Emetophobia.. does this sound like a sickness bug?

[Jammasallday]

I know that people will judge but I have a huge phobia around vomiting. It is no exaggeration that before my son came along, I meant it when I said I would rather die than be sick. I’ve tried CBT and I take medication.
I keep seeing posts, and people telling me about this sickness bug going round. I went out yesterday and my friend told me she had it only less than a week ago and I had to spend the day with her.
Today I have had a really aching back and I just feel achy all over, I feel sick and the smell of cooking makes it worse and I have stomach cramps.
I’m terrified it’s the start of this bug. I only slept for around 3 hours last night on the sofa for worrying - would that in itself make me feel like this? Would a bug come on more suddenly?

Hey OP - I have emetephobia too and have an active thread in AIBU about it.

For me if I know I or my DS may have come in contact with a bug (like it is at the moment, he was in nursery yesterday for 5 hours with an active bug going round albeit not in his class) I end up spending the next few days feeling nauseous and fretful - which makes me feel more crampy and sick. Also, if you only slept for three hours and on the sofa it's likely you are aching because of that too?

Also - somethings that help me when I'm very anxious - antiemetics - I have been prescribed them for years for instances like this when I can take them and feel a bit less anxious.

@NigesFakeWalkingStick Hello! It’s so good to hear from someone else with the same phobia. It’s so awful and debilitating isn’t it? This bug at the moment seems to be everywhere, my friend knows I have this phobia so I thought she would have warned be beforehand but didn’t tell me until we got there. Luckily we were outside all day.
I wish I could keep me and DS inside 24/7.
Do you think it could be because I’m anxious knowing that I might have been around the bug, like you? I keep getting ‘cold sweats’ that wash over me too.
I was/I am stressed due to a family argument hence why I didn’t sleep last night, combined with this constant worry recently about this bug.
I’m hoping you’re right and the back ache could just be from being so tense all night and on the sofa.
It scares me as I’ve seen people say “felt lousy all day, hope I’m not getting the bug” then the next day announcing on Facebook that they were up all night being sick.
Please feel free to message me

@NigesFakeWalkingStick I’ve been to the doctors and begged and begged for them but they won’t give me them. They gave me 6 once to shut me up and said they wouldn’t be giving me any more just for me to have as reassurance.
I’m tempted to get some online..

OP - you get an anti-emetic over the counter. It’s called Buccastem & is used for vomiting with migraines. But you can just tell the pharmacist your doctor has advised you buy some for ‘migraine’ .. my GP did actually tell me it was the best route to go anyway as constant anti-emetics can be costly for the NHS and they are reluctant to prescribe them. But if you pay for them yourself! They aren’t cheap though so I do only take them when i feel particularly worried!

@Bol87 Thank you! I’ll try to get hold of some. Do you find they help? Are you emetophobic too?
The only ones I’ve seen are for travel sickness and I figured they wouldn’t really work for sickness caused by a bug or anything.

I do have emetephobia, for as long as I can remember. I’ve had CBT with not much success really. My emetephobia is severe when I start to feel sick or someone is sick around, I’ve passed out from panic attacks about it .. but it doesn’t really affect my life day to day when I’m not nauseous. Which is lucky I suppose, I know people’s whole lives are dominated by it but mine only really comes into force when confronted with nausea or poorly people!

Ironically, I suffer with Hyperemesis in pregnancy & I'm currently doing my second pregnancy.. they have been the toughest battles of my life. I’m on a huge whack of anti-emetics which are stopping the vomiting thankfully..

When I’m not pregnant, buccastem works pretty well for me. You pop a tablet under your lip and let it melt as opposed to swallowing it.. kills the nausea! Travel sickness travels wouldn’t be total useless, they work on balance in your ears but also send blockers to the vomit centre in the brain.. (I’ve done a lot of research on anti-emetics!)

