QUICK FINAL UPDATE: I was told not to go ahead with the needle phobia defence by a tonne of experts who all said I'd be wasting my time and money. Since then, it's been a rollercoaster - psychologists reports, doctors reports, interim hearings, lawyer meetings, etc with money literally going up in smoke. This dragged on nearly 6 months right up to the hearing. But then on the day of the trial, the CPS dropped the charge due to 'lack of evidence.' I'm sure there's folks on here who'll say I shouldn't have got off. But trust me: I learned my lesson. 11-year criminal record and the possibility of losing my job and my reputation isn't something I'm going to forget in a hurry. And I'm going to be paying back the legal costs for likely the next 20 years, no exaggeration. I won't be doing anything like that again for sure. Wishing y'all good luck in your own cases.