I can vomit 15 times an hour doctors dismissed my unusual illness as a migraine

She’s a real barf-icionado.If Sharisse Zeroonian feels stress, anxiety or premenstrual symptoms, it can trigger a multi-day vomiting bout that sees her throwing up as many as 15 times per hour.Afterwards, her symptoms subside, but she returns to retching the following week for days at a time.As the exhaustion and nausea from these episodes caused her to lose weight and work opportunities, doctors erroneously diagnosed her condition as migraine disorder.“I was feeling like, I don’t want to live like this anymore.What kind of quality of life is this?” Zeroonian, 29, told TODAY.com.The Massachusetts native recalled that her vomiting episodes triggered anxiety and suicidal ideation, but in a “Catch-22,” these thoughts also seemed to bring on the vomiting.It took two years, numerous tests and several trips to the ER for Zeroonian to receive a proper diagnosis.

In 2023, she was finally diagnosed with cyclic vomiting syndrome (CVS).CVS affects 2% of the population and is more common in women, young adults and those with a personal or family history of migraines.According to the Mayo Clinic, CVS is a chronic disorder of the gut-brain interaction.Signs and symptoms include:Other symptoms that can present during a vomiting episode include abdominal pain, diarrhea, headache, dizziness and increased sensitivity to light.Triggers for CVS attacks include sinus problems, stress or excitement, certain foods and drinks, such as alcohol, caffeine, chocolate and cheese, menstruation, motion sickness, overexertion and overeating.CVS is diagnosed by analyzing the patient’s vomiting episodes and ruling out other causes.

Patients are commonly misdiagnosed with the stomach flu or food poisoning.Zeroonian said she occasionally experienced digestive issues in childhood, but her symptoms really ramped up in 2021.Initially, Zeroonian felt more ashamed than comforted by her CVS diagnosis.“It was kind of embarrassing to me at the time,” she told TODAY.com.

“The biggest thi...