Coping

[saripop]

I've been suffering from what I have just recently realised is emetophobia for around 6 years. I had a traumatic (for me) experience with a (now ex-)boyfriend drinking too much, combinined with the stress of moving to a foreign country which triggered everything. I've thought for most of that time that I simply suffered from panic attacks, but I don't really have any panic except when v**** is concerned.

I have been with my boyfriend now for 4 years and he is very supportive of me, but I feel that my fear is unfairly controlling his behaviour. I've basically managed to stop him from drinking any alcohol. But I know that he wants to drink. I am very aggressive when he wants to drink and I control exactly how much we both drink. (i hardly ever have more than a glass of wine). I'm worried that my behaviour will wear him down, as it must be extremely annoying to be asked constantly how one is feeling and then being accused of lying about it.

I'm so so tired of all of this. But I wanted to say thank you for starting this site as I finally feel like I've found a place where people might understand me.

I'm so scared all the time. I work in a pre-school, with 3 and 4 year olds. I wash my hands all the time, I don't know if I can continue doing my job through the winter sickness period. I love my job but I'm exhausted by constantly worrying and scanning myself to see if I'm ill yet.

I apologise for rambling but I'm having a particularly bad night. Thank you again for starting this forum.

[socitycourty]

Well drinking too much isn't good for anyone....I don't drink either...even if I wasn't an emet I probably would'nt, just because I don't like the taste of alcohol. My therapist has told me that emet is just another form of anxiety, and basically all phobias are. So if you let it run your life (and your bf's) you're just making it stronger.

My husband is supportive of me but I don't use my phobia to stop him from doing things. If we are out and I feel panicky, I can just tell him I need to go home or I need to go outside. But I don't tell him how much he can drink or anything like that. He rarely drinks and when he does, he never throws up. I don't know if your bf used to be a heavy drinker or what, but you should try to relax just a little. The tighter you hold on to it the worse the fear will get.

Just my two cents I'm trying to work on my own recovery here too.

[sage]

Hi saripop,
Welcome to the site. I hope you find out lots of good information by surfing around here a bit, and I'm sure you will also find very supportive people.
Please visit the "treatments" section to find out more about how to get over the phobia, as it is highly treatable.
All the best!
SAGE