Vomiting Phobia

[LEL93]

Hi everyone. I am 23 and for as long as I know I have live with this anxiety of being petrified of getting sick, others being sick near me etc.

It gets so so bad I can't breath and shake. I dont want to eat, I try and avoid everything I can. Which is really becoming unfair and selfish to my two little kids. I'm too scared to take my 2 year old to a playground in case he gets sick.

My poor 2 year old has been so sick this past week vomiting and in hospital. Not confirmed what it is. But after 3 days of nothing bad vomited again tonight and sending me absolutely crazy. I can't cope and deal with it very well. He just wants cuddles and I can't stand to be near him 😢 It's absolutely horrible and I'm feeling like the worst mum.

Its even that I don't like myself or hubby drinking in case we were to get a hangover, I check every mouthfull of food I do eat so I don't get food poisoning, I hate public places, school holidays.

Its really effecting my life and would love Anh advice you have?!

[Zeal]

Hi LEL93,

Welcome to the forum!

I'm so sorry to hear how much your phobia of vomit is negatively impacting your life. I'm a 24 year old female, and I've also had a phobia of vomit for a long time. I also have OCD/anxiety, which the vomit phobia ties into.

I'm honestly impressed that you have managed pregnancy and are now caring for your two young children. With an intense phobia of vomit (emetophobia), this is a big feat. You are definitely not selfish because this phobia is not your fault. Not being able to cuddle your son is tough, but understandable under the circumstances.

It's crucial that you seek professional help, if you're not already receiving it. Checking each mouthful of food before eating is a huge emotional and health burden for you, so addressing this is essential. Otherwise, you may not be getting enough nutrients, and disordered eating is a risk (if not already). I'm not saying you have an eating disorder, because emetophobia is a different condition. It can lead to eating disorders though. Hopefully a doctor (GP) can refer you to a mental health professional who has experience in helping clients with phobias.

By the way, do you have help from loved ones at the moment? It would be great if a parent or close friend can help you care for your children during this period of sickness, as doing so alone is hugely distressing for you.

It would be great to hear back from you 🙂

Best wishes,

Zeal

[geoff]

hi LEL, I'm so pleased that Zeal has replied back to you, because any phobia anyone has is certainly something no one knows about unless they have experienced it themselves.
For myself I have a strong phobia about birds flying around my me, I hate the flutter noise they make when flying and there is no way I could ever put my hand into an aviary, let alone walk into one.
I know I have always suggested to other people many times that they should look at doing a program called desensitisation with the help of a psychologist, which is a slow way for someone to get used to their phobia and slowly overcome it by a slow process, I do know that it works, but I haven't done it, maybe lack of time, but for your 2 year old it may be worth contacting your doctor and then a psychologist.
You want to cuddle your child so much because that's what they also want, so please ask your doctor to refer you to a psychologist by using the 'mental health plan', where you are able to get 10 free visits.
I hope that you can get back to us. Geoff.

[Sophie_M]

Hi LEL93, this topic has come up a number of times on the forums. You may find the threads below helpful to read through:

Vomiting phobia

How do I help my partner understand? Will he ever?

Fear of being sick

Not coping

Anyone struggling with food related anxiety?

My anxiety is pulling me down