An “Electric Needle” for Aversive Conditioning of the Needle Ritual

Abstract

We have wondered how to deal with the “needle freak,” the person who continues to use a variety of drugs by intravenous injection, or even the needle alone, even after his hunger for opiates has been abolished by methadone. The talking therapies have seemingly been unable to break into this compulsive habit. The possibility of using aversive conditioning was intriguing and, accordingly, we developed the “electric needle” shown below