To be honest, I'm not sure there are many people that do like needles...

There is a fetish for everything. Also some types of drug users possibly might like the needles after awhile.

When I was pregnant I went in for dehydration 3 different times and each time it took 10-12 sticks by 3-4 different people before they got it. Then when I was in labor the same thing happened but the IV had pictocin and the IV kept "falling" out so they had to keep "restarting" my labor. 24 hours. It sucked completely.being a human pin cushion sucks

Ugh. Needles actually make me faint. I tried to give blood once, and even before they ask the questions like have you traveled or about your illnesses, they take your heartbeat. I was so nervous that my heart rate was too high to give blood. All of these stories make me never want to have to have an IV in me.

I obviously don't enjoy needles, but they don't bother me at all. I have health issues and have gotten my blood taken a crazy amount throughout my life, so maybe that's why. But they don't hurt much and don't bother me at all.

My boyfriend thinks it's super cool, he loves getting his blood drawn. I would too except it makes me so nauseous I very nearly pass out

Why?.I have no clue what I am talking about.Im just suggesting that's all.

Painkillers are usually fine if used as prescribed, for short periods, and if the person doesn't have addiction issues. But definitely not a good idea for chronic pain. They can ruin lives.

36, while I feel for your pain, I have to disagree with your comment about the young man's age. His age has nothing to do with the validity of his statement. Profound truth can come from the lips of the young. Mind numbing folly may spring forth from those advanced in years. Age does not determine the wisdom of one's words.

#36 I am but a few years older than him and I have to be on quite a bit of pain medication due to chronic pain and have been on varied pain medications since age 16. His age has little to do with his comment.

#40, the first sentence of your comment was spot on, but intractable pain also has tremendous potential to ruin lives. Physicians and other adequately trained clinicians will only prescribe medication as part of a treatment plan for uncontrolled chronic pain if they judge the benefits to outweigh the risks for any given patient. That determination must always have a logical, evidence-based foundation and thus, blanket emotional statements like yours about use of medication to treat chronic pain are (at best) of questionable value (and at worst, harmful if they influence the thinking of others) in rational discourse.

#36 & #40, I am 27 and have chronic pain and have to be on painkillers for it. I've been taking them since I was 19. Although I hate the drugs and the side effects, the meds are a lesser of two evils for me and I would not be able to live or function without having them because my pain is debilitating as disabling. I think great care should be taken when taking them and I think a person should really be aware of all the downsides of taking painkillers. However, I think they are an essential part of a lot of peoples pain management program and not something you can really judge. It's great that you don't need painkillers to function, but the reality is a lot of other people do.

"Presuming it hurts"? Did you not see abdominal /PAIN/?

Why would you suggest something when you have no idea if it's valid?

#60 You make a very good point. My comment was very generalized and not really fair to people who can't function without narcotics. I should not have said "definitely not a good idea", since sometimes it is indeed the only alternative. My bias comes from a family history of dependence and a personal battle with the stuff. My heart goes out to people who become addicted due to necessity. I've just seen it happen so many times, and it always makes me wonder if there was another way to handle it.

#85, thank you for the thoughtful response and for clarifying the nature of your statement. I'm sorry to hear about your family history & personal experiences and I completely agree that opiate/opioid pain medications are not ideal due to their side effects and addictive potential. I suppose they represent a limitation of modern medicine and society, but developing alternatives is the subject of research around the world, so hopefully something more optimal will come from that.

Am I the only one confused by this thread because the FML never mentioned it was chronic? It seemed more sudden and unexpected than anything.. So why is there a thread all about chronic pain?

Did you consider it might not have been their fault since OP's vein was hard to find. And hope you are recovering good OP.

If you're dehydrated like OP was, it's nearly impossible to get one in.

It probably wasn't their fault if there were multiple that tried and failed. They always have a hard time doing my ivs because my veins are small and roll. I know how you feel OP the worst experience I have had was when they were prepping me for surgery a few years ago. It took three people to get it in and they ended up blowing 8 blood veins. It may just be that you were dehydrated or that you have problematic veins like me.

i have really bad veins, especially when i was younger. i will remember when two nurses couldnt get the IV in me once when i was 6 being hospitilized (AND i was dehydrated). the pediatric doctor had to do the IV himself- but they poked me 7 times already. the only spot he could get it in was alreafy swollen and sore. it was the most painful thing i experienced at the time, and i will never forget it. sometimes, it's really not the professional's fault. take it from a patient and now health care professional. sorry that it's painful though. i conpletely empathize :(

Phlebotomists (my spelling is correct) don't do IV's....nurses do. Phlebotomists draw blood. Just saying...I hate it when people open their mouths about stuff they obviously know nothing about.

It's not always the doctor. I have very deep veins. Once when I was sick, I had to have blood drawn and 3 nurses and a specialist tried with no success. However this February, I had surgery in my mouth. Obviously that's 12 hours of no drinking or eating. But my dentist got a vein right away. It depends on the vein they're trying to get at, not really the doctor.

#99, I donate plasma on a regular basis and they do ivs and they are licensed phlebotomists. So, you shouldn't be so harsh when you THINK someone doesn't know what they are talking about.

I don't see the point of puns. It really needles me that so many people find them funny.

Needles(s) puns

With all those holes I imagine he'll spring a leak!

Sugary? Was this at the dentists by any chance?

My mother had one nurse try over twenty times. Another nurse walked in and saw what was going on. The other nurse got a vein in one try.

@25 Your profile says the U.S., most hospitals have policies that each Nurse will try 2-3 times and then trade or call anesthesia. Your mother had the right to refuse to allow that Nurse to try again. I am not getting stuck 20 times by one Nurse.

Opening the vein is the point of venipuncture. Unless you have a blood disorder or are taking anticoagulants, it'll repair itself.

Ripping open a vein causes a bruise. We do it to ourselves all the time, I think OP will survive.