Feeling sick and vomiting is not a pleasant sensation for anyone, but for some people the fear of vomiting can escalate until it literally takes over their life.
This fear of vomiting is known as Emetophobia and it affects thousands of people all over the world.
It can be easy to dismiss this fear as something that can be easily controlled but this is not the case.
For anyone who suffers from Emetophobia it really is no joke and it can lead them to living their lives constantly worrying about being sick and changing their day to day routines because of this fear.
People who have Emetophobia may exhibit the following behaviours and feelings to a greater or lesser extent:

• Constant fear of being sick, which to the majority of people may seem irrational and over the top and a lot of people will fail to understand just how serious the phobia is for someone who suffers from it.
  
• Refusal to go out of the house when the phobia reaches a high level for fear of being sick in a public place.
  
• The inability to eat or drink certain things as the person may be convinced that they will vomit if they do.
  Many people will actually avoid a particular food or drink that has, in the past, lead them to feel nauseous or vomit.
  
• Nerves that become so intense that the person is unable to do anything until the fear passes them, and this can take a great deal of time in some situations.
  
• Feeling unable to accept social invitations as the worry of being sick in front of others is too great and will lead to panic attacks.
  This will then lead to a person being socially isolated which can make the condition even worse over time.
  
• Panic attacks at regular intervals which the person feels unable to control or find relief from.
  
• Racing heartbeat and a feeling of dizziness when the phobia reaches a peak.
  When a sufferer is in the grip of an attack like this they can convince themselves that they are going to vomit and in some cases this will actually happen.
  

As you can see Emetophobia can result in some very unpleasant symptoms and behaviours and it can be very difficult to live with it.
There are few people who can pinpoint why they feel this way although doctors do attribute it to an event in early life.
Often this is a situation when a person has either been sick in public or has felt as though they would be sick.
This experience becomes deeply ingrained in a person and leads to an intense need to avoid this re-occurring.
Over time this fear of vomiting can lead to Emetophobia which can be very hard to deal with once it has taken hold.
There are various treatments which can be used to help people who have Emetophobia and for a lot of people having a doctor recognise they have the condition is a huge relief.
Some people turn to cognitive therapies, others to hypnotism or an Emetophobia eraser which can work really well.
One thing is for certain however, anyone who does suffer from this condition can take heart in the fact that it can be dealt with and they can lead a normal life.