Line #17 Main/AfraidOfDoctors


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4	[[quoteright:349:[[ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/calvin_at_the_doctor.png]]]]
5	[[caption-width-right:349:"WHAT'S THAT? WILL IT HURT?"\
6	"It's a caption. It won't hurt at all."]]
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11	->'''Jadzia Dax:''' I've never told you this before, Julian, but I've always been afraid of doctors.\
12	'''Dr. Bashir:''' Most people are. When I was younger, I was terrified of them.\
13	'''Dax:''' ''Really?''\
14	'''Bashir:''' They seemed to know everything. It was as if they held the power of life and death in their hands. I used to think that if I didn't behave, they'd make sure I got sick.
15	-->-- ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'', "[[Recap/StarTrekDeepSpaceNineS03E04Equilibrium Equilibrium]]"
16
17	So it's time for that routine checkup. The doctor is in, but you have a major problem. You have iatrophobia, the fear of doctors. You kick, scream, and whine that you don't want to go and that everything is fine. Who knows why you fear the doctor or what type you fear? Maybe you had a failed procedure, maybe you only fear a particular ''type'' of doctor (dentists or gastroenterologists or gynecologists, for example), maybe major surgery just gives you shivers, maybe you're AfraidOfNeedles or AfraidOfBlood, maybe you were used for ''horrific'' [[PlayingWithSyringes medical experiments without your consent]], maybe a doctor [[RapeAsBackstory molested or raped you in the past]] using the [[CreepyPhysical examination]] as an excuse, maybe you were the victim of a medical error, maybe you [[HatesBeingTouched just don't like to be touched]], maybe you think this particular doctor or nurse is rumored to be insane, maybe it's a really invasive procedure, or maybe this professional is [[BackAlleyDoctor unlicensed to what s/he is trying to do]] (even if he or she is the [[ClosestThingWeGot closest thing you have]]). Or maybe it's used as a disciplinary threat by your parent or guardian for being a naughty child. Or even maybe you're just getting a routine checkup, but the idea of someone else judging your lifestyle (your diet, your weight, your alcohol intake, etc.) makes you uneasy. Whatever the situation, you don't want to go and place your life in someone else's hands...
18
19	This was more justified in the past, before the introduction of anesthesia in surgery and the use of disinfectants to prevent infection and the spread of disease.
20
21	Can result in a case of ThePatientHasLeftTheBuilding or FearIsNormal. This trope makes for decent CharacterDevelopment. Compare and contrast DepravedDentist, MadDoctor, and MorallyAmbiguousDoctorate: those are the kind of doctors you ''should'' fear. Also compare AfraidOfBlood and CATTrap. This is the super trope of AfraidOfNeedles. This is also a sub-Trope of WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes.
22
23	Such characters left to their own devices may resort to SelfSurgery. Animal characters may exhibit this response to ''veterinarians'', particularly if AnimalsFearNeutering or being ReleasedToElsewhere via euthanasia.
24
25	----
26	!!Examples:
27	[[foldercontrol]]
28
29	[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
30	* Played with in ''Manga/FruitsBasket'': Rin ''hates'' going to the doctor and escapes every time she's sent to the hospital, but this is more from her history of child abuse than a fear of doctors themselves; her [[AbusiveParents parents]] abused her to the point she was hospitalized and visited her just to tell her they were kicking her out of the house and wanted nothing more to do with her.
31	* In ''Manga/{{Gintama}}'', an episode reveals that both [[TheHero Gintoki]] and [[TheRival HIjikata]] are afraid of the dentist despite being adults. The fact that they meet at a DepravedDentist clinic didn't help.
32	* ''Manga/{{Imadoki}}'': Tanpopo is terrified of going to the hospital and refuses to go, preferring to rely on her Chinese medicine at home because [[spoiler:she and her mother were taken to the hospital after the car accident, and her mother died there later.]] Even when her LoveInterest Koki finds her sick in the rain, he takes her to her home and [[UndressingTheUnconscious undresses and dries her]] himself, since she hates going to the hospital that much.
33	* The trope is named by Natsu Tanimoto from ''Manga/KenichiTheMightiestDisciple''. In his past, his father married a female doctor who promised to tend to his sister's sickness. After the doctor murdered his father, Natsu discovered that she [the doctor] never bothered tending to her, sprouting a seed of distrust in the boy.
