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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To ask if anyone has recovered from Emetophobia? (specific phobia of vomiting)

27 replies

EmilyRosiEl · 24/09/2018 18:15

Just that really.. I have had Emetophobia (with OCD) since the age of 7 and it affects my life a lot. I am just about to start EMDR for it (after having had tons of CBT over the last 15 years) and hoping that it's possible to get over it but not feeling too hopeful! I would love to hear some positive recovery stories!

OP posts:
sd249 · 24/09/2018 18:50

Not 100% but I actually feel I can live my life now. I followed Rob Kelly's book "cure your Emetophobia and Thrive" and I can say it definitely changed my life. Now I struggle occasionally but I would say I don't panic all day every day like I used to. It was tough and hard work but overall 100% worth it.

CatsGalore · 24/09/2018 19:06

Following with interest. My sister has emetophobia and it’s grafually taking over her life...and the impact it has on close family is dramatically increasing xx

Namechangeforthiscancershit · 24/09/2018 19:08

Yes! I was dreadful from about 4-12. School refusal for weeks if someone had been sick (some other factors). Still a bit wobbly occasionally but it has gradually improved from 12 onwards.

Original poster
EmilyRosiEl · 25/09/2018 10:36

That's great sd249 and Namechangeforthis - how did you get over it?

CatGalore, I hope your daughter can get the right treatment/support soon too!

OP posts:
Namechangeforthiscancershit · 25/09/2018 10:46

Well I feel like a fraud because I didn’t have any help.

As far as other people go, a very very much loved baby brother was born when I was 12 and I cared for him a lot so that was exposure there, and I gradually became ok with the baby end of things, then gradually expanded to older children. Still not good with adults but at least you can almost always leave them to it.

Very anxious about me being ill though until I had a cancer diagnosis last year, treatment is ongoing. Surgery and chemo meant I had to start to deal with it. I’m off to chemo in a few minutes and I guess I have about a 25% chance (based on a lot of experience!) of being sick which last year would have put me into an absolute panic but I feel ok. Before this I think it had been about 12 years since it happened. So it took a lot of getting over.

So for me, just life events really. One I would have chosen a million times over, one not so much. But I don’t have OCD and I’m sure that helps a lot.

Sorry if my descriptions are unhelpful or triggering btw. I tried to phrase things nicely but my issues with this don’t include descriptions, it’s all about being in the room with someone, or it being me. So I am trying to empathise but probably failing.

Flowers Flowers Flowers

Namechangeforthiscancershit · 25/09/2018 10:49

As far as being in public or school without panic attacks that improved at about 12 which may have been to do with my brother or moving to secondary school where the risk of seeing someone be ill is so much lower, so I stopped fixating so much.

Original poster
EmilyRosiEl · 25/09/2018 10:51

** sorry Catsgalore- I was thinking 'sister' and wrote 'daughter'!!

OP posts:
Namechangeforthiscancershit · 25/09/2018 10:51

Sorry last thing, I still tell everyone at hospital that this is A BIG DEAL for me and they have written it everywhere. I think they sneakily put me down as a higher emetic risk than I actually am so that I would have more anti sickness drugs and TLC. So people are really sympathetic I find when I’m honest.

WillowKnicks · 25/09/2018 10:52

Following with interest.

I've suffered for years & it really has blighted my life

Original poster
EmilyRosiEl · 25/09/2018 12:30

Thanks Namechange! I'm really sorry you're having to deal with that diagnosis and the chemo- it sounds stressful enough without having to worry about possibly being sick too! I hope today is a good day and you don't have any side effects from it.

I didn't find your reply triggering at all and thank you for the support! It's good to know it's possible to get over Emet!

Good luck today- hope you get lots of TLC from family/friends afterwards.

OP posts:
Namechangeforthiscancershit · 25/09/2018 12:32

It's good to know it's possible to get over Emet!

It definitely, definitely is. I wouldn’t necessary recommend doing it in as an extreme a way as I have, but you can be free of this.

Original poster
EmilyRosiEl · 25/09/2018 12:41

Oh just saw your last post Namechange- I hope the antiemetics work really well! FlowersBear[stars]Flowers

OP posts:
wictional · 25/09/2018 12:59

The blogger Geek Magnifique has, think she’s got a few posts on it and a book too? Might be useful

thatmustbenigelwiththebrie · 25/09/2018 13:49

No but at the age of 37 I am having counselling for it as I have started a new job where we get free staff therapy and I thought why not? only had 2 sessions so far and still not cured Grin but I am hoping as I have had it my whole life and it's so hard.

