Like many others do, Alex plopped onto the edge of the examination table in his doctor’s office, awaiting the nurse’s return with the blood test equipment. His foot bounced rapidly as he waited, needles terrify Alex, and more so, the idea of one sucking his blood from his arm. Time stood still – seconds seemed like minutes – as he waited. Finally a tiny tap on the door. The nurse entered the room with a small cart and the test supplies. Alex’s eyes immediately found the giant syringe. 

Alex’s looked to the nurse and he blurted, “I’m nervous about this.”

“Just lay back and close your eyes,” she replied with a calming and playful voice. “Do you have any children?”

“No, not yet.”

With a shot of anxiety and a turn of the stomach, Alex felt the needle ping in his arm. The nurse kept the questions coming, and he took them one at a time – Done. As he walked out of the doctor’s office, his face regained its normal complexion, and he told a staff member at the desk his relief, “That’s the first time I’ve had my blood taken.”