34	* In ''Manga/LuckyStar'', Miyuki is afraid of going to the dentist and often tries avoiding this even when she knows she should go.
35	* Jigen of ''Anime/LupinIII'' isn't afraid of regular doctors, but he ''hates'' going to the dentist. There was one story in the manga where he couldn't shoot straight due to a painful toothache that he refused to have looked at. Given that he's once been attacked by a venomous snake courtesy of [[DepravedDentist an enemy agent disguised as a dentist]], and also had a car crash into the dentist's room with him, this may be justified.
36	* Not only is he vary of medical treatment in general, but [[{{SunnySunflowerDisposition}} Yogi]] from ''Manga/{{Karneval}}'' utterly fears being anywhere ''near'' Doctor Akari. It's hilarious at first, but then we find out [[EscapedFromTheLab why, exactly, he's afraid of doctors as a whole and Akari in particular]]...
37	* Fujimaru from ''Manga/SnowWhiteAndSevenDwarfs'' is a minor example, in that he doesn't make a fuss over it, but he mentions that he hates doctors and the medical environment in general when the group ends up visiting a BackAlleyDoctor. Given that he spent years locked up in a laboratory, being experimented on, it's hard to blame him.
38	* Dilandau seems to have this in ''Anime/TheVisionOfEscaflowne'' ''TheMovie'', and to a somewhat lesser extent in the anime series proper. Given what Dilandau has [[PlayingWithSyringes been through]], however, one can hardly blame him.
39	* Makoto/Cure Sword of ''Anime/DokiDokiPrecure'' is terrified of dentists, to the point where she nopes out of a group pose once she realizes the MonsterOfTheWeek is based on dentists.
40	[[/folder]]
41
42	[[folder:Comic Books]]
43	* In Creator/GeoffJohns' ''ComicBook/TeenTitans'', Superboy and Beast Boy have a phobia of doctors, due to both of them being experimented on as kids. Beast Boy in particular has a special [[AfraidOfNeedles hatred for needles.]]
44	* In ''ComicBook/TheSandman1989'', pre-op transwoman Wanda has a phobia of surgery.
45	[[/folder]]
46
47	[[folder:Fan Works]]
48	* In one episode of ''Fanfic/CalvinAndHobbesTheSeries'', Sherman develops a fear of the vet after Hobbes and Socrates repeatedly screw with him.
49	* In the ''WesternAnimation/TurningRed'' fic ''Fanfic/DenTaePhobia'', Tae is afraid of dentists, which is why he tries to hide his toothache from the rest of the band. But when they find out they help him through it.
50	* The ''{{Series/Emergency}}'' fic ''[[https://womenwritersblock.net/2018/06/07/grin-and-bear-it-by-rona/ Grin and Bear it ]]'' has John Gage frightened of the dentist when he has a toothache. It’s justified, because in the previous fic, ''[[https://womenwritersblock.net/2018/06/07/sea-of-heartbreak-by-rona/ Sea of Heartbreak]]'', he’s wrongly arrested and gets in a fight in jail that results in a broken jaw. He’s not treated the best at the hospital, and the work to set and wire his jaw is done with just local anesthetic. So by the time he has to see the dentist again, he’s fearful of a panic attack.
51	* From Webcomic/KillLaKillAU, we have Rei "the Drunk Secretary" Hou'oumaru and, while it's not precisely a fear, she has a distrust of doctors and hospitals for reasons mostly hinted at but remain unsaid.
52	* In ''Fanfic/TheNightmareHouse'', [[WesternAnimation/TheLoudHouse Lana Loud]] is afraid of going to the doctor because she feels the saccharine decorations are trying too hard to make the doctor's seem like a happy place.
53	* ''Fanfic/OneMoreTimeOneMoreChance'' extends Ryuko's FearOfNeedles to this trope, due to some kind of experiences she's had in the past and the narration says she's always hated hospitals because of them.
54	* ''Fanfic/RidingASunset'': Poor [[GentleGiant Bulkhead]] is ''terrified'' of getting a check up from Ratchet, to the point that Charlie goes with him to help him calm down (and because [[SecretTestOfCharacter Ratchet wants to test her potential as a medical assistant]]). Ratchet's reputation as a [[GrumpyOldMan short-tempered]] JerkWithAHeartOfGold and his habit of throwing wrenches at other Autobots does ''not'' alleviate Bulkhead's worries.
