emetophobes, it's that time of year :(

[devilinside]

First bucket sighting at school this morning. My sister had norovirus last week after attending a party where some selfish buggers thought it was acceptable to bring along a vomiting toddler. Most of the other guests got the bug including an elderly man. Feel free to add your rants and worries here.

I didn't know any other emetophobes for a long time, but started a new job this year and both colleagues have daughters who are emetophobes!

I share the thoughts that if I think someone has been sick due to food poisoning that is lower on the anxiety scale than a bug, and I agree it then makes me more careful about sell-by dates and food hygiene in general. If I hear anyone has been sick (even if it is someone literally a hundred miles away who I have not seen for ages) I frantically attempt to diagnose the reason for it to reassure myself that I will not get it.

I have never met anyone in RL but there must be a lot of people out there who share our worries.

It would be lovely not to have this worry - I did smile at Bala holding well-disinfected hands!

I recently found out that DBIL is! Also worked with a woman years ago and came to realise that she was one too. It wasn't so bad for me then though...

I recently found out that a very good friend is an emet, she is a very sensible and sorted person so I found it very reassuring that it's not just me being a weirdo!!

Sorry I posted and ran, had a funny turn at work so been having tests. am 24 weeks pg so very stressful.

I can't remember why or how mine started but it can, at times be debilitating, like when people at work start talking about being sick or feeling sick.

How am I going to manage when a mum?!

It's horrible and scary but you do manage. Feeling sorry for them helps. And it doesn't last forever.

Hope you feel better soon

Bumpie yes Toby is right - you do manage because you have to. When your baby needs you and is ill, that over-rides everything. It is hard though but you honestly will be able to manage.

Hope you are feeling better today .

Hello all, I'm back in panic mode as just dropped DSs at school and talk of sickness bug... We're going on holiday on Saturday for half term. We do it every year, me and three other mums and our collective 13 children. Trying not to panic. If we make it to about Sunday with no illness (tomorrow is the last day of school) then I know we're ok. But in the meantime.

Hi...can I join please? Im so relieved to have found others with the same fears.

People call me strange and ott but I just cant help it.

This fear is completely debilitating. Every single day I feel sick and have at least one panick attack. I dont do much as im scared that anything can make me feel sick.

Is ot true that you can stop yourself being sick? I havnt been sick sonce I was about 14..... now almost 24. ( been bery close though)

I just struggle now I have ds. I feel awfual about all of this. Does anyone have any coping stratergies or advice? My life is ruled by this and its causing so so much anxiety. :(

Becky it always happens when you are booked to go away doesn't it? Just tomorrow to get through and chances are it will all be fine. It sounds like a great holiday with the mums and all the children together.

absent welcome - everyone understands how you feel here.
I don't know if you can stop yourself being sick. How old is your DS? I found that when I became a mum I worried more about germs and being sick but at the same time a baby is totally reliant on you so you have to cope if it happens.

The best piece of advice I got was from a book on anxiety and that said to 'accept' how you are feeling. Easier said than done but I have found that it does help a bit. The more you worry about feeling sick the more anxiety you have in your body and the sicker you will feel and it is a vicious circle. So the first step is to accept that you feel sick - it doesn't make it go away but it means that you are not making it worse. When you feel sick all the time, anything is worth a try. It's horrible isn't it?

monikar it really is a great holiday (very knackering though - meal times are chaos!) but this is the fourth year we've done it, we've been lucky with bugs so far. Fingers crossed. I figure if we can get to Sunday we'll be ok.

absent I haven't properly been sick since I was 16 and I am 41 now. I haven't consciously stopped myself but I think the fear might be taking over when I feel I might be sick. I am still terrified of bugs coming to us though even though I've been so lucky (it usually attacks me the other end).

Monikar and becky thankyou.

Im better than I thought I woupd be with ds. He has been hospitalised twice with gastroenteritis and I coped with the help of his dad.

I cant evwn watch someone be sick on a cartoon though. I go into a cold sweat, my heart goes so fast and fewl like I will faint. Then comes the anxiety attack.

Does cbt work? I was hoping there were some kind of anti sickness tablets out there. Ive tried strematil?? Sp? But cant take them all the time.

absent I expect cbt would help but I haven't tried it myself.

