exposure therepy question

[skactor01]

So I'm working on exposure therepy and its going pretty well. I'm making myself gag regularly, and it actually makes me feel calmer afterwards. I believe the direction my therapist and I are going with this is that I will eventually try small drops of ipecac just to get nauseus, and the eventually stick my finger down my throat to induce vomiting. Any comments about this procedure? Thanks a lot.

[pianolover]

Hi skactor01,


I am doing something like this with my therapist too, though without the ipecac idea. I have only done it once so far - making myself gag over the toilet at his office - but I felt the same way as you did, so calm and relaxed afterwards! Be careful with the ipecac because if you take a regular dose I've heard it can be quite traumatic and long-lasting. Maybe drops of it would be ok? I don't really know enough about it!


But, best of luck with continuing your exposure therapy! I hope it works really well and you become without fear!

[sage]

I really think ipecac, even in small quantities, will make you feel quite terrible, and isn't really very safe. It's a poison so powerful that one vomits immediately when you take it (the right dose, that is) AND it continues to cause vomiting for quite a long time. Small quantities would be poisoning your system, hard on your liver, etc. Really think about this - is it worth it (maybe it is, I'm just saying think about it). I personally was completely successfully treated for emetophobia without ever inducing vomiting.


You might want to think about drinking a lot of warm salty water instead. It's gross, but not poison at least. Or a quart of milk...something like that. Ipecac is just nasty.

[x hannah x]

I would like to add that warm salty water would probably be your best bet as I tried the milk thing and it takes sooo long that there is a huge amount of build up anmd anxiety. Without even v*ing in my case.

[frogs2dogs]

there is NOOO WAY i could go threw with that I think I would just DIE

[alwaysamber]

Well for me I don't feel making myself vomit would ever cure me. I would go about it very differently. That is me though. It doesn't matter how much I see v_ or v_ myself it doesn't stop the fear.

Amber

[sage]

Ya - me too. It's not necessary in order to cure you of the anxiety. But some people seem to think it's helpful for them and they're quite willing to go for it. It's just that if you DO want to do this, there are better ways to go about it then ipecac!

[xexxhoshi]

...like getting drunk.

[x hannah x]

...like getting drunk.


lol. Problem with that is that its not an option for the younger ones among us, it would take a lot of alcohol to induce v*ing which is fairly bad for you, plus you might not remember it.

[Girlygirl1980s]

All I know, is I have thrown up since I've had this phobia, and it only makes me more scared. So it definitely didn't cure me.

[qpaulina42]

I would like to add that warm salty water would probably be your best bet as I tried the milk thing and it takes sooo long that there is a huge amount of build up anmd anxiety. Without even v*ing in my case.

I remember you mentioning that you were going to try this. Did anything come of it all?

[qpaulina42]

oh, I heard mustard in water works great too (I actually heard about in in the Brave New World first, when Savage was v* to cleanse himself)

[samara's on tv]

Wow I don't know if I could do that, but like Sage and everyone else already said don't go with ipecac. I don't think I could even make myself gag and feel comfortable afterwards, but if this is the way you think it'll work then I'm all for it! As for warm salty water....BLECH...I don't think I could get any of that down no matter how bad I wanted to V*. I'm betting you don't have to drink much though...LoL!


~Monica

[loveable101]

yep there is no way that i could do that...but if it seems to be working then great! i dont see one way or another how it would work for me personally!! i think i would get more sick or better yet make my fear worse...that is me though, if it seems to be working for you then that is wonderful!! keep it up =)

[japa]

I wonder if we could call inducing vomiting something besides exposure therapy on this forum.Once in a whileI've read posts on the forum that say, "I'm not going to try exposure therapy because I don't want to make myself vomit." Since exposure therapy can be done without vomiting, I just wish that this technique here had another name, so as not to confuse people.


I wish it were called oh, let's say, inducing therapy.


O.K. Finished. My profession is about language, so word choices can bug me sometimes.