@Bol87 I’m going to go to Boots and get some Bucastem in ready for for Norovirus season!
I could have wrote that myself. I’ve had CBT too and I found it had very little affect, in fact close family said they think it actually made me worse. I am exactly the same and day to day life I can cope (I even worked as a dental nurse) but it’s when I feel sick, or someone close to me mentions they have had a bug, that it gets bad. I’m ashamed to say I have actually been in such a state of panic I have phone an ambulance in the past.
Poor you, how did you cope with your pregnancy? I was lucky that with my boy I wasn’t sick at all, although I made sure I got an anti sickness injection in labour!
I would love another but I am just so scared that the pregnancy won’t be the same.
What anti emetics are you allowed during pregnancy? I feel we will get on well! Haha.

You can buy Avomine over the counter which are marketed as travel sickness pills but work in any nausea or vomiting. They are the same as the meds I was prescribed when I had morning sickness.

I have emetophobia too and this time of year is unbearable for me. I spend September to the end of March just existing as an anxious mess, desperate for spring and summer to come back as I’m calmer then.

Hi OP,

I'm an Emetophobe too (I also have severe OCD and the combination is so disabling that I'm almost housebound) and I have a stock of Domperidone, which is an anti-emetic. You can buy it from UKmeds.co.uk after filling in a Pharmacy form.

Have you had any treatment for the Emetophobia?

Also just to say Travel sickness tablets probably won't work (they might), you need ones like 'Domperidone' or 'Buccastem', which work on the vomit centres (dopamine receptors) in the brain.

Oh sorry- just re-read the first post about CBT- it hasn't helped me either!

@onlyconnect did you have the Thrive consultant too? I'm seriously considering this as my phobia is so debilitating

@wantthismummy - not really sure how I’ve coped with either pregnancy to be honest.. a lot of crying on the sofa & literally throwing things across the room in anger/fear! I’m lucky that i have a fantastic GP & she got me straight onto Ondanesteon which is the strongest anti-emetic out there bar steroids. There are actually loads of anti-emetics out there used in pregnancy but none are considered ‘safe’ as they can’t ethically test on pregnant woman! But most are very safe & have been prescribed for 20+ years. Ondanesteon has a couple of possible risks, very low but they are there. But equally I am so severely sick, dehydration would probably just about kill me.. so it’s a risk I’ve had to take. I’ve been in hospital 3 times so far this pregnancy & needed 48 hours of fluids & IV anti-sickness each time! Thankfully all looks well with baby & my first daughter was also not affected by taking the same drug either.. I’m very grateful. But safe to say I’ll never be having another child ever again!

NigesFakeWalkingStick no I didn't have a consultant but would like to at some point.

I’ll have a look at Avomine, thank you! I was given cyclizine once as I was practically begging them but they wouldn’t put it on repeat.
I looked at it online but how do you know if it’s a reputable site or not? I don’t understand how a GP won’t prescribe them yet you can get them online?
I had CBT and I also have the thrive book, my fiancé’s mum also bought me a book called ‘scared to be sick’ for Christmas but I haven’t gone through either fully.

@Elle7rose is domperidone the one that used to be called Motilum? As I used to get that but it was changed to prescription only for some reason.

@Bol87 I admire you so much. I would love another child but I worry I wouldn’t be so lucky as I was with my last pregnancy.

Hi OP,

Yes they did change it to prescription only because of a risk of heart-related side effects but because UKMeds.co.uk is a reputable, online chemist, it is issued as a private prescription. When I fill in the pharmacy form I say that it is for nausea and vomiting associated with migraine though!

CBT made my emetophobia worse, not that it could get much worse really. I have an old stash of Motilium (from when you could buy them online) but since the kids are now teens, I haven't had to use them.

I can't go anywhere for the night without first ensuring I have my anti-sickness medication - they have prevented me from vomiting in the past. Really don't miss the primary school days with the constant, crippling anxiety

Oh I feel your pain. I too have emetaphobia. It’s crippling. I turned vegetarian because of my fear of undercooked meat possibly making me sick. I wash my hands constantly and am constantly terrified of being sick. I buy hospital grade wipes online to clean my home too.
I used to take motilium on prescription but was told I couldn’t due to health risks. I’ve now got metaclopramide on prescription but am being watched and monitored that I don’t take too much as the side effects related to heart isn’t good. I haven’t told my doctor I have it due to emetaphobia, I said I feel strong nausea due to other meds I take.

