Warning: this article contains a discussion of restrictive eating that some readers may find triggering.

No one likes being sick. But for people with emetophobia, the idea of throwing up – or watching someone else be sick – is enough to send them into an anxious spiral.

As a result, many people with emetophobia – aka, a fear of vomit – will engage in avoidance behaviors to try and reduce their risk of being ill, including washing their hands, avoiding eating in restaurants or eating specific foods they know to be ‘safe’.

That latter behaviour was the experience of singer and Voice UK judge Anne-Marie, who recently opened up about her struggles with emetophobia on the Off Menu podcast.

Emetophobia: Anne-Marie gets honest about how her vomit phobia has affected her life