How hypnotherapy can help with emetophobia
Emetophobia, or the fear of vomiting, is an intense, irrational fear that can significantly disrupt daily life.

One might experience a fear of vomiting oneself, witnessing others vomit, or being in situations where vomiting could occur. This fear goes beyond mere dislike or unease. Simple tasks like being around young children, eating out, travelling, or attending social gatherings can feel impossible for those living with emetophobia.
Hypnotherapy has effectively proven to help emetophobia by addressing the subconscious mind, where phobic responses often originate, and providing relief.
Understanding emetophobia
Emetophobia can arise from different sources, such as traumatic childhood experiences involving vomiting, witnessing others vomit such as having a mother suffering from morning sickness when pregnant, or enduring frequent vomiting episodes due to chronic illness. The severity and triggers of emetophobia can differ greatly among people, and symptoms may worsen when they are stressed, sick, or in situations where vomiting is expected.
Those with emetophobia frequently feel anticipatory anxiety, worrying too much about future scenarios involving vomiting. In extreme situations, it may impact eating habits and nourishment, leading individuals to restrict their diet to perceived “safe” choices to avoid feeling sick.
A previous client of mine developed emetophobia after eating a multi-coloured birthday cake at a party when only eight years old. She was severely sick and from that moment on would only eat white food. By the time she was 13, she lived on cheese sandwiches which was impacting her growth and development. She knew it was totally irrational but struggled to disconnect from the initial experience. It wasn’t until she was in her early 20s that she was able to start changing her responses through hypnotherapy.
The brain and emetophobia
To understand how hypnotherapy can help emetophobia, it’s important to explore how phobias are generated in the brain. When it comes to phobic responses, the amygdala, a small brain region, plays a crucial role in processing emotions, particularly fear. The amygdala serves as a “fear centre,” swiftly stimulating a fight-or-flight response when it senses danger. In individuals with emetophobia, the amygdala can become overly sensitive or “conditioned” to react with fear to anything linked to vomiting, regardless of whether there is any real risk.
I also believe that the position of the anterior insula, being next to the amygdala, plays a key part in the role of phobias of this kind. Numerous neuroimaging studies have demonstrated the involvement of the anterior insula in empathy, as it becomes activated when individuals witness others feeling pain, disgust, fear, anxiety, and happiness.
I have a peculiar reaction where I instantly vomit when someone throws up. I used to think this was normal until I became a hypnotherapist and discovered the intricacies of brain regions. I trained myself to stop reacting to it by self-hypnosis and deep breathing exercises. The insula is also linked to smell and memory, so certain smells can trigger the fear response quicker than visual and audio cues.
The hippocampus, responsible for memory formation and retrieval, also has a role to play. The amygdala can be repeatedly activated by the hippocampus when faced with similar situations, reinforcing the fear response associated with traumatic memories of vomiting. Over time, these neural pathways can become entrenched, making the phobia more difficult to overcome through conscious effort alone.
How does hypnotherapy for emetophobia work?
By engaging in hypnotherapy, individuals can access a state of relaxation and heightened focus, fostering greater openness to suggestion and the possibility of change. By working with the subconscious, hypnotherapy can help reframe negative thought patterns, desensitise triggers, and reduce the intensity of the fear response. Here are some ways hypnotherapy can address emetophobia:
1. Reprogramming the subconscious mind
Through hypnotherapy, the person is led into a state of deep relaxation and focused attention, enabling the therapist to work with the subconscious mind. By using specific suggestions, hypnotherapy can reframe the link between vomiting and fear, substituting them with neutral or positive connections.
Scrambling the associations between memories and places or events can be achieved through the NLP technique of 'Rewind'. By reframing the event positively, the brain can form new positive connections.
2. Reducing anxiety and stress
The underlying anxiety that intensifies the fear is also helped through hypnotherapy. Techniques such as guided visualisation, deep breathing exercises, and relaxation suggestions can help the individual achieve a state of calm during the session. This relaxation response can be “anchored” in the subconscious mind, allowing the person to access it during moments of heightened anxiety.
Decreasing general anxiety can lessen the occurrence and intensity of any feelings of panic, which are common in people with emetophobia. Hypnotherapy is also effective in enhancing sleep quality, a key factor in managing anxiety disorders and overcoming fear and avoidance.
3. Building confidence and coping skills
Through hypnotherapy, individuals can strengthen their confidence and learn effective coping techniques. Positive suggestions may be utilised by the therapist to strengthen the person’s capacity to cope with anxiety and confront previously overwhelming situations. Individuals can regain control over their lives by building their belief in their ability to handle fear.
Breathing techniques and mindfulness exercises can be taught by a skilled hypnotherapist, enabling individuals to manage their reactions to different situations.
4. Addressing related issues
Emetophobia is sometimes accompanied by other issues, including obsessive-compulsive tendencies, social anxiety, or generalised anxiety disorder. By targeting the underlying causes, hypnotherapy can tackle these intertwined issues and foster fresh, healthier patterns of thinking and behaving.
For instance, if the person uses excessive handwashing or avoids public places because of a fear of germs that could lead to vomiting, hypnotherapy can target these behaviours and help reduce the associated anxiety. By including CBT, solution-focused therapy and mindfulness, a person can understand what is fuelling the anxiety and make appropriate changes in their life.
Why is hypnotherapy effective for emetophobia?
Hypnotherapy provides quicker results by directly accessing the subconscious mind, in contrast to traditional talk therapies that often involve lengthy problem discussions. It provides a gentle approach for individuals to confront their fears without feeling overwhelmed. Traditional methods such as exposure therapy can cause more anxiety to start with. Hypnotherapy is a far more gentle approach.
Hypnotherapy CDs and MP3s can provide assistance in specific scenarios. I had a client who suffered from emetophobia and would be triggered by going to the city centre on a Saturday night. Unfortunately, he ended up in the hospital during a Norovirus outbreak. Having the relaxation MP3 on his phone made it possible for him to navigate the situation with much more ease and comfort than he would have otherwise.
Emetophobia is a debilitating condition but can be helped with the right approach. Using therapies such as CBT, mindfulness and solution-focused therapy alongside hypnotherapy a person can learn more about their behaviours and find solutions to the various problems fuelling the anxiety.
Through harnessing the brain’s natural processes, hypnotherapy enables individuals to overcome emetophobia, leading to improved quality of life and renewed confidence in once-dreaded situations.
