- Date posted
- 6y
- Date posted
- 6y
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
- 6y
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
- 6y
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
- 6y
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
- 6y
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
- 24w
Does anyone else struggle with OCD when it comes to breathing? I've had this for about two years now on and off and finally had enough and came on here to say this. When I try to explain this to other people, therapists, etc. they just don't get it, so maybe someone on here does. I literally cannot stop thinking about my breathing and when it is at its worst, the very act of breathing feels incredibly uncomfortable. It feels like the walls are closing in on me, I constantly feel like I'm having to catch my breath, and I constantly feel the urge to take a giant, "complete" breath and that is the only way I feel comfortable. It's usually manageable during the day, but at night when I try to go to sleep it's awful because when my brain has nothing else to focus on it reverts to the breathing. People tell me to just stop thinking about it but I literally cannot. Can anyone else relate or am I all alone on this one
- Date posted
- 18w
Does anyone else get fixated on one “topic” with their ocd?? like for me trains and guns are mine. like i’m scared of trains and im scared to be around guns because that’s what triggers my ocd and makes me convince me that that is the way to go. i literally worry myself into thinking im going to sh*t myself when i don’t even have a gun but my ocd convinces me. idk if im explaining it good, but its a real struggle. just need some tips & advice
- Date posted
- 15w
harm ocd is the bane of my existence. people always tell me that if you have anxiety over a thought, that’s ocd. and these intrusive thoughts cause me IMMENSE anxiety. i’m constantly looking for reasons why i’m not what these thoughts tell me i am. but WHY DOES IT FEEL SO REAL?? it’s like i can’t reassure myself that this isn’t me and i don’t want to do it, but i also look for reasons why it’s not me. my brain is constantly telling me “if you don’t act on this, you’ll never feel free”. WHAT EVEN IS THAT?? and why does it feel real?? anytime i think about getting therapy, i constantly think that it’s not going to help me positively but help me realize i am this person. i just wish someone with harm ocd could get into my brain, understand me, and tell me everything will be okay. i wish someone in recovery could tell me that they’ve been where i am, felt the same feelings, thought the same thoughts, and got through it when they thought they wouldn’t. i feel like i’m drowning in it. another thing is i think about how my mom knows a surface level understanding to this form of my ocd, but if she knew it all, i’m scared she’d never look at me the same. i’m scared she’d be scared of me and think i need psychiatric help. IM TERRIFIED.
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