to choke it down. It feels like your body is rejecting what you're trying to put in it, and it's horrible.

I can understand why it would be annoying though, if you weren't sure it was a thing.

aftereight · 04/03/2013 18:00

Yes, it's real.
I can't swallow tablets, at all, even have to chew the tiny contraceptive pill. Not all tablets can be chewed, either, as you probably know.
I have tried hypnotherapy to no avail. I know that even if I were dying I couldn't swallow tablets to make me better.
So please have a bit of sympathy for your colleague.

specialsubject · 04/03/2013 18:06

the contraceptive pill is supposed to be swallowed whole. You'd better change contraception.

OP - giving out medication like this when you are not qualified is not on and not your job. Your colleague needs to go home. If she is this psychologically fragile, she doesn't sound like she should be where she is.

I have to say I also wonder if this is a first-world thing, or if in less enlightened places people are just held down while they are given injections. (yes, I know phobias are not the same as 'making a fuss'!!)

colleysmill · 04/03/2013 18:11

I used to have to self medicate fortnightly with an injection pen and whilst I'm fine having someone else do it (or take blood) I was a complete an utter wuss when it came to doing it to myself. The injection day would loom and id get all panicky and nervous about it. I was quite surprised at myself tbh.

Original poster
madamezouzou · 04/03/2013 18:14

I'm not giving out medication!! The doctors and pharmacists do that!

OP posts:
Original poster
madamezouzou · 04/03/2013 18:21

'Looking after' involves getting food/water, accompanying to drs/pharmacy, talking, reassuring, thinking of ways for her to take drugs. She has anxiety issues and is getting culture shock too. All a bit too much for me to deal with, really.

She's also very much 'it's all about me' anyway. Perhaps that's why this pill/ injection thing is annoying me so much! It wouldn't be so bad if she was more apologetic and less attention seeking about everything, including this...

But cannot see any way to extract myself at all! Fed up...

OP posts:
CloudsAndTrees · 04/03/2013 19:10

It does sound like its a shit situation for you, and you send like you have had a lot dumped on you that isn't what you signed up for. But I do expect it is genuine, things like this are actually fairly common. People who properly suffer from them though tend not to broadcast it to many people, because it is easily disbelieved and can be embarrassing.

Specialsubject, it probably is a first world problem in that these are learned behaviours that come from somewhere. We aren't born with phobias, so I guess the less exposure you have to the types of things that might be likely to trigger one, then the less likely you are to end up with one.

rainrainandmorerain · 04/03/2013 19:44

It sounds as if you are in a pressured situation, caring for someone you don't really want to and don't much like.

But yes, phobias are real. Your post is a bit sour, really. I don't imagine children in Indian villages living in poverty come and post on the internet about how they find a friend's behaviour irritating, but then it seems an odd standard to judge someone by in this instance. I expect you do lots of things like spend money on makeup/meals out etc which would seem silly by these standards.

I'd grit your teeth, get through it, and if you have to think uncharitable thoughts to endure, then fine. But you know they aren't reasonable.

Boomerwang · 04/03/2013 19:48

I can't swallow tablets the way other people do. I have to take a mouthful of water first, then look up, tip the pills in my mouth and swallow the lot. They always get stuck in my throat otherwise. You don't feel them going down if you are swallowing a big mouthful of water.

No problem with injections. I can watch it all being done to me with fascination. My boyfriend turns green when he sees a syringe though, even if it doesn't have a needle on the end.

Now, I've overcome my problems, and my boyfriend will still suffer a needle, but I don't think we have phobias. A phobia is a fear of the thought of something rather than the real thing (primarily) and that's a whole different kettle of fish.

So I guess yabu.

ZolaBuddleia · 04/03/2013 19:52

Sit on her and hold her nose til she opens her mouth. Grin

mylittlepuds · 04/03/2013 22:06

Yes it's real. I was massively, massively phobic of needles. Sadly I was diagnosed with T1 diabetes in my late 20s and have had to deal with it! I'm an actual human pin cushion.

mylittlepuds · 04/03/2013 22:07

Oh and now I'm scared of numbers...yes really

littlemisssarcastic · 04/03/2013 22:18

Why don't the people who can't swallow tablets take a liquid form? I honestly think that is what I would do if I couldn't swallow tablets.
Obviously, I understand that not everything comes in liquid form as well, but for the medication that does??

saintlyjimjams · 04/03/2013 22:38

Yes it's real. DS3 was always difficult to get medicines into. Used to take forever. Now it's impossible. As soon as a medicine hits the back of this throat he vomits it along with everything else. I now don't bother even trying. Luckily he hasn't developed epilepsy or diabetes or something that requires daily medication; if he does it will be a major problem.

I suspect some children living in poverty have the same phobia, yes.

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