As the title, is there any way to be permanently removed from invitations to flu/ covid vaccinations? I have contacted my doctor who have said they can opt me out for a year, but next year I will get invitations again. This makes me extremely uncomfortable. I am needle phobic, and I do not want any help with that. I just want to permanently opt of of invitations to flu/ covid vaccinations.
EDIT: I am not interested in advice to seek help for my needle phobia. That is not going to happen.
Just ignore them and get on with your life👍
I can't just ignore the messages. They are highly triggering, and cause me to avoid medical care for fear of doctors/ nurses attempting to bully me into receiving the vaccination (it has happened before)
I don’t understand why you can’t just opt out each year? Or ignore messages re jabs and if gp surgery phones you then just say you’re declining them as in previous years.
It can be difficult to opt out long term for anything. I thought I had opted out over something else yet still get letters every now and then re tests for a part of my body I no longer have!
I don't think they'll ever let you opt out permanently. Apart from anything else, with today's compensation culture, they probably want to keep inviting you to protect themselves - e.g. so no one can sue them for the results of getting flu/covid whilst unvaccinated on the basis that 'I would have gone if you'd invited me THIS year'. Just ignore the messages.
I can't just ignore the messages. They are highly triggering, and cause me to avoid medical care for fear of doctors/ nurses attempting to bully me into receiving the vaccination (it has happened before)
Nobody can force you to have vaccinations you don't want. If you find being encouraged to have them makes you feel so anxious, then can you ask a trusted friend to accompany you to appointments? You might find you feel less stressed if someone is with you.
If anxiety is impacting your life to this extent it would also be worth seeking some help in managing that - MIND have some excellent resources that can be really helpful.
They can't force me to do anything and I am aware of that, but they can and do ignore the reason that I made the appointment to hassle me about getting the vaccination and generally make appointments a miserable experience
I don't have people that I trust to take to appointments. Last time I did that that person threatened to kill my bird because I refused a blood test.
Not interested in what MIND have to say. I am only interested in if I can have the invitations to get vaccinated permanently ceased.
In that case, I think you just have to put up with things as they are. Unfortunately, life is full of things that can be triggering or stressful.
Unlikely. The ways they give vaccines are changing constantly. There's already a nasal spray flu one. A fear of needles wouldn't prevent you getting that one
I have never been offered the nasal spray. It's needles or nothing for my doctor.
If the reason you don't want the vaccine is because you are needle phobic rather than scientific argument about the validity of vaccine then why not try CBT counselling or similar to overcome your fear as you may find that you might need an injection or other needle based med to save your life?
Because CBT is a waste of time (I have tried it in the past for other reasons) and I have no interest in getting help for my needle phobia.
It would really be helpful to try to overcome your fear as it may save your life one day. If you have heart problems or want to give birth - have an accident or need surgery. Please reconsider for the sake of your family and friends.
It isn't helpful for me to overcome my needle phobia. The 'reward' is not worth it for me. I have no interest in reconsidering that position. I am child free so I won't be birthing anything, and I would refuse any surgery. My family and friends are aware of how I feel about this.
Each NHS Trust has their own needle phobia protocol, especially for any vaccine programme. If you Google your Trust and needle phobia, you should at least be able to know what your rights are, locally. Maybe telephoning the 119 flu appointment hotline would be more accommodating than your GP?
I can't find anything pertaining to a needle phobia protocol for my area, but I will call that shotline tomorrow and see what they have to say. Thank you.
Good luck!
I’m sorry but… surely, you wouldn’t rather die than get help with your phobia? What about those who love you, won’t you do it for them? I see you’re only 32, imagine their lifelong grief! Even I feel tearful just thinking about it, and I don’t even know you.
Because of asthma complications, I need intravenous antibiotics several times a year, otherwise the bacteria I’m colonised with would overwhelm me & I’d have died years ago, and the people who love & need me would’ve been bereft.
Also, think of the good you might do in the world! What a tragic and unnecessary waste 😔
Yes, I would rather die than do anything about my needle phobia. I don't see why I would do something that I find unacceptable for other people. They are aware of my thoughts and feelings regarding this.
I understand everyone has different motivating facts. Death by infection isn't one for me (had cellulitis earlier in the year. Ended up in A&E with doctors telling me I could die without IV antibiotics. They got sufficiently pushy that they assessed my mental capacity to see if they could force it on me against my will. They couldn't). The people I know getting pissed off or upset wasn't going to change the fact that needle procedures are not possible for me.
I am an entirely average human being. I won't be doing anything particularly noteworthy with my life. I don't understand what is particularly tragic about a person who can't deal with needles and is aware of the potential consequences.
And you’d really rather put your beloved family through that, gosh 🤔
Why would I do something I find totally unacceptable just because someone would rather I did it? I wouldn't expect that of anyone else.
Because hopefully there’s someone you care about more than you care about yourself?
Anyway let’s leave it now 🥱
Yes, ther are people that I care about more than myself. And why does that mean I should do something that is totally beyond my abilities?
Why comment at all if you know you won't like someone not bowing down to what you think is right? What you do is right for you. Why does that mean everyone should be able to do the same thing?
I think you need to get help for your underlying mental health issues as you are coming over as needing some kind of support if you would seriously consider death and upsetting your loved ones rather than working out a way to best your phobia. Please don’t ignore genuine offers of help and kind people who are worried for you . Admin should try to reach out off line
I do not want or need help for any mental health issues. I just have no interest in doing anything about my needle phobia as it is not of benefit to me to do so. The people who know me know this and accept it. The only thing I am interested in is finding out how to permanently remove myself from the list of people invited to flu vaccinations so I am not bothered about it every year.
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