BLOOD-INJECTION-INJURY PHOBIA

Question 1

What is Blood-Injection-Injury Phobia?

Answer 1

• A specific phobia characterised by an intense fear of blood, injury, or injections.

Question 2

What are the symptoms of BIIP?

Answer 2

FAINT- MNEMONIC
F- Fear (marked or unreasonable fear/ anxiety of feared stimuli)
A- Avoidance of triggers (medical appointment)
I- Immidate vasovagal symptoms (nausea symptoms)
N- Not better explained by other health conditions/ disorders.
T-Triggered by blood, injury, needles

Question 3

What is the vagus nerve?

Answer 3

• Most important nerve in the parasympathetic nevrous system (controls the body’s rest and digest functions and involuntary bodily functions)

Question 4

What causes the fainting response in BIIP?

Answer 4

When the individual percieves the feared stimuli, the vagus nerve can become overly stimultated, which results in dramatic drops in heart rate and blood pressure, resulting in dizziness and fainting.

Question 5

Can you explain BIIP through an evolutionary explanation?

Answer 5

• Humans may have developed a predisposed fear of blood and injury as a survival mechanism
• Thus individuals who were more cautious around blood more likely to survive and pass on genes.

Question 6

What would be a psychological explanation of BIIP?

Answer 6

• Classical conditioning- a person experinces a negative event involving blood. They associate this event with intense fear. They develop a phobia.
• Operant conditioning- the phobia is maintained through avoidance and negative reinforcement.