- Date posted
- 7y
- Date posted
- 7y
My first anxiety related fear was emetophobia. I was specifically afraid of vomiting in social situations and being humiliated. Other than being uncomfortable what are you afraid of about the experience?
- Date posted
- 7y
I think even if you made a mess, no one would blame you for it. I’ve literally had someone vomit on me before and I wasn’t mad because I know they were truly ill. I can understand not wanting to associate vomiting with certain situations but at the same time, don’t let the fear that it could happen determine your choices.
- Date posted
- 7y
Yes! Doing erp specifically for it and have seen a huge improvement. Also on medication which has helped a ton. Still have a long way to go but have also made huge progress on a fear I thought would be with me the rest of my life. Now I can see life without it!
- Date posted
- 7y
I’m mostly scared of 2 things: making a mess, and tainting things. I have a GI issue that makes me nauseous pretty much all the time, so it’s hard for me to know if I’m going to throw up or not, so I’m scared of not knowing and then making a mess. I’m also scared of tainting things like foods or experiences by having a bad memory of throwing up if that makes sense.
- Date posted
- 7y
Vomiting has been my core fear from age 5-6 to the present day (age 37). I get nausea from my anxiety and have actually thrown up a lot from it. I fear throwing up from feared foods, from anxiety in front of others, and especially while eating with others. It has lead to a lot of avoidance of social situations and friendships/relationships. I also fear losing my appetite in social eating situations and embarrassment from that.
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 2y
My parents would get mad and yell at me when I would throw up. I could never make it to the toilet. It would always get on the floor. And they would get so upset and yell because they had to clean it up. So I felt scared, embarrassed, ashamed, like I was a bad person who did a bad thing. Disgust and anxiety are linked in my brain now so when I'm disgusted by something I also feel fear or anxiety. I'm not sure how disgust can exist as a separate thing from fear/ anxiety. What would that even be like? It's definitely a trauma thing for me. Plus I have a congenital heart condition and I was told by my family that if I get severely sick, I could die. My great grandmother died of colon cancer and so did my grandpa. So I associate vomiting with having a terminal illness and dying. There are many negative associations I have with vomiting, plus the experience itself is very unpleasant. I always worry about how long it will last, like, "What if it just keeps going and doesn't stop and I dehydrate and starve and then die?" I hate the feeling of not having control over my body. Plus it smells, tastes, and feels gross, too. I feel like I'm a bad, disgusting person for vomiting, especially if it's around other people. It's like I'm thinking, "If I vomit around others, they will be disgusted by me and run away and never want to associate with me again after discovering how disgusting I am!" I don't really like myself and don't feel comfortable inside my body. I feel like my body is going to betray me at any moment. Like a ticking disease time bomb. I wish I were like a floaty spirit entity or a robot or something without a mortal "fleshsuit" to have to care for and worry about. It feels like such a burden.
Related posts
- Date posted
- 22w
This is my first time posting - I have a fear of throw up and I’ve been told it is cause from my OCD (repetitive thoughts) which makes sense because if someone gets sick it replays over and over again and I can’t get it out of my head. It’s gotten a lot worse in the past maybe two years. I’m always on edge that someone is going to get sick around me. I’ve heard the “best or most common” way to help with this is exposure therapy and OBVIOUSLY I don’t want to do that. Anyone have any tips or anything for this (or maybe have done the exposure therapy)?
- Date posted
- 15w
Sometimes I feel like nobody really gets me. Nobody knows what’s going on in my head. I try to explain in vivid detail, but my ocd immediately reads the other persons face and registers that they don’t get it. It’s a very isolating experience. Anyone else have something like this?
- Date posted
- 10w
hi im a fifteen year old girl with really bad ocd and emetaphobia nobody knows my fear except for my best friend and my sister. its so hard to even say the word or even type the word so i just say “sick” even typing this out makes my heart race and my hands sweaty. ive been really struggling with ocd for almost a year its gotten worst about every month. its always on my mind. i have a therapist but i cant even tell them about my anxiety and thoughts that go on in my head. my whole family is watching me fall deeper and deeper into this dark whole that i dont know how to get out of. its feels awful to see everyone around you watch you fail over and over again. please forgive me if this was graphic thank you
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