Emetophobia what is, symptoms, causes and treatment

It is usually common for someone to vomited at some point in their life, either because of a stressful situation, for having ingested a food in poor condition or to the one who has intolerance, stomach infections and dizziness. This type of reaction is a form that the body has to get rid of some element that makes it wrong. However, there are people who have enormous fear of vomiting and even suffer for it.

You may have heard of this or happened to you, as well as you may know someone who has feels intense fear in the face of vomiting. ¿You want to know more about this? In this Psychology-online article, we will give you information about the Emetophobia: What is, what are its symptoms, its causes and treatment.

1. What is emetophobia
2. Symptoms of emetophobia
3. Causes of emetophobia
4. Emetophobia treatment

What is emetophobia

Emetophobia is the intense fear of vomiting and/or see other people vomit. Anxiety disorder characterized by a special situation that implies vomiting is considered. It is for that reason that this clinical picture is framed within the specific phobias. According to the DSM-V^[1], It consists of a fear excessive and irrational that extends over time.

Among the characteristics presented by the emetophobia, it is highlighted that this fear appears in front of any related stimulus With vomiting such as being in places with people who can vomit or vomited, as well as the sensation of nausea associated the concrete possibility of vomit.

Symptoms of emetophobia

We will divide the symptoms presented by people who suffer from emetophobia are classified into three categories: body symptoms, cognitive symptoms and behavioral symptoms.

Body symptoms of emetophobia

Body symptoms are those physical manifestations that appear in the body. The most important are from emetophobia are:

• Increased muscle tension.
• Nausea and/or vomiting.
• Sensation of dizziness.
• Vertigo.
• Stomach pains.
• Gastric alterations.
• Incrise of cardiac frecuency.
• Respiratory rhythm elevation.
• Headaches.
• Sweating.
• Sensation of lack of air.

Cognitive symptoms of emetophobia

Cognitive symptoms are a set of thoughts and ideas about possible situations that could occur. Here we will mention the most prominent of emetophobia:

• Catastrophic ideas of the act of vomiting.
• Death thoughts.
• Altered beliefs of reality.

Behavioral symptoms of emetophobia

As for behavioral symptoms, we will say that these are those behaviors that people perform from the thoughts and physical sensations they have. Next, we will locate the symptoms of the most relevant behavioral character:

• Food intake: The person refuses to eat food for fear of possible vomiting.
• Avoiding places: Attempts are tried to avoid places where someone can be observed or vomiting stimulus related.
• Escape attempts: It seeks to flee from the situations in which vomiting could occur through excuses so as not to witness that moment.

We must know that the presence of any of these symptoms does not necessarily imply an emetophobia. He Diagnosis must be made by a health professional, since he will be in charge of indicating adequate treatment taking into account the characteristics of each case.

Causes of emetophobia

While there is no total consensus of the signs that determine the emetophobia, there are some variables that could explain its origin. In this section we will describe the causes of the most important emetophobia:

• Unpleasant experiences of the past: situations that have generated great discomfort could have occurred. In general, they happen in childhood and are related to sensations of suffocation, drowning or vomiting of great intensity.
• Genetic predisposition: Hereditary factors play an important role when taking into account the origin of this disorder. There are people who suffer from emetophobia who have relatives with the same problem.
• Psychological factors: the fear of vomiting can also be related to some topic that generates fear expressing it. Here you have to consider that the mouth is an area of ​​the body that gives us the possibility of expressing ideas and thoughts. From this point of view, the intense fear of vomiting can be the consequence of anguish and inhibitions.

Emetophobia treatment

Cognitive behavioral therapy is usually the treatment of better results has for the approach of patients presenting emetophobia. This treatment consists of three important pillars:

• Cognitive restructuring: The patient is sought to modify his thoughts and beliefs regarding vomiting.
• Systematic desensitization: Another of the phases of this therapy is to expose the patient to the stimuli generated by the symptoms associated with vomit, either presenting certain situations or through the use of the imagination.
• Skill training: Tools are provided to the patient to allow their relaxation to face anxiety situations. This allows a decrease in nervous system excitation levels.

The situations that we just describe should always be coordinated by a health professional in charge of the corresponding treatment.

This article is merely informative, in psychology-online we have no power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.

If you want to read more articles similar to Emetophobia: What is, symptoms, causes and treatment, We recommend that you enter our clinical psychology category.

1. American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (DSM-V). Arlington: Pan -American Medical Editorial.