55	[[/folder]]
56
57	[[folder:Film -- Live-Action]]
58	* In ''Film/TheAdventuresOfBaronMunchausen'', the Baron is afraid of doctors [[spoiler: he can easily avoid the AnthropomorphicPersonification of Death until the doctor comes in]].
59	* In ''Film/FerrisBuellersDayOff'', the protagonist - who goes through a lot of trouble to play sick - claims being in a doctor's office is worse than being in school.
60	* The 1950s ''Doctor...'' series about a group of students, later young doctors, at London teaching hospital "St Swithins". In ''Doctor at Large'', young doctor Simon Sparrow (Dirk Bogarde) encounters this reaction in a patient terrified of going in for an operation and has to persuade her the surgeon conducting the OP (who trained Sparrow) is the very best out there. This is based on the books by Richard Gordon, so this is also a Literature trope.
61	[[/folder]]
62
63	[[folder:Literature]]
64	* In his Yorkshire Vet stories, Creator/JamesHerriot notes that older country folk in rural Yorkshire could be wary and apprehensive about visiting the doctor. Part of this could be due to the fact that socialized medicine in Britain only began with the NHS in 1945: in the 1930s, going to the doctor involved paying him for his services, and poor people tried to avoid this until it was really necessary. Herriot also noted many instances of vet-phobia among animals and their owners.
65	* In Creator/{{Alan Garner}}'s two fantasy novels set in rural Cheshire, especially in ''Literature/TheMoonOfGomrath'', the old farmer's wife, Bess Mossock, has a strong rural English fear of doctors, displaying great reluctance at having Susan being seen by the medical profession during her coma (brought on by her being possessed by an old Celtic spirit of evil).
66	* Not exactly afraid, but Ron in one of the ''Literature/HarryPotter'' books described doctors as "those muggle nutters who cut people up". It's established later that wizards in general find non-magical medical treatment (like stitches) quite strange. It's not remotely helped by the fact that most wizards have an understanding of the non-magical world that's about a century out of date.
67	* Austin, the protagonist of ''Literature/HollowPlaces,'' has an aversion to hospitals and the medical profession as a whole due to the agonizing months he once spent in an infirmary while recovering from being indirectly hit by a missile blast. Later in life, he is forced to rent out an unused hospital room since it's cheaper than living in an apartment. Waking up there makes him vividly recall bad memories of a doctor telling him that both his arm and his sister are gone.
68	* In the novel ''Literature/OneTwoBuckleMyShoe'', the normally unflappable super-sleuth Hercule Poirot is revealed to have an embarrassing fear of the dentist.
69	* In the ''Literature/MaximumRide'' series, Max and the Flock have a general fear of doctors. She swallows it enough to get a quick check-up from Dr. Martinez, but that's only because Dr. Martinez had a very gentle demeanor (and because Max had to get a bullet wound looked at). Given that they were all held captive in dog cages by doctors for their formative years, this fear is understandable.
70	* In the Literature/{{Discworld}}, veteran postman Tulliver Groat has a lifelong fear of doctors - understandable, given what prior to Dr Mossy Lawn was their general quality and outlook. He therefore self-medicates and has done for seventy years. Which causes consternation when he is injured in a fire and a really good doctor has to tend to his injuries. To get to the wounds, they have to fight through seventy years' accretions of goose-grease, newspaper, saltpetre, sulphur, and charcoal. These latter three healing ingredients are a ''real'' problem.
71	* In the ''Literature/FairyOak'' series, the most powerful Wizard of the Dark, Duff Burdock, is very afraid of Dr. Chesnut Pestemon. He avoids him for weeks, despite having a huge wound in his leg, saying he's afraid the doctor would use his "damn ointment" on it.
72	[[/folder]]
73
74	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
75	* ''Series/FortyFourHundred'': Noah is nervous about letting Doc inspect him, with his fear implied to be a result of negative past experiences due to being transgender. Doc helps him sympathetically, though, and turns out to be a trans man too.
76	* Dick in the HalloweenEpisode of ''Series/ThirdRockFromTheSun''.
