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AIBU?

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Original poster

To wonder why more people are not emetophobic?

297 replies

EmetophobicElle · 26/03/2022 12:32

I'm severely emetophobic to the extent that it affects all areas of my life. I'm phobic of being being sick, seeing anyone be sick, (this means I avoid lots of situations where someone may be sick - e.g. the cinema, theatre, restaurants, supermarkets, theme parks), seeing vomit (or vomit-like substances), catching Norovirus/stomach bugs (so have lots of cleaning compulsions and extensive avoidance etc). I know I need to get better from this and I'm having CBT at the moment.

However I was watching Last Leg last night where Josh Widdicombe was saying he's just recovered from a really nasty stomach bug and that it was awful etc. and I just wondered why are more people not phobic of vomiting and sickness bugs?

OP posts:
HRTQueen · 26/03/2022 14:08

I have a fear of being sick and will do my best to not be. I will try to hold it down and will get in a panic and start crying drags out the process longer

Unfortunately this was passed on to ds. He was very anxious at the time he was sick then I was (empathetic sickness) this set off him having a fear of others being sick. Our lives were ruled by this for a good year he missed out on so much Sad like school trips and time with friends but the root was his anxiety. This has thankfully passed

I wouldn’t say it was a phobia for either of us though his was for a while. I just panic but could deal with ds being sick (not anyone else) i would gag but than I think most people do

enjoyingscience · 26/03/2022 14:09

Because it’s finite, and can’t cause lasting damage. No one enjoys it, but beyond unpleasantness, there’s no actual risk to you or anyone else.

Bodies do all kinds of weird things to keep themselves in balance, vomiting is just one of the more spectacular ways!

Blimecory · 26/03/2022 14:17

I don’t understand why anyone is emetophobic. It makes no sense to me at all. It surely feels better to be sick- you’ve got whatever bug/toxin out of you, and your stomach is now at peace.

DaphneeBridgerton · 26/03/2022 14:20

Seems like you don’t avoid talking about sick though Wink

HRTQueen · 26/03/2022 14:21

I think my fear started when I had a sickness bug around the age of 9 I was in so much pain and my body was trying to bring up food but nothing was there

I know it’s better to be sick and it’s going to happen I just get in a panic and upset

ReadyToMoveIt · 26/03/2022 14:23

Because phobias are, by definition, irrational.
Sickness bugs are awful. So are heavy colds, flu, the very nasty kidney infection I had recently… but illnesses are a part of life.
I’ve never seen anyone be sick in a cinema or a supermarket. Or at a theme park for that matter.

HRTQueen · 26/03/2022 14:23

That’s the thing with phobias it’s obsessive thinking it’s never far from your thoughts

I have a phobia of rats but know far more about them than many do. If someone were to tell me they saw one I want the details

ReadyToMoveIt · 26/03/2022 14:25

And yes, for me feeling sick is far worse than actually being sick. I hate sickness bugs because they make me feel like shit, not because of the actual being sick part.

Yerroblemom1923 · 26/03/2022 14:29

I was emetaphobic but overcame it via an earring disorder(recovered), not the best answer and even today I will still throw up if I see someone else vom or have to clean up my kids sick

Blimecory · 26/03/2022 14:30

I’ve never had a sickness bug, and nor have my DC or DH. It seems an odd thing to be worried about.

Siepie · 26/03/2022 14:30

Vomit is unpleasant, but it's quick and can be dealt with easily. I used to get migraines that caused vomiting. I bought travel sick bags that sealed once I'd used them, and kept a stash next to my bed for when I had a migraine. Vomited in bag, sealed bag, put bag in outside bin. Not that bad. The pain of the migraine was 100x worse than the vomit.

starfishmummy · 26/03/2022 14:33

I assume some people are who just don't talk about it.

Marvellousmadness · 26/03/2022 14:36

No one in the world likes vomiting.
But when does one ever vomit? Hardly ever. Plus it'snot like is painful etc. So you can be rational about it and just live on really. That's why hardly any people have a phobia of it.

Porcupineintherough · 26/03/2022 14:38

I dont think it's a conscious decision but the whole point of phobias is that they are maladaptive. Given the choice (which obviously one isnt) I'd rather risk the occasional stomach bug than spend my whole time worrying about vomiting.

SNUG2022 · 26/03/2022 14:38

To me it's just food. Being sick is a positive thing, it gets all the nastiness up and usually makes you feel so much better afterwards.

Svara · 26/03/2022 14:39

I'm not phobic of vomiting bugs because I don't seem to catch them. DS has one at two and again at 11 and I didn't catch either.

SixteenTwelve · 26/03/2022 14:46

I used to be terrible for this. I’m still not great but better than I was. I don’t cope well with feeling full as I worry it is going to make me sick. I also have an amazing radar for telling when someone is going to puke (travel sick, drinking etc.) and tend to avoid people then. Personally I find being sick traumatising. I was last sick in 2017 and it was awful. I don’t understand people that find it funny either. YANBU.

BloodyloveGeorge · 26/03/2022 14:49

Seems a weird thing to be afraid of or phobic about. Just another bodily function to me and a very rare one at that so probably why people aren’t phobic about it.

LabMix · 26/03/2022 15:04

Why would more people be scared of vomiting? Confused

As an aside, I always find it Hmm that posters who claim to have this phobia like to post about it in detail

LuckyWithMyLot · 26/03/2022 15:21

I had never heard of this phobia until reading a post on mumsnet a few years back. I find it really odd; how can someone be phobic of a normal bodily function?

To me, it's similar to someone having a phobia of sneezing; doesn't make sense to me.

ReadyToMoveIt · 26/03/2022 15:21

I’ve had maybe 3 vomiting bugs in my adult life. Why would I spend my entire life worrying about something that happens so rarely? The phobia is more distressing and debilitating than the vomiting itself.

Cloudsanddaffodils · 26/03/2022 15:34

I developed this as a teenager after being puked over at school. Later when we married it put me off getting pregnant as my mum had HG with me. I still avoid tube trains, coaches, boats or anywhere where there are crowds of people (I feel dreadfully travel sick but dose myself with pills). I haven't been sick in 20 years and in fact was not sick once in pregnancy (after all that prepregnancy worry) but did have 2 pukey babies with colic which I think desensitised me to it a little bit.
It's as much about a fear of choking as about the puking itself with me

fairylightsandwaxmelts · 26/03/2022 15:39

I'd rather be sick than feel sick.

The worst feeling (to me) is feeling nauseous but not being able to actually vomit.

Bagelsandbrie · 26/03/2022 15:43

When I first met dh he had a severe phobia of it - just like you. To the point he would cry and shake and shut himself in a room if anyone around us was sick and if he happened to be somewhere where there was sick he would literally cry about it for days frightened he was going to be sick. It was really awful. Oddly enough what seemed to cure it was he developed ibs, and as part of that he had a really severe bout of being sick - but once he’d been sick he actually felt better. So he realised that being sick wasn’t that awful and you could feel more comfortable afterwards. Now he still doesn’t like it - as no one does - but he’s no longer phobic about it.

I think people aren’t phobic generally because it’s not something that happens often! It’s actually quite rare to be sick, and it doesn’t last long. It’s a bit like having a nasty upset stomach. You know it’s horrible when it’s happening but it goes. But phobias aren’t rational are they? I hope you manage to overcome it.

SliceOfCakeCupOfTea · 26/03/2022 15:43

I struggle with bulimia. Being sick makes me feel free, calm and in control. I'm desperately trying to change this idea.