Anyone know if these antiemetic can stop norovirus taking hold?!

@Elle7rose if you’ve ordered from there before and they’ve been the real deal I’ll have to check it out, thank you!
I’m wondering if that’s why I’ve been refused them as I was honest and said I just wanted them for when I feel sick!
@narcissistseverywhere I found CBT made me worse too, and my family and partner noticed it too. They say it could be cos it brings it to the forefront of your mind. I have health anxiety in general and I found CBT useful for that in giving me tools to change my thinking but CBT for my emetophobia was a dead loss. Have you tried anything else?
My son is almost 3 and I’m dreading the primary school years getting closer. I would home school if my fiancé would allow it!

I have it too but don’t use Enti emetics anymore.

I had a bug once and took one and Oh my god!! I just felt awful like all my tummy was just sloshing around and bloated - I literally felt so very ill. I ended up being sick after a few hours (think the tablet wore off) and have vowed never again as the actual being sick bought instant relief. Up until that point I would NEVER believe I would say such a thing.

CBT made things worse for me too! I worked my way up to the final tasks on the exposure hierarchy (so for example watching videos/youtube clips of people throwing up in different situations; looking at a puke-like concoction (veg soup!) in a toilet; spinning around to induce nausea etc.) and it just reinforced my fears! I developed a new fear of people vomiting out of car windows after watching a clip of that happening too!

I'm currently having EMDR, which isn't helping but have had counselling, systems theory based therapy, CBT etc.

One word of warning though- try not to use anti-emetics unless you are sure you have a sickness bug (i.e. if your family come down with one or you've been in contact with a friend with one and are feeling very unwell) because they can affect everything from your emotional state (e.g. Domperidone can make you feel depressed) to your heart health.

I just had to come here to say I have struggled all my life with emetophobia BUT when I was pregnant with my first child the NCT teacher also happened to be a trained hypnosis person. She mentioned it can work not just for pregnancy/birth relaxation but also for phobias, I asked if it could work for this and she said she could help -

Though I was sceptical- it was HONESTLY the best money I've ever spent! What was incredible was the freedom afterwards - I had really not realised how deep and far it had affected my life.

I'm 9 years down the line now and although I do get anxious around it still, it is approx one hundredth as stressful as it used to be. (I used to get this doom feeling that the world was about to end as well as utter panic) but now I even can help my kids when sick. - my amazing partner does the bulk of it but I'm able to be in the house and even clean up. Really can't recommend it enough. I know how hideous it is 😭😭😭

I don't cope well with it at all. I never used to get sickness bugs. Maybe 4 in my whole life until I had kids... My DD was born in 2015. In 2016 she had three stomach bugs. All caught from playgroup. The second bug she got started 5 minutes after getting out a taxi and she was sick allover my mum's sofa. Since then I have been terrified and think about it everyday. She's now at school full time and it's starting to scare me as we go into winter. I fully expect she will get it once or twice in the next few months. When she was at nursery I was too scared to take her out until 48 hours had passed. I was terrified she would throw up in shops etc.

It's a horrible fear to have. My anxieties are around it happening when we are not home and I end up in an awful situation in public. My second fear is Me getting it when nobody is around to take over. Weirdly I'm not terrified of seeing my kids be sick now. My DD gets travel sick too and has thrown up after being on swings or drinking milkshake too fast. So I'm used to her one of pukes. But I really hate being sick myself. I really struggle to get my body to bring it up because I hate it so much. I find it quite traumatic.

One thing I i notice is when you are anxious or looking out for it you can convince yourself you feel sick. Or you might just be abit yucky this week. If it was a full on throwy up bug it would of kicked in by now.

I often think life without throwing up would be wonderful xx