Podcast: Emetophobia - why most therapies and treatments don't work
Most of the sufferers who come to us to overcome emetophobia have been to several different therapists and specialists in the past - and received little benefit. This is not a lack of competence on the therapists part, rather it's the complexity of a phobia of vomit that makes it difficult to treat. In this podcast Rob and Joe dive into emetophobia and why most therapies and treatments don't seem to help.
The Root Causes of Emetophobia
Most of the emetophobes we see have come to us after trying different therapies. They may have heard of the programme years ago, but tried alternative routes first.
Quite a large proportion talk about seeing therapists who either didn’t know what emetophobia was or told them it couldn’t be cured. This is extremely unhelpful and only reinforces the powerlessness sufferers already feel.
The truth is, it’s a complex phobia - there are around 26 components that make up emetophobia: components such as hypervigilance, brooding, obsessive thinking, low self-esteem and perfectionism, which are magnified in emetophobes due to their all-or-nothing thinking: they can’t just be 99% good at something, they have to be the best….they don’t just dislike pineapple on pizza, they think it’s the most disgusting thing ever! You get my drift…
Many therapists don’t appreciate how driven, intelligent and strong-minded emetophobes are, so can make it worse by making unhelpful comments (which obviously the emetophobe will brood about!) or by pointing to inaccurate causes for the phobia which leaves them feeling powerless to do much about it.
There are no other therapies that deal with all the causes and components of emetophobia. Exposure therapy, CBT and talking therapies may go some way to helping an emetophobe manage their symptoms, but unless you change the fundamental aspects of the phobia, you’re always going to maintain a worry around vomit. If you keep thinking in a hypervigilant way about hygiene, you’re never going to beat it. If you take part in a course of exposure therapy but still maintain a strong desire for control, your efforts will be limited (and unpleasant for you).
The emetophobia programme was specifically created and aimed to match every single trait an emetophobe has: the symptoms, thinking styles, belief systems, behaviours and habits.
We’ve treated thousands of emetophobes. We understand every route you’ve gone on in your life to develop this phobia. We’ve helped a ‘worst emetophobe ever’ almost on a weekly basis. We understand you and why you have this phobia and that’s important for you to have belief that this will help you.
The Sooner, the Better
Time and again, we hear individuals express regret that they hadn't discovered the programme sooner - Joe hears it from clients on an almost daily basis, especially when they start seeing improvements in their life.
Conclusion
The Emetophobia Free journey is a road map which will ultimately always lead you to the same destination - being emetophobia free. Whether that takes you 6 months or 6 years, starting the Emetophobia programme now, instead of spending years trying various approaches, brings you that bit closer to overcoming your fear and regaining control of your life.
Have you watched our other Emetophobia Podcasts?