77	* Pediatrician Sean Jamison from ''The Brian Keith Show'', played by the late Brian Keith, had such a good rapport with children that he was often misunderstood by adults who weren't parents. One of Doctor Jamison's patients was Alfred, the Magnificent Brat, who liked to draw the good doctor as a leering monster with an enormous syringe. This tended to terrorize the other young patients in the waiting room.
78	* ''Series/CallTheMidwife'': It’s a repeated problem for the midwives and Dr Turner—as you might expect in a relatively conservative working-class area like the mid-century East End:
79	** Meg & Mave Carter, of 2x03. And it isn't just doctors they hate; nurses, midwives, medical orderlies bearing gifts... all personae non gratae. They'd much rather have tarot cards and a 17th-century herbalist than any of your new-fangled nonsense. ([[SarcasmMode Strangely enough]], they change their minds after [[spoiler:Mave has twins, a post-partum haemorrhage and a near-death experience and only survives thanks to modern medicine]].)
80	** Strangely for someone who was at the cutting edge of modern obstetrics in her day, Sister Monica Joan is suspicious and afraid of the modern medicine of the 1950s-60s. On separate occasions, she has resisted penicillin, chest X-rays, and cataract surgery. However, she always gives in in the end.
81	* Chick, Jules' father in ''Series/CougarTown'', hasn't gone to the doctor in years and doesn't want to because at his age they're sure to find something wrong with him. Jules tries to trick him into going to the doctor, but bolts and hides in a crowd of old people. Eventually he does go to the doctor, [[spoiler:where it turns out he had gone there a month before and forgot about it. They do find something wrong with him: he's in the first stages of Alzheimer's disease.]]
82	* ''Series/DonkeyHodie'': In "The Lavender Lights", we learn that Bob Dog used to be afraid of going to the dentist until he bought his fuzzy ball, Howard, with him.
83	* ''Series/{{Martin}}'' has this: Martin hurts himself after playing basketball and when his wife Gina suggests they hit the hospital, he shudders and protests his Mother's remedies will fix him up.
84	* ''Series/{{MASH}}'': It's addressed a few times in the series that doctors are usually terrible patients, as they'll either refuse to admit that something's wrong with them, insist that something ''is'' wrong with them, [[ThePatientHasLeftTheBuilding refuse to rest]] [[ICanStillFight and attempt to resume their duties]], or put off treatment for whatever reason (possibly out of fear of being operated on). By the end of the series, every single member of the main cast will have committed this trope for one of the reasons above.
85	* In an episode of ''Series/{{Monk}}'', "[[Recap/MonkS4E15MrMonkGoesToTheDentist Mr. Monk Goes to the Dentist]]," Monk reveals that dentists are among the many things he fears. The dentist in question, Dr. Oliver Bloom, becomes the main suspect in the episode's murder investigation, but Monk is afraid of the dentist's office even before he suspects Dr. Bloom. Which makes sense, since of all the various kinds of doctors, the dentist is objectively the scariest for most people in real life.
86	* ''Series/MyLeftNut'': {{Justified\|Trope}}. Patricia hates hospitals and doctors due to the trauma of having to spend a long time doing futile exams and treatments while her husband slowly died.
87	* In one episode of ''Series/{{Newhart}}'', Joanna claimed she was afraid to go to the ''optometrist'', or all things. (Bob tried to help by looking around; as he tells her, "I didn't find one who specialized in treating cowards, but I did find ''one'' who didn't laugh when I told him.")
88	* In ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'', both Jadzia and Bashir were afraid of doctors as children. Bashir was afraid of them because he thought they knew everything and could make him sick, so he became one to find out how they worked, [[spoiler:although his unwilling genetic augmentation may have also played a role]].
89	* In ''Series/{{Taxi}}'', Alex was petrified of going to the dentist, and told Elaine to make an appointment and not tell him until it was time to go so he didn't have time to chicken out. (As fate would have it, something more important came up).
90	* ''Series/ForThePeople'' has Sandra, though she's more afraid of hospitals in general. [[spoiler: Her mom died when she was younger, but she was too scared to go into her room to say goodbye and thus never got the chance]].
91	* Series/PunkyBrewster is stricken with appendicitis in the episode "Ouch." She's not so much afraid of doctors or hospital as she is being operated on.
