Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to wonder why 'emetophobes' are everywhere on MN

180 replies

OuchLegoHurts · 20/07/2018 20:39

Why does every second person on Mumsnet seem to declare themselves an emetophobe? Does anyone actually enjoy vomiting? I would have thought that everyone hates getting sick, but to label oneself emetophobic is overly dramatic in most cases?

OP posts:
twoheaped · 20/07/2018 20:41

I like being sick Blush
I think it's because having suffered from migraine since being 9, I knew once I was sick it would be the start of feeling better.

Since taking daily preventative, I haven't been sick for about 2 years.

Buzzlightyearsbumchin · 20/07/2018 20:41

I don't see it that much on here actually, only when it's relevant to the thread. Irl you probably meet ementophobes all the time but why would they discuss it with you? Confused

ragged · 20/07/2018 20:42

You'll get flamed. :)

ElfridaEtAl · 20/07/2018 20:42

I don't enjoy being sick, obviously, but would rather make myself sick and get the deed done that put up with that horrible feeling that you get when you know it's coming. On the flip side, my mum will put off being sick until she absolutely can't help but vom, she HATES it. To me that's what an emetophobe is, or is that wrong?

ElfridaEtAl · 20/07/2018 20:44

Twoheaped exactly where I'm coming from. I've had migraines from a similar age and being sick releived it no end.

whitehousemum · 20/07/2018 20:46

I absolutely hate it and even though I have had various stomach bugs and been pregnant over the past few years in the past 20 years I have been sick three times because I will do anything I can to avoid it.

Beansonapost · 20/07/2018 20:47

YANBU.

"Bandwagoning".

DianaPrincessOfThemyscira · 20/07/2018 20:49

Because it’s not enough to not like something nowadays, you’re actively phobic or nothing.

Similarly it’s not enough to have normal anxious reactions to things that might actually invoke that emotion, you have to suffer from anxiety.

ShotsFired · 20/07/2018 20:50

Same as misophonia, same as "anxiety", same as "people pleaser".

All perfectly normal human traits but on MN they have to be an actual thing.

paddyclampitt · 20/07/2018 20:50

Emetophobes don't just dislike being sick. It takes over your life. Stops you doing things because of it.

ShotsFired · 20/07/2018 20:51

oops, sorry for immediately duplicating @DianaPrincessOfThemyscira! Blush

user1471458690 · 20/07/2018 20:51

Being an emetophobe is much more than hating to be sick. It means being absolutely terrified of vomiting or being near someone who may vomit. It affects all areas of your life. I was afraid to eat, thinking if it didn't go in then it couldn't come out again. I am still afraid of drunk people and very anxious on public transport and in public toilets. It is miserable.

Original poster
OuchLegoHurts · 20/07/2018 20:51

Well I suppose I'm interested because I hate vomiting too, and do everything I can to avoid it unless absolutely necessary, but I don;t consider myself as having a phobia, it's just very unpleasant.

I would also hate to clean up someone else's puke, but since having kids I just grit my teeth and get on with it. But again, I just presume everyone else hates it as much as I do...I wouldn't regard it as a phobia.

OP posts:
ScreamingValenta · 20/07/2018 20:52

There is a big difference between not enjoying being sick and, e.g.

  • compulsively hand washing to avoid germs that might make you vomit
  • severely restricting your diet in the belief that certain foods are more likely to give you food poisoning and lead to vomiting
  • being unable to go on a boat, coach or plane in case someone vomits and you can't get away from it
  • avoiding all alcohol for the sole reason that too much can make you sick

That is the difference between a rational dislike of vomiting, and a phobia.

(I am not an emetophobe, by the way, but I know someone who is)

Tobuyornot99 · 20/07/2018 20:52

I'm a nurse and haven't met an emetophobe IRL ever. I've nursed hundreds or possibly thousands of people. It does seem like a MN thing.

Original poster
OuchLegoHurts · 20/07/2018 20:53

Emetophobes don't just dislike being sick. It takes over your life. Stops you doing things because of it

Exactly! That's what an actual phobia is, something that affects your everyday life. I just can't believe that everyone who claims on here to have this phobia really, actually, has it!

OP posts:
AnotherOriginalUsername · 20/07/2018 20:53

Because it's surprisingly common. One of the top 10 most common phobias.

For me, I fear vomiting myself although I couldn't tell you the last time I did. Probably 2 decades ago. My fear is predominantly other people vomiting (and to some extent, coughing). It used to be so bad that it controlled my life. I couldn't use public transport or public toilets. I couldn't wait in a GP/hospital waiting room, go to pubs/be around drunk people, I even tried to exit a moving car when another passenger said they felt sick. That's a phobia. It's not just a dislike.

I've had exposure therapy for it as I wanted to embark on a career where I would HAVE to deal with first aid situations and it worked well (although said career didn't happen, I failed the medical due to an undiagnosed heart issue) but I can now do the above and even be hear people vomiting (pregnant colleagues!) with just a minor rise in my heart rate (rather than leaving the building with a full blown panic attack and unable to return).

ThroughThickAndThin01 · 20/07/2018 20:54

I’ve wondered this as well. I hate being sick and clearing up vomit but it’s a necessity. I wonder what happens when their babies/children are sick and there’s no one about.

Original poster
OuchLegoHurts · 20/07/2018 20:54

Screaming that's exactly it - that's a real phobia. I don;t think all the people on Mumsnet who say that they have it are actually that bad

OP posts:
formerbabe · 20/07/2018 20:55

Op...i wanted to start a thread about this but was worried about being flamed! I'd never heard of emetophobia before I joined mn...surely most people dislike vomit?! Confused

DramaAlpaca · 20/07/2018 20:55

As I understand it emetophobia is a fear of vomiting or of someone else vomiting, not just disliking it.

I don't have it & haven't met anyone who has to my knowledge, but I've read enough about it on here to understand how much it can affect a person's everyday life.

Lauren83 · 20/07/2018 20:55

I have emetophobia and I can assure you it's more than just not liking being sick, I have spent thousands on CBT, Hypnotherapy and counselling, I didn't go on any school trips due to it and didn't go on holiday for 15 years as was too scared to fly, I have also jumped out of a (slowly) moving car to get away from someone who felt car sick too, and have slept in the car in the snow when DP felt sick, I also got sedated during my C Section in January as I went on that much about thinking I might be sick they decided to try to knock me out with sedation BlushAs it happens I'm 34 and haven't been sick since I was 11

NerrSnerr · 20/07/2018 20:57

Of course it's a real thing and there'll be some genuine emetophobes on MN, but I don't believe there's as many as say. I hate being sick, I hate it when my children have vomiting bugs as it's so unpredictable but I'm not phobic, it's just not very nice.

I agree that lots of people like to have a label and self diagnose.

Original poster
OuchLegoHurts · 20/07/2018 20:57

Lauren then you obviously have it. That's fair enough. I'm not saying that it doesn't exist, just that I think it's bandied about here too much!

OP posts:
TheGreatCornholio · 20/07/2018 20:58

Honestly there are few things more cathartic than a good spew.