To wish there was a norovirus board so I could escape the ubiquitous sickness discussions?

[Bookridden]

There are few things more pleasant than my evening browse on MN. I always like to read Chat and AIBU in particular as they're so active. But it feels as if every other flippin' thread is about someone or their kids getting stomach bugs. As you've probably guessed, I'm an emetophobe (why the fuck are there so many of us on MN? Was this even a thing 20 years ago?), and reading these scares me rigid.

Sometimes you can tell from the thread title and make a decision on whether to read or not, but quite often the post title is something like "Not a great day", and before I know it, I'm reading about people being sick 80 times a night, collapsing in pools of vomit, worse illness they've ever had etc etc (possible exaggeration but c'mon, we've all read these threads...)

So MN, how about a special place for all these threads about vomiting so us snowflake emets can once again trawl MN in peace? Surely this is not unreasonable???

[Poole5]

Any bit of nausea or bit of vomiting and it gets called norovirus

Yawn

[kippersandcurtains]

I feel similar. Start reading, spot key word in reference to vomit, throw phone in bin and wash hands. Well, almost anyway. YANBU.

[paddyclampitt]

I couldn't agree more. It terrifies me! I am an emetophobe, and once didn't leave the house for 2 weeks for fear of getting it!

YANBU

[WilburIsSomePig]

Don't read them. They're usually pretty obvious from the thread title, but people can post or choose to read what they want on here. I never read them.

[Bookridden]

And it feels as if 50% or so of people are affected. But real life doesn't bear this out. Maybe MN is so bad because children are basically walking norovirus incubators. To be fair, I went 20 years or so without a bug until I had DD. And my elderly relatives hardly ever seen to get it. Anyway, where is this bloody vaccine that's supposed to be imminent?

[Isadora2007]

Yanbu at all.

[helensburgh]

I'm. With you . Emmetophobia here too.
I'd love to be able to erase this horrible hoslrrible phobia from my brain.
It rules and ruins my life .

[Lostthefairytale]

I was just thinking this yesterday. Between Facebook and MN I'm convinced that half the population has norovirus. It really adds to my anxiety at this time of year. I'm just focusing on keeping rational, it's not half the population since no one I know in RL has it.

[somethingotherwise]

Emetophobe here too.

It has made my phobia so much worse and made the norovirus seem so much more common to read all the stories on MN.

I do however genuinely believe that people exaggerate their symptoms during/after having it. It is impossible to be sick 10 times and still have stuff coming out.

The whole "both ends" hysterical experience should NOT be hysterial: You sit on the loo and hold a bucket or a bag in front of you, you're not flailing around pointing random orifices at the toilet but missing and spattering the floor with shit and puke.

I resent this kind of exaggeration because it helps the fear win.

Also one of my personal bug bears is people who say they've had it but they've made sure to "anti-bac" everything. Arrghhhh!!!!

[OfDragonsDeep]

I'm the same, it terrifies me, but somehow I see the titles and open them anyway. It's like I have to see how ill the person is but I kmow it just makes the phobia worse.

Where is the vaccine? I'd pay what ever they asked for it so I could enjoy the run up to Christmas

[lljkk]

if not noro there'd be STEC & salmonella & other things to cause vomitting.

I haven't noticed a lot of threads about sick bugs.. none today I can recall.

There always are LOTS of anxiety or phobia or how-do-I-handle-this-my-kid-has-ASD thread. I'm learning to skip lightly past them.

[Palomb]

Tbh I feel like that with the endless emetophobe threads.

[cherrycrumblecustard]

I'm feeling quite unusual in that I am fine, my children are fine, my DH is unfortunately fine!

Reading these threads it does sound like half the world is throwing up, although sick doesn't bother me.

[ephemeralfairy]

YANBU. It sets me right on edge. My hands are permanently cracked and bleeding in winter from constant washing.

[HubbleBubbles]

If any help to anyone ...i don't have norovirus & neither does anyone I am related to ... or know! 😇

Although 2 years ago dd puked on xmas eve, DM on xmas day & me & DH on Boxing Day ... it went through us like a dose of salts !!

[LunaLoveg00d]

YABU - there are lots of different things people are phobic about or worry about. Health anxiety is common - MN would have to ban the health discussions. If you're phobic about dogs/cats you'd have to ban any discussion about pets. One woman I work with was phobic about buttons and turned green at the mere mention of them....

[SpookyPotato]

Thankfully I've never known anyone have norovirus OP, I think we just hear about it a lot on here! It must be really awful fearing being sick.

[YesThisIsMe]

Yes there's a surprising number of button phobics out there. I guess they can hide the S&B board at least.

[Crumbs1]

What's with all the phobia rubbish too - like the rest of us all love vomit. It's attention seeking, self indulgent nonsense.

[user1481201991]

I have the same phobia and can I just say it's reassuring that there are so many others like me. For decades I felt like I was just being stupid and it wasn't a 'real' phobia.

Those of you who think it's nonsense, do you think the same about every phobia or just this one?

[stockingfilled]

Absolutely disgusted with a few of these comments. Anyone suffering with this phobia will tell you how much it controls your life.

[crashdoll]

YABU but I have empathy with those who have diagnosed phobias and I hope you get help. I have an illness which means I vomit at least every other day, so I'm used to it and I'm very blasé about it. To be honest, the vast majority of people I know really hate any talk about vomit. It's not a pleasant topic.

[Ames33]

This is a genuine phobia and it can ruin your life. I spend ALL my time worrying that I, my child or someone in my family will be sick.
I'm currently lying here feeling nauseous and freaking out that if I have a bug, my little one will catch it. I have not felt truly happy for a long time and it's all because of this phobia. To say that it is not a real is, quite honestly, rude and hurtful.
Believe me, non of us want to be like this!
I'm currently slap bang in the middle of a cancer scare, and do you know the one thing I am worrying about mostly? Being sick from having chemo! Ridiculous I know, but believe me, it's very, very real!

[ephemeralfairy]

Jesus. Fuck right off crumbs1. Would you like to have panic attacks on public transport? Would you like to be so terrified of eating food you haven't prepared that you can't go to restaurants to celebrate friends' birthdays? Emetophobia is incredibly debilitating. It controls your life. I have finally got mine under control to a certain extent but I know it's always there. I would do anything not to have it. No-one likes being sick but no-one else I know has panic attacks and nightmares about it.
Have some fucking compassion.

[Davros]

You must be reading the wrong sections. THIS is the first thread I've seen that mentions Norovirus! Maybe because I don't have young children (DD is 13) so I don't read those parts of MN