What Would It Take For You To Recover?

[Paisley]

What do you think it would take for you to recover enough from this phobia to function like a normal person? I'm wording it this way because I truly do not believe anyone completely and permanently overcomes emetophobia BUT I believe it's possible to recover enough to not have it interfere with your quality of life. If that makes sense.

Myself, having done all kinds of therapy and exposure, taken medication, etc., I really believe that there are only two things that would cure me:

1. Divine intervention - ie a miracle. Seriously.
2. A frontal labotomy. Just cut out the part of my brain where this fear lives.

Other than that, I really don't see how else I can overcome this because vomiting (the few times I have) hasn't made my emetophobia any better, and that's the ultimate exposure therapy. In fact, it's made it (temporarily) worse after each sickness.

YEARS of CBT hasn't helped. Sure, therapy has helped me understand my fear better but it hasn't done anything to rid me of it.

Medication (antianxiety meds) haven't done anything. Oh sure, when I take them and they knock me out for a while I get some relief but I'm not functioning if I'm passed out.

What about you? What do you think would have to happen for you to consider yourself cured?

[Cupcake x]

I'm not really sure at this point. I'd like to think that trying my absolute hardest at therapy and gradually letting myself really enjoy life as opposed to avoiding everything would help but I'm not really sure.

When I read posts like this where people say they've exhausted their options (therapy, medication, actually being sick, ect) and have been going through therapy for years and still aren't better, it scares the hell out of me and makes me sad almost. It makes me feel like "what's the point of continuing therapy and trying to get myself better if it won't work in the end?" .. Hopeless is the word I'm looking for I believe.

I hope that you find something that helps you deal with or overcome your phobia or do whatever it is that you need to do to consider yourself cured.

[Paisley]

Thanks cupcake, I appreciate that. I hope you find whatever it takes to "cure" you too.

[Erica1649]

Hmm thats a good question....

Its so weird with me because sometimes the emet doesn't bother me as much as other times...like if I see it in the street somewhere and its mostly dried up, I'm like "ewwww" but if I hear it actively going on or see it (mostly in person vs tv vomit) I totally think about it the whole day and it just bothers me.

If it is happening in my home, I hate it the most its only me and my hubby and it usually happens at night when its dead quiet and theres nowhere to run except to the basement.

If something like this happened with more people around, I kinda shy away from the situation, but I'm a little more distracted by it because there is somebody else to talk to....

I wish we can surgically remove our gag reflexes!!! lol like horses have

[Paisley]

I wish we can surgically remove our gag reflexes!!! lol like horses have

YES! That's what I need lol. It's the horrible gagging/retching that terrifies me. I think if vomiting didn't involve that, I wouldn't be emetophobic.

[Rebecca85]

Paisley- have you tried taking regular medication (something like an ssri that you take every day, not just as needed?). Because I was on fluoxetine for depression, and it has made a huge difference to my phobia, even know I've stopped taking it I have managed to deal with a few situations involving vomit without panicking!