When/how did you become an emte? Just wondering

[Daniix3333]

I mean im 19 now... and i can think back to being in grammer school FREAKING out because the kid next to me "didnt feel well". I can also remember being in the 3rd or 4th grade skipping meals because i worried myself so much that i was sick when really i was probabbly just hungry or something. Everyone always asks me if something or one event triggered my phobia.. but i really cant say there has been. I have just always been terrified and over the years my fear has grown WORSE. It's probally at its worst right now then its ever been.

ALSO: People told me im probally so scared because i havent V*ed in a while but then last year i caught the SV and V*ed many times and my fear is only worse.. not better at all anyone have similar stories to mine? or did one even trigger your fear?

[Murder-my-soul]

It started out when I had this outbreak of a sv* and I was maybe 8 at the time. It really got to me. I wanted it to never happen again so I became scared of it. THEN it progressed slowly. My fear was not noticed by myself until I was 13 when I had caught a sv* for the 2nd time in my life after this long 3 day trip from the Greyhound Bus coming home. When I got home I felt really n* and I tried to make it go away but it did no good. I forgot what v* felt like and I was scared to do it. I gagged 2 times and ran to the bathroom and the 3rd time I v*. After this virus, I wasn't scared. Until a year later and it progressed FAST. I couldn't leave my house for months! I am on the road to recovery and it's easier now than before and I have not v* since, not even when I was pregnant. I am just scared of it I think because of how my body leads up to it, and the embarrassement. I am not scared of the thought itself. Been doing alot of exsposure therapy and I AM getting better.

[gumdropper1]

I puked in my sleep at age 8 and have been emet ever since.

[Daniix3333]

Thanks for the answers.. it's very strange.. both of you have a certain experience that lead up to it.. i just have always been scared for what seems like "no reason" oh well.. but im happy your doing better!

[MarrickFait]

I was extremely nauseated for 2 1/2 hours with no result when I was 14. I was aware of my dislike back then. When I was 19, I kept getting nauseated for no reason and eventually led me into the hospital from weight loss. I was phobic for a whole year. It randomly left. In 2011, I was struck with Noro and have been bogged since.

[out_of_order]

After I had my first panic attack (didn't know what it was at the time) in which I felt SOOOO incredibly nauseated. I didn't actually vomit, but I did gag and retch and it seemed to go on for a long time without any relief, literally for hours. That first panic attack scared me so much that my brain immediately linked vomiting to the awful awful feeling of the attack and so I've been ridiculously emetophobic ever since.

It's important to note that the few times I have actually vomited, it has never been anything like that horrible experience. It's always been I felt sick, vomited, and immediately felt much better again. So for me, clearly, it's not the vomiting itself that's the problem even though being emetophobic, I would literally rather die than vomit. It's funny how even though I know all this on an intellectual level, all this "knowledge" does absolutely nothing to lessen my phobia.

[Kaikey]

MarrickFait, your story is very similar to mine. About 3 years agao, I was very naseous but no result. Ever since then I've been phobic. I lost so much weight in that year. I got much better for a year until I caought a bug at work in December. Since then, it started up again. It wasn't as bad as I thought but I'm still terrified.

[MarrickFait]

Oh wow, sorry you had to go the similar route. I know it sucks rhinos. You said it wasn't as bad? I wonder if there are others who feel it was as bad as they thought.

[Kaikey]

It really wasn't as bad as I thought. For me, I think it's the feeling, probably for a lot of people. But when it actually happens, it's really nothing. but I'm still scared!!!

[blueskies91]

I've been an emet ever since I was a toddler, literally. I thought my fear would have lessened by now, but I'm still terrified of it.

[melissarene]

Um...I'm thinking elementary school. I got sick after lunch once....hot outside, spent recess spinning on a tire swing. No good! The summer after that, at age 11, the first signs of my agoraphobia and emet showed its ugly face. There was a portion of my teens it didn't affect me much, but I was still always scared of people being ill. It wasn't until an SV at age 19 that it was bad again. Until I was 21, it was bad....the bad again now after an sv in March. Have had bad weeks here and there...

The sv I had at 19 really set up the fear for me. I thought I felt crummy from low blood sugar, which I'm prone to. So I ate. And...yeah. Now when my blood sugar drops or when I get anxious, I automatically feel nauseous.

[hairyfairy]

I`ve always been quite scared of vting for as long as I can remember, but a bad hangover with a lot of vting in 1997 really did it for me, & I haven`t vted since.

[Hay]

I have also been scared of v* since a child and I vividly remember all the horrid s* memories which basically fuels my phobia today. Just 2 years ago I realised I have emetophobia after a constant feeling of nausea and anxiety and obsessive thoughts of doom and s*. Now I get anxiety attacks almost daily because of this phobia.

[Daniix3333]

Wow everyone thanks for all your answers! It's interesting to see how and where the phobia started. I still can not root mine back to something... but i guess thats just the way it is. Im happy to know that other people had this as a child too and that im not alone

[Melrose]

I was 7 and I remember not feeling good in class, and I felt it coming up. I raised my hand to ask the teacher if I could go to the nurse. I left the classroom and I remember I got so sick in the hallway. After that I remember telling myself that I would try to prevent from ever v* again. And so far I've been good, I hope it stays this way.

[catlynn]

Hey! Everyone! Been a lurker on and off for years and could never bring myself to post. I thought this was a good place for me to start. I believe my emets was caused by my mother. I v twice in public before the age of 5 or 6. I think my mom was embarressed! One was at a wedding reception. I remember riding home in the car smelling of v. I can't stand the smell!!! The second time was downtown. I remember this much more Vividly. I remember my mom pulling me upstairs by the arm at the Penney's store to take me to the bathroom. As I got a little older she made it confusing for me. She would be either in the bathroom rubbing my back asking if I was okay or be mad at me and Say WHAT's THE MATTER WITH YOU NOW! Another time I got sick in front of my parents bedroom door. She was mad because she had to clean it, but let me sleep in bed with her. After that I remember waking up feeling sick. I would pray and say " Dear God please don't make me vomit because mom will be mad" I think she gave me mixed messages of it either being a naughty or a scary thing to do! I hated her for many years in my early 20's as that was when it was at it's worst.
I also have other mental health issues as well. But I think the emets is what started all! I am now 50 years old and still have this nasty phobia. I never had any children, although I wanted them and I also never pursued the career I wanted. I have worked very little in my life. My home is my safety net! I have been on Zoloft for 17 years and it has been a lifesaver for me.
To the younger people on this board, please do not let this rule your life ,like I did. Get out there and make your dreams come true!! Sometimes it breaks my heart when I read the post's of all of the struggling with this dang emets!! I am better now, I only have to deal with it when the SV is close by! Not 24-7 like it use to be. So I know where you are at and remember the torture it causes!
Hey Olcheskey! now we can be fossil's together on the board.