92	* A question posited to the celebrity couples on ''Series/{{Tattletales}}'' in 1974 was "Which of you is braver at facing the dentist?" Dick Gautier said he was a professed crybaby when it comes to the dentist so his wife Barbara Stuart was braver. They matched. The other couples didn't fare as well.
93	-->'''Julie London''': I have born five children, and I would rather bear five more than go to the dentist.
94	* In ''Series/PowerRangersBeastMorphers'', Ravi has a fear of dentists because of the drills to the point one attempt with Ben and Betty causes all three to run when they mistake someone drilling in a shelf for a dentist drill. When Nate is forced to confront his fear of spiders, Ravi decides to give the dentist another try and powers through.
95	* ''Series/YoungSheldon'': In "Mitch's Son and the Unconditional Approval of a Government Agency", Connie won't go to the doctor because her husband died shortly after a doctor's visit.
96	[[/folder]]
97
98	[[folder:Music]]
99	* Once Music/TwistedSister guitarist Eddie Ojeda was afraid of an oncoming throat surgery, singer Dee Snider homaged this with "Under the Blade" (which Tipper Gore misinterpreted as an ObligatoryBondageSong).
100	* The video for Music/PatBenatar's song, "Anxiety (Get Nervous)" deals with her biggest fear - going to the dentist.
101	[[/folder]]
102
103	[[folder:Newspaper Comics]]
104	* When a missionary doctor first arrived in Bangalla in Lee Falk's ''ComicStrip/ThePhantom'', he was distrusted by the natives. However, when their shaman routinely failed to cure their ills, the natives began coming to the genial, methodical doctor.
105	* ComicStrip/{{Garfield}} has always dreaded having to go to the vet (which was embarrassing too, because Jon was something of a HopelessSuitor to the lady vet Liz). When Jon and Liz started dating in recent years (making Liz a more frequent character in the strip) Garfield alternates between affectionate and nervous around her.
106	* The Dog in ''ComicStrip/FootrotFlats'' is terrified of going to the vet. Major does not have the same problem, which the Dog puts down to him being too stupid to be scared.
107	* [[ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes Calvin]] causes his pediatrician no end of grief because of this. Poor guy almost recanted the Hippocratic Oath. [[https://i.pinimg.com/736x/8f/ee/04/8fee04727dc479353a54bfd2e4a0de00.jpg One plotline]] had Calvin really getting sick, and him not putting up a fuss about having to see the doctor [[OOCIsSeriousBusiness is enough to make Mom race to the phone]].
108	[[/folder]]
109
110	[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
111	* There are only a few things Orks fear in ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'': being eaten alive, not having anything to fight, and ''a visit to the Dok''. This is largely because Ork Doks are, to a hulking fungus monster, [[MadDoctor delusional maniacs]] who run a MeatgrinderSurgery in which procedures are based less on "what does the patient need" and more on "what would be more fun for the Dok". The GaidenGame ''TabletopGame/{{Gorkamorka}}'' has six pages of rules for visiting the Dok afterwards, including results like "Dok forgets what he was doing and operates on the wrong part of the patient's body", "Dok bolts a thruster pack to the patient's spine", and "Dok ''replaces the patient's brain with that of a feral face-biter squig''".
112	[[/folder]]
113
114	[[folder:Video Games]]
115	* ''VideoGame/MassEffect3'': It turns out that [[ProudWarriorRaceGuy Wrex]] is afraid of doctors. He's ''very'' unhappy about having to be experimented on for finding the genophage cure, [[GroinAttack and not without reason]].
116	-->'''Wrex:''' Mordin... He got his tissue sample, alright. Let's just say scalpels were never meant to cut where he cut.
117	[[/folder]]
118
119	[[folder:Webcomics]]
120	* In ''Webcomic/CuantaVida'', the [[MadDoctor Blue Doctor is insane]] or at least immoral, but the trope itself is subverted by the Blue Heavy who has no problems being around and is [[spoiler: very upset when the Doctor is killed.]]
121	* From the 23 January 2009 strip of Rick Griffin's ''Webcomic/{{Housepets}}'', Grape's first encounter with a veterinarian seemed like meeting Cthulhu. She still harbors a distrust of vets. Of note: animals in the Webcomic/{{Housepets}} universe act much like furry children.
