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Emetophobia - The facts!

By Jerry L. Fobik

No one likes to be nauseous. The idea of getting sick or vomiting is not an amusing idea. But, when the idea of nausea becomes vast enough to compel a human being to alter their lifestyles and eating habits, the situation may be more than just a normal dislike of vomiting. Emetophobia is the intense fear of vomit and this fear can lead to death in those who suffer from it.

Someone who fears vomit may fear the thought or actionof vomiting themselves, the thought or actionof others vomiting, or be afraid ofthe vomit itself. These patients experience extreme amounts of anxiety regarding vomit in general. The difficulty with a phobia of this nature is the precursor to vomiting, eating.

A lot of those who suffer from emetophobia are diagnosed with anorexia way prior to the fear of vomiting is found. The patients will try everything in orderto avoid vomiting and this includes the cessation of eating.
They believe that if they do not eat food, there is no way they will be forced to vomit or get sick. Ironically, eating food can frequentlymake the emetophobic person fell nauseous after a some time without food and therefore the fear is realized and the phobia grows stronger.

The anorexia linked with emetophobia is unique, in that it requires the treatment of the fear of vomiting before the anorexia can be treated. When hospitalized the emetophobic person will often have to be fed through IV until they are well enough to undergo psychological treatment for their fear of vomit.

Some of the more common symptoms of emetophobia include:

Avoidance of social situations.

Avoidance of eating places, hospitals, and doctors offices.

An intense fear of getting sick.

Avoidance of food.

Anorexia.

As it is common to hate vomit, it is not common to keep away from food in order to prevent yourself from vomiting. The emetophobia person will go the extreme lengths to avoid getting sick or even seeing vomit. This phobia is one of the most severe due to the connection to anorexia which can cause death in a very short time. Anorexia is frequently diagnosed along side bulimia, but the emetophobic patient will never demonstrate signs of bulimia.

Emetophobia can be treated in almost the same manner as other forms of phobia with anti-anxiety medicine and therapy. But, due to the nature of the fear itself, the therapy frequently needs to be massive and the patients are frequently set into an in patient treatment facility in order to be viewed closely during treatment. If the emetophobia patient has begun to keep away from food, the treatment will also involve a higher calorie diet and additional therapy for anorexia.

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