New here with my new Phobia

[skeletonsong]

Hi All;

Just wanted to take a moment to introduce my self and see if there is anyone else out there suffering from the same fears as me.

Let me start by saying I have had an allergy to fish/seafood my entire life. I am 24 years old, and to this day I have never had an allergic reaction severe enough to warrant even going to the hospital. However it seems recently I have become acutely afraid of becoming exposed to seafood (contamination, by smell, etc).

It has gotten to the point that I don't want to go out to restaurants, or even to friends houses for fear that they may have prepared seafood, and an allergic reaction may be triggered which would prevent me from breathing.

Often I think about this and get a lump in my throat which puts my mind in an endless loop of "is this caused by the anxiety, or *am* I really having an allergic reaction?" Sometimes this leads to full on panic attacks. Lately I make sure to carry my Epi pen with me at all times, and frequently pop throat lozenges to sooth the lump in my throat.

Has anyone else ever experienced something similar, and what could be the source of this sudden phobia?

[InZane4all]

Well, it is obvious that your phobia and panic triggers have to do with the fear of eating seafood that will cause you to get an allergic reaction. Honestly, it's a normal fear, but can be really problematic when you are constantly thinking about getting an allergic reaction.

Do your friends know that you are allergic to seafood? Honestly, just ask if the food has any type of seafood in it. It doesn't hurt to ask. But you can't be constantly living in fear of something bad happening. Life is too short to be doing that.

[skeletonsong]

InZane thanks for your reply! Yes my friends and family are aware of my allergy, and we have even banned seafood from my office. I guess my fear is that someone will forget and I will get exposed to it somehow (whether by contact or simply by smell). I realize that this fear is irrational for the most part, however I still tend to think about it a lot, and just thinking about it, especially around noon time when people are reheating their lunches, causes the lump in my throat. I was thinking about going to see a therapist about it. The people around me know about my anxiety issues, but I have not admitted to this specific cause because it seems silly, and embarrassing.

[palow]

Go to the library and read up on how phobias are developed. Claire Weekes is a good author.

Essentially you have successfully programmed this phobia into your subconscious by constantly dwelling on possible death by seafood allergy. Once the programming takes root, it maintains itself by your avoidance behaviours. You may think you have fear of seafood, but you, like all anxiety sufferers, have fear of fear (discovered by Claire Weekes 50 years ago).

I can tell you, hey! You're just being paranoid! Lighten up! But this will do absolutely no good. I'm talking to your conscious mind, not subconscious. You cannot use logic to battle your phobia.

There's only one way to get over it. Change your behaviour. Go out to restaurants and feel the fear. You may need a cognitive behavioural therapist to guide you through this. Or if you can get an anxiety treatment program off the internet for little money. Or you can just get a good book from the library. Avoiding your fear will make it worse. I repeat. Go out there and really FEEL the fear. Seafood might kill you but the fear definitely will not.

Patrick

[lunalady]

Hi skeletonsong,

It sounds a little like OCD, where you have a fear of being contaminated, in this case by seafood. The fact that this fear is making your life difficult is why I'm thinking this.

I'm glad you're thinking of going to a therapist. Anxiety fears are hugely irrational, I had an intense and disturbing fear that I would projectile vomit in class during my junior and senior years of highschool and then for 4 years of college.

Blessing to you and good luck,
Jill

[palow]

Projectile vomit in class!! That's so sad and funny at the same time. I always think my GAD started 11 years ago with this incredibly stressful promotion and transfer that I had, but your story just reminded me that when I was 13 or 14, I accidentally said something obscene while answering a teacher's question. This was Catholic school. The teacher knew it was a Freudian slip but teasing I got from classmates gave me huge panic attacks. I was nervous speaking to anyone for I think a whole year.

I'm almost 50 now. Strange, I haven't thought about that incident for decades. How about you Jill? Can you watch the Mr Creosote sketch in Monty Python now without getting a panic attack?

Patrick

[lawandorder]

What happens if you actually have an allergic reaction?
I highly doubt you'll die in any circumstance. Worst case scenario you get rushed to the hospital...
I know it sounds scary, but why live your life like that?
I also highly doubt you can have an allergic reaction through smell, that is semi farfetched. But thats anxiety right... :D
Stop it before it goes too far.

[skeletonsong]

Essentially you have successfully programmed this phobia into your subconscious by constantly dwelling on possible death by seafood allergy. Once the programming takes root, it maintains itself by your avoidance behaviours.

You are absolutely right about this. No matter how much I realize in my mind that the chance of death is very slim, and that the chance of even having a reaction (as long as I am cautions about what I eat) is very small the thoughts just keep cycling through my head. The more this happens the more my fear is reinforced, and the more avoidance behaviors I develop. It has gotten to the point where I read the ingredients of everything I eat. One extreme example is I read that there is anchovy paste in cezar salad dressing. Even though I have been eating the stuff without consequence for my entire life, I am now avoiding it because of what I read on the package. Makes me feel so stupid, but my fear always overrides any logical decision.

[skeletonsong]

What happens if you actually have an allergic reaction?
I highly doubt you'll die in any circumstance. Worst case scenario you get rushed to the hospital...
I know it sounds scary, but why live your life like that?
I also highly doubt you can have an allergic reaction through smell, that is semi farfetched. But thats anxiety right... :D
Stop it before it goes too far.

From what I have read it is possible to have an allergic reaction to a strong smell, however it doesn't change the fact that this fear is running my life. Sometimes I find my breathing will get 'whistley' if you know what I mean. Is it possible that this is cause by anxiety as well??