There are different ways of treating fears and phobias, through cognitive behavioural therapy, and most often, exposure therapy. That might involve looking at pictures of needles, and eventually handling the syringe in your hand, for example.
With vaccine selfies all over social media, most people have had more than enough of their share of exposure therapy, but it’s missing one important piece of the puzzle.
“Good exposure therapy is voluntary,” Melanie Badali, registered psychologist and board director with Anxiety Canada, told CTVNews.ca in a phone interview on Friday.
The sort of exposure therapy we are faced with by the onslaught of vaccine selfies on social media isn’t voluntary, but experts say it’s important to learn to deal with these fears to help stop the global pandemic.
“Anxiety and needle fear can keep people from getting vaccinations,” she said.
“One of the big things that we see with specific phobias like needle or injection phobias, and in anxiety disorders in general, is avoidance... And so people are afraid of something, they avoid it, and then they don't get the opportunity to learn that it wasn't as dangerous or threatening as they thought, or they don't get the chance to learn.”
She said that for those who are finding themselves looking away or cringing at the sight of vaccine selfies, this might be a good opportunity to explore what is behind the feeling and ways to handle it.