Emetophobia ideas?
I’m a therapist although I do not work with phobias or OCD. I’m asking this for a friend of mine who is paralyzed by emetophobia, so much so that she doesn’t allow her child to eat outside of the home and everyday is extremely vigilant and held hostage by anxiety that she and/or her child will get sick. She describes it as being in a prison.
She has completed a full CBT/exposure protocol at a center specializing in adult phobias and reported moderate improvement but that her fear has come back with a vengeance. Her therapist is at a loss of what to do and just repeats CBT concepts that seem to have no impact.
I’m wondering if anyone on here has seen success with other treatment modalities or medication.
Also, anecdotally I think emetophobia it is way under diagnosed. It is much more common in women and may have a genetic component or at least be socially passed along within families.
Thanks all.