I am better now DD is older - when she was younger I would worry myself silly, but now she is older there seem to be less frequency of sickness bugs going around so I am not quite as bad as I was. Hopefully you will find the same as your DS gets older.

Another emet checking in too.

Such a relief to talk to people who understand, it's very comforting.

Hand gel, what's best - Purell or Milton?

Thank you so much for the article about noro. I always thought V and D were how your body got rid of the virus. I forgot about killer cells being produced, I should have remembered really, I did AS Biology a few years ago!

Hi, I've name changed ( was idiot 55) hope everyone Is doing ok.

Welcome to the thread absent

I definitely think emetophobes can stop themselves being sick, I have many times over the years. I also tend to get it at the other end if I have!

All ok here, anxiety reduced to near 'normal' levels after the horrific incident the other week. The restaurant have sent us a form to fill in with all the details, it looks like they are trying to get off the hook for giving DH and DD food poisoning

Oh no! Whispers, did you hand samples in for testing etc.

I work in a hospital, out patients!

There are two wards shut with Niro just now.

I emailed asking them to consider publicising the 48 hour rule, front page local newspaper( we don't have much news here!) and not a mention, just asking those with D and V to try and avoid visiting hospital!

Aaaahhhhh drives me bonkers!

Morning all. Hope all of you are well prepared for the big blow!!

Found this site via a Facebook support group. Probably exactly what a CBT therapist would tell me to a pod as it is all about reassurance but hey ho!!!

avoid not a pod!!

Hate this time of year, as soon as the clocks change I get anxious (like its officially d&v season), a few kids came down with it last week at school, i'm hoping because its half term it wont spread (but I know this will probably not be the case).

I am extra anxious at the moment, have been poorly for a few days with a mouth abscess, phoned out of hours doctor at the weekend and was sent to a&e (hate going near hospitals), I was given morphine and a anti sickness tablet when I got there and was then give codeine and antibiotics, when I got home I was sick (total panic), luckily I hadn't eaten due to the bad mouth so only had medication in me, was still horrid. To all those people who say 'once you have actually been sick your phobia will vanish' i'm afraid that is not true , I am now petrified of taking medication but I have to take the antibiotics for 7 days, each time I take them I feel sick (even though i'm taking domperidone ), i'm too scared to take the codeine.

I was doing quite well up until now , even managed to laught at dh last week when he was wretching after the dog pooped on the floor (usually I would be a shaking wreck). I'm now dreading the winter, would happily lock us all in the house to keep us away from bugs.

Sorry to hear you were sick Marne. I completly understand you, I'm sure we all think very similarly.

I cancelled my gall bladder op because I'm frightened of being sick, but then realised that it needs done, went to my GP to ask to be re referred , he asked why I'd cancelled, and almost laughed at me saying, they don't deliberately make you vomit!

Hope the op goes well thigh light, I would be scared for the same reason, I think the reason why I'm scared of the dentist is because I'm worried the injections will make me feel sick. Dh had surgery a few years ago and I was petrified that he would be sick after but knew I had to be there for him, luckily they often give you anti sickness meds now so it's less likely to happen. I try and avoid anything that may make me sick, thought I would be ok on sat as they gave me anti sickness meds so was a bit of a shock when I suddenly felt very sick ( though it meant I didn't have much time to get worked up about it ).

I have just taken my daily dose of antibiotics, took double my domperidone first and luckily I don't feel sick. Dreading the dentist tomorrow.

Marne sorry to hear you were sick - how horrible, especially if you were in pain with your mouth too. If you don't feel sick now that is a good sign - perhaps on Saturday it could have been a combination of an empty stomach and panic. I would be the same. Not being able to eat with a sore mouth means that you would have had a lot of stomach acid and then that can make you sick. It is better to try and eat just some soft stuff like ready brek (even if it is revolting) as then you don't have a stomach full of acid, which makes it churn more.

Hope the dentist goes well tomorrow and really hope you feel better soon

My DH had a hernia op about ten years ago and had to stay in overnight due to vomiting.

It was nightmarish, for me, never mind him!

My 5 year old has had 13 general anaesthetics and thankfully has never vomited after. Maybe she takes after me and I will be the same! Who knows!