Fear of Throwing Up: What’s Really Behind Emetophobia

Emetophobia is much more than just finding certain situations “disgusting.” Those who suffer from it constantly fear that they might throw up themselves or witness someone else doing so. Therefore, even to read this text, an emetophobic needs quite a bit of self-conquest.

Some do not even know that they suffer from an anxiety disorder. Instead, they believe that they are particularly sensitive in certain situations. Others, however, are fully aware that they have emetophobia. Nevertheless, many do not talk about their disease because it is uncomfortable for them, and even the conversation about the topic can trigger physical and psychological problems.       

The fear can increase to the point of a panic attack, meaning those affected experience real mortal fear. The feeling of completely losing control literally sweeps over people with emetophobia like a tidal wave. Hardly imaginable for someone who is not affected by this anxiety disorder. What’s especially bad for sufferers is that anxiety is often triggered by ordinary bodily sensations, such as digestive noises or a feeling of hunger. And even a short cough can be enough to set the chain reaction of anxiety in motion.

Fear of Vomiting: These Symptoms Indicate Emetophobia

Emetophobia Meaning: Sufferers Avoid Many Things That Enrich Life

Having emetophobia means giving up many things that enrich life. Wherever there is partying and, in case of doubt, drinking alcohol, sufferers of the disease suspect that they will “witness vomiting.” That is why emetophobic avoid company parties, concerts, disco visits, and fairs as much as possible. And for the same reason, ship and air travel are no longer attractive.

Everything that is fun and enriches life, such as a vacation abroad, is classified as a potential danger by those affected and therefore rejected. This not infrequently causes trouble for partners, family members, and friends in social interactions because leisure time planning always has to be geared to the fears of those affected.

Knowing that emetophobia is not “normal” does not help

Those who suffer from the fear of vomiting usually know that this fear is unreasonable. Nevertheless, those affected are convinced that they cannot overcome these fears. They are constantly waiting to be confronted again with something that could trigger nausea.

It is precisely this incorrectly trained focus that is the main trigger of the phobia. Because our brain, as brain research is sure today, networks every single thought in the form of synaptic connections. Over time, this creates a veritable data highway in the brains of those affected, which is good at one thing: Creating unfounded “fear of vomiting.” Nevertheless, emetophobia is NOT a disease you must deal with for the rest of your life.

Emetophobia Treatment: Get Over Emetophobia Within a Few Months

For some years now, there has been a method with which emetophobic can unlearn the fear of vomiting. We are aware that most sufferers react extremely skeptically to such a statement. After all, many have been fighting their disease for years, yet true freedom from fear seems a long way off. We also know how much emetophobic people suffer from their fears because we have been allowed to support many people in finding their way out of emetophobia. Therefore, today we can say with certainty that it is possible to overcome even severe emetophobia with the right approach. And that WITHOUT confrontation therapy and WITHOUT psychotropic drugs.

Emetophobia Cure: Learn How to Mentally Eliminate the Triggers

This much in advance: The suffering triggered by emetophobia is not imaginary but completely real. The body really reacts! Nevertheless, the fear of vomiting is strictly speaking based on nothing else than a wrongly linked brain. A specific type of negative thinking and visualization has become so neuronally entrenched that emetophobic react with violent physical and psychological symptoms at the slightest thought of vomiting.

The fear of vomiting arises from the fact that those affected permanently imagine that they could either vomit themselves or witness the vomiting. On the other hand, if you ask an emetophobic how often they have experienced this specifically, the answer is usually: “Never” or “Once, but that was many years ago.”

So, on closer examination, it becomes clear that a pure fantasy (that is, what could happen) is the basis of emetophobia. However, suppose a pure fantasy is responsible for creating a real and severe disease. In that case, there must also be a counter-fantasy through which this disease can disappear again. And precisely this counter-fantasy was developed 7 years ago at the Institute for Modern Psychotherapy. It is a central component of the Bernhardt Method, which we will discuss in more detail in the next paragraph.

With the help of new mental techniques, the brain’s neuroplasticity is stimulated so that the fear of vomiting is reduced more and more on a neuronal level. At the same time, thoughts that an easy and carefree life is also possible are anchored more and more strongly in the brain until a new, automated behavior develops.

One could also say that those affected forget more and more to think about whether they could vomit, and thus their whole life changes for the better.

Stop the Fear of Vomiting with the Bernhardt Method

While confrontation therapy against emetophobia is usually lengthy and unpleasant, the Bernhardt Method takes a new approach. Based on the latest findings in brain research, those affected learn to anchor better “fantasies” in their brain so that an emetophobia is literally deprived of its neuronal basis. As a result, the fear of vomiting fades more and more from week to week until it finally disappears, all without confrontation, without medication, and without painful childhood digging.

How the Bernhardt Method Helps Against Emetophobia

Suppose you had received an invitation to a dinner with friends. People with severe emetophobia usually react in two ways in such a case. On the one hand, they would like to spend a nice evening with friends. Still, on the other hand, they start fantasizing about what could go wrong immediately after the invitation. What if they can’t stomach some of the food? What if too much alcohol is drunk? How will the others react if you hardly eat anything? One negative thought follows the other, which is why such invitations are accepted less and less often, which sooner or later often leads to social isolation.

All the negative thoughts that have just been described are delivered fully automatically by the brain of an emetophobic. But, at the same time, it can hardly develop inner images in which one eats with pleasure all that is served. And even the idea of drinking a glass or two of champagne, beer, or wine and finding the slightly intoxicating effect pleasant won’t succeed.

And this is precisely where the Bernhardt Method comes in. With the help of Special Mental Techniques, such as the 10-Sentence Method or the Zoom Technique, negative thoughts regarding eating together are increasingly reduced and replaced by positive ones. In this way, over time, a feeling of security and anticipation is created (e.g., of eating together with friends), and these positive emotions feel as real as the feelings of anxiety did before.

In Germany, where this pleasant and highly efficient therapy was developed, more than 5,400 anxiety patients have entirely overcome their emetophobia since 2017. Particularly interesting: over 70% of those affected have learned the necessary mental training only with the help of the online video course “THE ANXIETY CURE,” which has also been available in English for over two years.

Even More Safety With New Fear-Stop Techniques

Should an anxious feeling still arises from time to time, THE ANXIETY CURE also offers a range of new anxiety-stopping techniques, such as the Pitching Technique or the Visual Slide Technique, which work. Especially people for whom breathing exercises, progressive muscle relaxation, or pure distraction had little to no effect are amazed at how easily and quickly anxiety and panic can be stopped with these new techniques.

Of course, this does not happen overnight. It takes some practice and daily repetitions. But suppose you’re willing to work on yourself. In that case, you can quickly reduce your anxiety by 80 to 90 percent with 20 minutes of daily training. As a result, after just a few weeks, those affected often do things without inner resistance that were unthinkable just a few months earlier. How long it ultimately takes to completely overcome an emetophobia or other anxiety disorder depends, of course, on how long one has been affected by it. Mostly, however, this process takes only a few months. This is confirmed by numerous doctors who already work with this method and by many former anxiety patients, from whom we have collected a few testimonials for you here.