My problem with Emotphobia

[merkermike]

Hey I'm a 15 year old male living in the Midwest U.S. I do not, nor have I
ever, have had a eating disorder of any kind. I.e bulimia. But I'm told we
have an overactive amount of acid in my families stomachs. My sister also
had gallbladder issues and had hers removed. I think I got my
Emotophobia from when I was a kid, about 8 years old. My sister was
sick with something and she was screaming that she didn't want to throw
up. Afterwards I always had a fear of throwing up. I constantly catch
myself thinking "Knock on wood" we I say I haven't thrown up for awhile.
I'm constantly scared after everything I drink or eat. Sometimes I can tell
myself that it will be ok, but I'm still scared. I'm extremely stressed ALL
the time and wash my hands more than needed. What makes it worse is
that my mom is telling me that my body will become immune to hand
sanitizers and soap if I keep over cleansing. This sent me over the edge.
On top of that my father constantly wonders why I'm so clean when I'm
with him. (parents are divorced). I would see a therapist but I'm 15 and I
always keep it under-wraps from my mom.

Please anyone help.

[merkermike]

Sorry, but I couldn't find the link to edit my post. Yes, I know I miss spelled
Emetophobia. But I would like you to also know that I'm also terrifyed of
nausea. I lead pretty much a normal life though. I still eat out at places and
I eat whatever mom cooks me, but I don't eat brownies anymore because I
got extremely sick after I over ate them before.

Also I heard it affects more women than men...

[alwaysafraid]

Welcome to the forum. You'll find lots of support and understanding here. My advice is be open with your parents. Tell them how much this is affecting your life and accept help from them. You probably should consider therapy. You'll see by everyone's posts emet doesn't tend to just go away. I've suffered with it for probably 25 years now and only just started medications and therapy. I hope you find the site helpful...welcome!

[merkermike]

Thanks alwaysafraid.

[virgo_witch]

Welcome to IES! I've suffered from Emetophobia since the age of 5, and I'm 23. Yes, it's true that more women than men seem to have this fear, but there are quite a few men on this site, even your age, I believe!

I have found that IES is a HUGE help to me, so hopefully it'll be helpful to you! [img]smileys/smilies_04.gif[/img]