Thrive

[mvrbchd]

Hey everyone, Just curious as to whether or not anyone has ever completed the Thrive emetophobia book/counselling and whether or not it worked for anyone? I am going through it right now but I am having a really hard time focusing. When I'm reading it, my brain just keeps telling myself "it won't work", and I can't seem to get into a positive mind frame about it. Just hoping that someone has some positive feedback on it which will help me.

Thanks!

Melanie

[pythonblade]

Hey everyone, Just curious as to whether or not anyone has ever completed the Thrive emetophobia book/counselling and whether or not it worked for anyone? I am going through it right now but I am having a really hard time focusing. When I'm reading it, my brain just keeps telling myself "it won't work", and I can't seem to get into a positive mind frame about it. Just hoping that someone has some positive feedback on it which will help me.

Thanks!

Melanie

Hi Melanie,

I bought the Thrive book back in November 2013 and found it to be helpful but difficult. I had (and still have) the same thoughts as you - "it won't work" - but the more I read it the more I understand it. One thing I don't like about the program is that Rob Kelly claims to 'cure' you in only two weeks, provided you follow his words and do exactly what he says. Firstly, you don't really 'cure' emetophobia per-se as emetophobia, like all phobias and fears, are created in the mind. As he says throughout "This anxiety is not happening to me, I am creating this myself through badly managed thinking."

Secondly, he says that your phobia will go in two weeks but later on in the book he tells us that it takes a lot of time to challenge limiting beliefs; which I agree with. I don't know how long you have had this fear but for me I have had emetophobia since I was 11 years old. This means that I have been thinking in the same negative way for the past 10 years (I'm 21 now). As you can imagine, that isn't an easy task. An example could be a catholic who decides to turn to Buddhism. This person would be challenging thoughts and beliefs that have been with him/her for many years and that's no easy task.

Anyway, back to the original question. Since reading through the book, with no help from his consultants, I have found some improvement. Prior to reading it I couldn't even leave the house and really struggled to eat meals. Now I am able to go out on the train, eat a decent amount of food and even go to some social events. For a long time I have been reading the first few chapters so that I can really understand how social anxiety, self esteem and locus of control effect my life. Just last week I started reading chapter 10 Anxiety and Stress for the first time. If you like, I'll keep you posted.

[wendy77]

I also bought the thrive book back in October, after an episode of the stomach bug in our household. We caught it from our 15 month daughter. I have had this phobia for 23 years. And I am now a mother and I am willing to try anything to get better. I feel the concepts in the book make sense. But I also have a negative attitude and wonder if it can work. I even went to a seminar Rob had in NewYork in November. It was a good experience to hear his concepts. But also comforting to meet others in person with the same phobia. I still have to finish the book. So definitely keep us posted on your progress on the book.

[cmsois]

I've been working through this book along with a psychologist and it's helped me a lot. I'm learning to identify which thoughts are unhelpful or irrational, and to replace them with more realistic ones. For example, if I were to worry about getting sick after eating a certain food, I try to focus on the fact that that food has never made me sick and I don't have a virus so there's really no reason why I would get sick. I'd say stick to it and reread the chapters often so you can really take it to heart, because once you understand the concepts and put them into practice, you can really start to change your thinking.