122	* Quintin from ''Webcomic/JupiterMen'' is terrified of doctors, nurses, and hospitals and would rather see anything else. Even when he's freaking out over his powers turning him into green slime and sticking him to everything, he'd much rather revisit the site of the explosion for clues than see a doctor. He's so desperate to avoid seeing a doctor that he offers to buy Jackie whatever clothes she wants to get her to agree with his plan to visit the construction site. His phobia is so severe that he can't stand being in anything resembling a hospital room, such as the medical bay in Nathan's ElaborateUndergroundBase.
123	* ''Webcomic/MenageA3'': In one plot sequence (originally a Kickstarter/print bonus story), lead character Gary is reduced to a quivering heap by the prospect of a blood test; he turns out to be very, very AfraidOfNeedles. In fact, [[spoiler:he faints at the moment the hypodermic goes in, and the rest of the story is AllJustADream]]. Somewhat ironically, perhaps, he later ends up dating a nurse.
124	* ''Webcomic/StandStillStaySilent'': In the Norway segment of the DistantPrologue, Aksel wants his grandmother to stay with him during the worst of an epidemic in part because, according to him, she's afraid of hospitals and hence won't go to one on her own if she gets sick. According to Aksel, it's because "she thinks they'll give her cancer".
125	[[/folder]]
126
127	[[folder:Web Videos]]
128	* In the ''WebVideo/{{Fred}}'' video "Fred Goes to the Doctor", Fred reveals he's scared of doctors. After getting back from the physical, he rants about how they pricked his finger ''right when they got there'', they made him urinate in a cup, and that they gave him a chickenpox shot, which there had to be poison in. Then he learns that maybe it wasn't ''that'' bad.
129	* All of the ''WebVideo/CreamHeroes'' cats fear going to the vet to some degree (with the possible exception of Nana) but the biggest offenders are TT and Lala. The former hisses and growls in panic when she sees Doctor Kim while the latter has a habit of clinging to Claire's shoulders and back when being examined.
130	* ''WebVideo/UnwantedHouseguest'': In the comic Melody is, very specifically, afraid of X-Ray machines.
131	[[/folder]]
132
133	[[folder:Western Animation]]
134	* In the ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' episode "[[Recap/TheNewBatmanAdventuresE21MadLove Mad Love]]", Gordon expresses his dislike of going to the dentist; [[LuredIntoATrap what happens]] in [[DepravedDentist the next scene]] clearly doesn't change that opinion.
135	* In ''WesternAnimation/DanielTigersNeighborhood'', Daniel is afraid of going to the doctor, especially when he has to get shots, but sometimes he gets nervous even if he doesn't have to get a shot.
136	* In the ''WesternAnimation/DragonTales'' episode "Calling Dr. Zak", it is revealed that Zak is afraid of going to the doctor, even after getting a thorn stuck in his foot while he and Wheezie were practicing their dancing for the Dance Contest.
137	* Jof the cat in Creator/BrunoBozzetto's 1995 cartoon "Help!" goes to a hospital for a pricked finger. There, he encounters doctors who are evil, insane, or both. The next time he pricks his finger, Jof stays home.
138	* ''WesternAnimation/KaBlam'': In the ''Life With Loopy'' short "The Fang Fairy", it's revealed that Larry is afraid of dentists.
139	* Quack Quack from ''WesternAnimation/{{Kaeloo}}'' seems to be afraid of doctors, possibly because he was experimented on by scientists as a duckling.
140	* ''WesternAnimation/KingOfTheHill'':
141	** An episode reveals Lucky has this problem. The plot consists of the adults helping Luanne catch him before his injury becomes infected or worse. He says a lot of people he knew died in hospitals, of course they had after ''finally'' going there at the last minute.
142	** Hank is also apprehensive about seeing doctors about the various problems he encounters. More often than not, the doctor he sees gives him proper medical advice that Hank likely should've sought earlier.
143	* The plot of the ''WesternAnimation/MickeyMouse2013'' episode "Flipper-boo-boo-tosis" reveals that Donald is scared of doctors, and so Mickey and Goofy try to find other ways to cure his condition, before finally getting him to the doctor, and having him realize he had nothing to be afraid of.
144	* In the ''WesternAnimation/PAWPatrol'' episode "Pups Save a Toof", both Chase and Alex are afraid of going to the dentist, so the PAW Patrol helps them face their fears.