[josie]

When I was 22, I was lowest of the low withmy emeto...and had always been told if I would just face my fear,..I couldovercome it...I called my mother down to my house, told her what I was going to do and I took a tablespoon ofIpecac, drank 2 glasses of water and sat by the toilet waiting for the wave to hit,....it never did after 20 minutes,....and the directions said repeat the dose,...(which was the rest of the bottle)..and I did and drank another glass of water,...I waited,...and waited,,.....and never got nauseated and never got sick,....my mother left.....I felt relaxed ,...and never got sick........at that time,....I had no idea it was a poison.....when I told my Dr. he was so amazed and perplexed!! and told me never to do that again and thought that maybe I had more than just a "fear of vomiting",...that maybe there was something wrong with my abilityto vomit...I call this my "MIRACLE FROM GOD",....that I did not get sick.....


I went through a "delieverance" program at a church where they pray for you and they encouraged me to force myself to V**....that was another story but they had me gag myself over and over...literally over 30 times,...I got cramps in my tongue and thought I was going to die,....had some,....spit,...and air at one time,....but never did have anything come up......."MIRACLE AGAIN??"


My point is I only remember getting sick 3 times in my life and each time this fear grew worse and worse. The last time,...age 17,...20 minutes,...I was elated,...but then panic.....my first "panic" attack hit me and all I could think was...I don't want to do it again!!......now I have severe panic attacks when Im nauseated or exposed to anything related to V**. Guess Im kind of like Amber,....nothing has ever taken the fear away.


I would NOT RECOMMEND theipecac!!!!!!!!!!!!





Samantha

[sage]

I totally agree with the "exposure therapy" language. "Therapy" literally means healing, and a lot of what I see described on here as exposure therapy is not therapy at all - it's just accidentally being exposed to the stimulus. The trick with therapy is GRADUAL exposure, with more emphasis on the word gradual than the word exposure. It also has to be STRUCTURED - not just accidentally seeing someone puke. That is no therapy at all. In fact, it generally just makes phobics worse cuz it reinforces that there's something to fear. The rule of thumb is: if you're exposed to the stimulus and you felt NO FEAR AT ALL....ZERO....then that's therapeutic. If you're scared, it's only retraumatizing. Gradual exposure therapy, properly structured and monitored and accompanied by a caring "other" does not involve vomiting at the end any more than gradual exposure for flying involves a plane crash at the end.

[dreamer]

Totally agree with Sage. I've never understood why making yourself v* would cure you. I v* at least once a year (after catching my sons' sv*s) and the fear has never gone away. I don't know what the right approach would be for me personally, but I do know that it doesn't involve inducing v*ing!

[moviegirl]

I so totally agree with Sage! I v* a lot through my life,and it's no cure for me! I have some "breakthrough" when my cat or dog v* and I was alone in my house. I have to force myself to think postive and said to myself, "those things do not hurt me. I'm strong and I can do it." Those kind of positive thoughts really helped. I guess it's all in your head - how to think about those things. Sometimes I couldn't do it. Sometime I'm ok with it. Really depends on the day and your mood, but I do know one thing, makingmyself sick DOES NOT cure me!!!

[daysimps]

Hi all, I know this thread is quite dated but I was searching on the forum for something along the lines of a stomach cleanse and this is one of the only ones I've found so far. I wanted to put in my 2 cents about inducing therapy (great wording for it BTW).

There is a practice called kunjal kriya or vaman dhauti (part of a larger practice of hatha and kriya yogas) that is a cleansing of the stomach with warm salt water in the morning. It's said to rid the mucous along the esophagus and help digestion. I've tried it 3 times over the course of 2 years and never actually vomited. (Strong stomach like Josie maybe?) On my road to living with emet, this practice seems to be most useful as I feel in control of the situation even though I haven't been successful yet. It HAS been over a year and half since my last attempt but I will try again. 4th time is the charm??

Anyway, just wanted to put the info out there for anyone looking to try inducing therapy and wants options.