When summer finally arrives I think of outdoor recreation. As a child, we spent many vacations doing road trips stopping at theme parks both locally and in other states. Emetophobics in general, are fussy about certain amusement park rides because of that constant fear of getting sick.
There are many thrill rides I won’t go on because of my emetophobia and then there are rides I won’t go on because I’m just plain old terrified of them. Roller Coasters just to name one. There’s no way I’ll go in a thin aluminum car that winds around sideways and then zooms down steep inclines faster than Amtrak’s Acela. Nope. Won’t do that. Parachute jumps are another one. Rides that go upside down or spin so fast you stick to the back of the seat are off limits too, mainly because of my emetophobia . Yes, I’m a big chicken when it comes to these rides and I’m not embarrassed to admit it.
Since my emetophobia is more mild, there are several types of rides I’ll go on that severe sufferers will panic just thinking about. For example, those simulated rides. I don’t get motion sickness and I love. Very cool rides, in my opinion.
To some degree, I don’t like heights. Coney Islands famous Wonder Wheel, located in Brooklyn New York, is the scariest ferris wheel around. I rode it once when I was a kid. I’m trying to get up the nerve to go back on it this summer when my nephew comes for a visit. It’s not just the height that has me a bundle of nerves. What’s so scary about it? This Youtube video outlines the nature of the ride.
No, your eyes weren’t playing tricks on you, the cars rock. Back and forth several times. This 90 year old ferris wheel creaks and rattles as it rocks too. But the rocking cars won’t scare me…much…I hope…maybe. Wish me luck.
One beef I have with theme parks are the crowds, the sizzling smell of junk food, and the potential to catch a “bug” in that environment. The germophobic symptom of emetophobia comes out in full blast for me. Thoughts of how many people have pee’d, sweated, or vomited on that ride before I sat there cross my mind. Maybe I’ll bring my Clorox wipes .
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