145	* In the ''[[WesternAnimation/ThePenguinsOfMadagascar Penguins of Madagascar]]'' episode "Needlepoint," Skipper is revealed to be AfraidOfNeedles. At the end, [[HypocriticalHumor Kowalski sums up:]]
146	-->'''Kowalski:''' The point is, fear of medical professionals is completely unwarranted. Yes, the benefits to one's health and personal well-being are much too important...\
147	'''Alice:''' Looks like you penguins are due for a visit to the dentist.\
148	'''Kowalski:''' Dentist!!? [Runs away screaming].\
149	'''Private:''' But... [[FridgeLogic we don't]] [[OnlySaneMan have]] [[ArtisticLicenseBiology teeth.]]
150	** Actually, it could be seen as FridgeBrilliance, because although penguins and other birds don't technically have teeth, all zoo animals are required to have oral checkups, making Kowalski's fear of the dentist (at least somewhat) rational.
151	* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Rugrats}}'', Chuckie ends up getting this due to a bad visit to his doctor, [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Dr. Lector]]. He inflicts this on Tommy, who ends up overcoming it.
152	* In ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'', Lisa's jazz-playing mentor "Bleeding Gums" Murphy got his odd nickname because he's afraid to go to the dentist.
153	* In ''WesternAnimation/SpongebobSquarepants'' episode [[Recap/SpongebobSquarepantsS1E15SleepyTimeSuds "Suds"]], Patrick tells [=SpongeBob=] that the doctor's is a horrible place to go. While [=SpongeBob=] believed him, he asked if Patrick could be his doctor, but that didn't help cure the suds. As Sandy took [=SpongeBob=] to the real doctor for the sponge treatment, he realizes that it isn't such a bad place after all and was given a lollipop. Proven wrong by this, Patrick asks for the sponge treatment, but he was proven right as the treatment didn't turn out to be so well.
154	** In "[[Recap/SpongeBobSquarePantsS11E2SpotReturnsTheCheckUp The Check-Up]]", Mr. Krabs is revealed to be afraid of doctors and refuses to take his annual physical at the Krusty Krab. [=SpongeBob=] and Squidward are then forced to give him a physical exam without him knowing.
155	* Muskie and Vincent Van Gopher are hired by the local dentist to retrieve [[WesternAnimation/TheDeputyDawgShow Deputy Dawg]] for his annual checkup. DD is scared witless of the dentist so Muskie and Vince earn their money in getting him there.
156	* Tuca from ''WesternAnimation/TucaAndBertie'' is afraid of doctors after losing her mother in a car accident. This is illustrated in the episode "[[Recap/TucaAndBertieS1E07YeastWeek Yeast Week]]", where she develops a pain in her side and refuses to go until a stranger takes her.
157	* ''WesternAnimation/UncleGrandpa'': In "Doctor Visit" the titular character gets terrified of going to the doctor. However Mr. Gus put a tie in Uncle Grandpa's eyes pretending that the latter would visit to the ice cream parlor when in reality he takes him to the hospital, then when the nurse hears that the doctor is coming, he gets terrified and Mr. Gus names the doctor "Dr. Ice Cream". With that doctor's name, Uncle Grandpa isn't too terrified until the part in where a kid says that the doctor is about to give a shot medicine to him. [[AfraidOfNeedles Uncle Grandpa sees the doctor with a syringe which causes him to get scared]] [[{{Manchild}} even he's an adult]]. However, at the end of the episode, the doctor gives a shot to him the he transforms from a human into a [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin literal ice cream and gives him and Mr. Gus, well, ice cream.]]
158	[[/folder]]
159
160	[[folder:Real Life]]
161	* Creator/CSLewis was afraid of dentists, specifically (having inherited [[BritishTeeth bad teeth]] nescessitating loads of long and often ardulous dental work); which he mentions or at least alludes to in some sheer toothache-inducing dentist metaphor at least [[OncePerEpisode once a]] non-fiction book, and occasionally in the fiction ones as well.
162	* Creator/MariaMenounos, the Entertainment Weekly journalist, is afraid of doctors after she was molested by one when she was a kid.
163	[[/folder]]

Context Main / AfraidOfDoctors