Original poster
EmilyRosiEl · 26/09/2018 00:54

That's good thatmustbe! I hope counselling sessions go well!

Thanks Wictional!

Hope you're ok WillowKnicks!

Namechange- thinking of you and hope today wasn't too bad!

OP posts:
Banana8080 · 26/09/2018 08:03

Google Rob Kelly and the Throve Programme. He specialises in it.

Banana8080 · 26/09/2018 08:04

Sorry Thrive Programme

Namechangeforthiscancershit · 26/09/2018 08:06

Namechange- thinking of you and hope today wasn't too bad!

Thank you lovely! All went absolutely fine and I’m slightly nauseous now but in all honestly it’s not worse than a hangover yet! So am braving the office once I can sort my face out!

ladyflower23 · 21/11/2018 16:32

Hi @EmilyRosiEl I was wondering how you are going with your EMDR? I'm a sufferer and going through a really bad time with it at the moment. I have also been looking into EMDR as read it is good for this phobia so was wondering if you have found it positive so far?
Also @sd249 with the Thrive book, did you just follow the book or did you pay one to have sessions with one of the Thrive therapists too? Thank you both

Pomfluff · 21/11/2018 21:29

I did EMDR and CBT but unfortunately neither helped a lot. Rob Kelly's Thrive was much better, and I strongly recommend booking the 6 sessions with a consultant. I went with Cara Ostryn who was mentioned in some of his Youtube videos and she was great.

I do however feel the "fully cured in 6 weeks" claim may not apply to everyone and it's ok (part of the program is not to beat yourself up over perceived failures). I'm MUCH better than I was many years ago, but I believe that recovery from emetophobia is an active, ongoing process, similar to recovering from addiction, an eating disorder or keeping depression/anxiety disorders at bay. Whenever my stress levels rise, I start to slip up with thinking styles and fall back into emetophobic behaviours.

The Thrive Program helped me immensely through pregnancy...I was able to do things that would have been unthinkable years ago (e.g. attend an overnight stay wedding while having morning sickness).

ladyflower23 · 21/11/2018 22:21

Thanks for your reply @pomfluff
I have read that the cost for a consultant through the course is £800? Is that right? I wouldn't be able to pay that but maybe just the book would be of some help. It's good to hear that things have improved for you if even not 100% gone away.

Osirus · 21/11/2018 23:00

My mum had this following a severe telling off from her mother as a child when she was sick. It was awful growing up with it; whenever we were ill she wouldn’t come near us and made you feel like you had the plague!

She seems much better now. I’m not sure how she overcame it but it seems to have faded away. Perhaps going through a bit of a midlife crisis and going out drinking (resulting in being sick and hangovers) for a short spell helped her get over it! She still won’t go near anyone who has been sick so it’s not completely gone.

happyasasandboy · 21/11/2018 23:14

I have struggled since childhood, but have got so much better since having kids.

My twins were breastfed refluxy pukers, which kind of eased me in because it was relatively innocuous and completely unavoidable (like 8-10 episodes per day per child. So much washing). Since then I have found I can deal with them being ill because I have to. Because they're sad/hurt/upset and I want them to be reassured more than I want to run from the situation if that makes sense? I still absolutely hate dealing with the situation, but I can do it for them.

To be completely honest though, I do have to leave the room to fetch clothes/water/other stuff before I can deal with in, mostly so I can give myself a good talking to and take deep breathes before I can deal with it. I hope they don't pick up on my fear; I explain that I need to fetch x, y, z to cover up my anxiety.

So yes, for me I it has been possible to drastically reduce the fear, by needing to cope for my kids. I won't have them suffer because I can't deal with it.

Catcrazy008 · 21/11/2018 23:18

I had cbt and did exposure therapy.
So far so good.

CardsforKittens · 21/11/2018 23:46

I still don't deal with it easily, but I'm a lot better than I used to be. The thing that made the most difference was getting food poisoning. I was really unwell and there was nothing I could do about it, but I was also too unwell to panic. Weird. I wouldn't wish it on anyone though.