I found this short by great article on the web this afternoon.  The best way to avoid food poisoning, which includes the norovirus, is by putting everything and anything that is dishwasher safe, through the dishwasher cycle.  This includes sponges.

http://shine.yahoo.com/healthy-living/1-tool-avoid-food-poisoning-180900427.html

And since most of us have one, that’s an easy thing to do.

The latest report from Baylor College of Medicine (http://www.chron.com/default/article/Houston-study-hopeful-for-stomach-flu-vaccine-2376862.php) shows a positive break through with the Norovirus Vaccine.

While it won’t be available for another 5-10 years, the study found the vaccine cut the chances of catching the virus by half.  Those who got the virus after the vaccine had less serious symptoms.

Even better for those who are needle-phobic, the vaccine is a powdered form inhaled as a spray.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/07/01/us-copper-antimicrobial-idUSTRE76031820110701

While this article is dated a few months ago, it is new to me.  Does this mean copper will be the new gold?  Think about it.  If touching copper kills bacteria without the harmful effects of antibiotics than you will see restaurants, grocery stores, and all sorts of businesses putting in copper counters and tables.  

What about cookware?  Will cooking in copper cookware decrease out chance of food poisoning?  I hope so.  This is something to keep an eye on.   And remember, a bacteria is not the same as a virus so unless further studies reveal that copper kills viruses, this will have no effect on norovirus.

Having emetophobia is pure hell.

None of this helped my emetophobia. It only made it worse.

Then a blessing in disguise happened. I qualified for Black Belt Training Cycle.  Part of this training requires running 2 miles 3 times per week, 50-100 sit-ups, pushups, and squats 3 times per week in addition to my regular karate and kickboxing classes.

Cycle lasts three months and as much as I whined and complained about it, the 2 mile runs made feel euphoric. Physically and mentally I feel great from running.

I can’t begin to tell you how much the entire training cycle has mellowed my emetophobic stress attacks.

First I started playing tennis.  The once a week tennis lessons left me fulfilled but for a short while and by the next day the euphoria wore off.  Then I started training in karate.  The 3 classes per week left me feeling great physically and mentally.  Part of my training now includes running 2 miles, 3 days per week.  The 2 mile runs are extremely challenging and leave me feeling great when I accomplish my goals.

I’ve lost weight, firmed up flabby areas and feel physically fit for the first time in my life.  Another benefit to exercise is that it strengthens the body’s immune system which fights that nasty norovirus and other illnesses that could have vomiting as a symptom.

My advice to ALL emetophobes is to get moving.  Start slow and build up to 5 days per week.  Select something challenging but easy enough for you to accomplish.  And most of all, make sure it’s something you enjoy.  It doesn’t have to be intense.  Yoga, Zumba, or even a brisk walk is a good start.  When you’ve mastered this, add on another activity or increase the one you’ve chosen.  Martial Arts training compliments Yoga.  Jazz or tap dance compliments Zumba.  The brisk walk could increase to a jog.  Or better yet, mix and match.

Only another emetophobe would understand this but my biggest fear of getting cancer is not dying from it.  It’s not the pain it causes or even losing my hair.  I don’t want to die from cancer, nor do I want to feel pain or lose my hair.  Death, pain and hair loss would be a fear, but it’s not number 1 on my list.  It’s the nausea and vomiting from chemotherapy, pain killers, and other treatments.  

Now a days we have very good screening so cancer can be caught early and successfully treated.  That’s great.  But it’s even better to do what you can to prevent it through lifestyle changes whether you’re an emetophobe or not.

There are so many anti-cancer antioxidant foods out there but in this post I’m going to point out why emetophobe’s in particular should drink green tea.  For the record, I don’t like the taste of green tea but still manage to drink 2-4 cups per day.  I do this by mixing it with other flavors.  Celestial Seasonings sells a blueberry green tea and I like it.  Trader Joe’s sells a peppermint vanilla green tea which is also very good.  However, brewing plain old green tea and mixing it with cranberry, blueberry, pomegranate, or apple juice will give an added antioxidant boost.  Or, use it in smoothies (see recipe below). 

So why drink green tea?  Epigallocatechin gallate.  These two hard to pronounce words is the main antioxidant in green tea (not black tea) and chock full of health benefits.  Not only does it fight free radicals in the cells but is said to inhibit cancer growth.   

Green tea drinkers also have a lower risk of other medical ailments such as cardiovascular disease, stroke, periodontal disease, and osteoporosis.  In addition, green tea lowers the risk of simple bacterial and viral infections. 

Berry Smoothie
1 large serving or 2 average size servings

1 cup frozen berries of choice 
1 individual container of low-fat vanilla flavored yogurt ( I prefer Greek yogurt but any will do)
1/4 to 1/2 cup cold green tea 

Put the berries, yogurt and 1/4 cup of green tea in a blender.  Add more green tea until the desired consistency.  (I like it smooth and well blended but still thick).

“If the problem can be solved then why worry? If the problem cannot be solved worrying will do you no good.” – Shantideva

One of the traits of having emetophobia is worrying.  We do spend a lot of time worrying we’ll get sick.  A few years ago I went through a severe emetophobic stage.  During that time I couldn’t enjoy eating out with family and friends or going out for long periods of time because of worry.

Now, I seem to worry about so many other things as well on a daily basis.  This week has been particularly hard as a family member is not well.  Below is a link to a link called How To Deal With Worry

 http://www.thedailymind.com/how-to/how-to-deal-with-your-worry-and-stop-worrying-today/

Many times I’ve posted on the International Emetophobia Society’s forum that anxiety and stress affects the severity of Emetophobia on me.  It never goes completely away but during times of high stress and worry, it’s far worse. 

I have also come to see that Emetophobia may have morphed from General Anxiety Disorder.  I no longer just fear vomiting.  At times I fear doom.  Images of very horrible scenes involving me or a loved one pass through my mind.  Car accidents.  Death of a loved one.  Sickness. Just to name a few.  The images are so frightening that when I snap out of it, my heart pounds and I fear that these mental movies will come true. 

From what I’ve seen, most Emetophobes suffer from other issues as well.  The most common ones are depression, anxiety, germophobia, and even hypochondria.

Growing up, I used to laugh at the though of someone being a hypochondriac.  It was communicated to me that hypochondriacs were only looking for attention.  Now that I too have hypochondria, I see that it’s not about attention.  It’s a real fear of getting sick.  A fear so bad that many times I’ve convinced myself I’ve had some sort of deadly disease even though symptoms don’t exist, or a doctor gives me a clean slate. 

It’s clear to me, that my Emetophobia is just sagging branch hanging off the tree of General Anxiety Disorder.