‘I didn't want to live...’: Woman with rare vomiting syndrome shocks the internet

A woman from Massachusetts has opened up about her years-long battle with a rare condition that causes her to vomit up to 15 times per hour due to stress, anxiety or premenstrual symptoms. She would then feel better, but the cycle would start again the following week and then continue for several days.

Sharice Zerounian, 29, has been diagnosed with the rare cyclic vomiting syndrome (CVS), which affects 2% of the population and is more prevalent in women, young adults and people with a personal or family history of migraines.

Sharice told Today.com that her frequent vomiting caused her to lose weight, become emotionally upset and lose her job. She also began having suicidal thoughts, which unfortunately led to more vomiting.

"I felt like I didn't want to live like this anymore. What kind of quality of life is this?" she told the outlet.

Sharice's symptoms began in 2021. Despite her declining health and frequent hospital stays, doctors initially mistook her illness for migraines.

Sharisse underwent numerous tests over two years, including multiple blood tests, endoscopies and gastric emptying studies, and visited the ER multiple times to get the right diagnosis. She was finally diagnosed with cyclic vomiting syndrome (CVS) in 2023.

CVS, a chronic gut-brain connection disorder, has symptoms that include frequent vomiting, interspersed with periods of normal health. Abdominal discomfort, diarrhea, headaches, sensitivity to light and dizziness are other symptoms that can appear during vomiting.

Menstruation, motion sickness, overexertion, overeating, sinus problems, stress or excitement, and specific foods and beverages such as alcohol, coffee, chocolate, and cheese are all known triggers for CVS episodes.

"These episodes caused me to have anxiety and even suicidal thoughts at times, but it was a counterproductive situation because the anxiety and suicidal thoughts were also causing the episode," Sharisse told Today.com.

Managing symptoms and changing lifestyle choices to avoid situations that trigger vomiting episodes are the mainstay of CVS treatment. Additional treatments include benzodiazepines, which have been proven to reduce anxiety symptoms, migraine medications and medicinal marijuana, which can reduce stress and nausea.

Sharice still has vomiting episodes every week, but they are less severe and last one to two days instead of four or five. Sharisse turned her hardships into inspiration and wrote and directed a dark comedy film called Nothing Solid, a semi-autobiographical film that she describes as a "wham-com."

"Making this film and speaking openly about it has helped me, because I feel like I suffered a lot when I wasn't open about it," she said.

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