Hi everyone! I'm new to this site and am desperate for some support because this phobia is driving me mad.

I'm 40 now and have had this phobia all my life. Like a lot of you, although it is with me every hour of every day, somehow I manage to get through the days UNTIL.....that is you hear on the news or you open a newspaper and it is all about "The Winter Vomiting Bug". Oh good grief. I was doing not too bad (well, as good as can be expected with this infliction) until about 4 days ago when I innocently went online and AOL News had up the big title "Warning over winter vomiting bug sweeping through country". Ever since I read this, I am in a terrible state.

Yesterday, I was at Tescos and one member of staff said hello to another member and asked why she was late in - the woman replied because she almost didnt make it because she had been up ill all night. That conversation replays over and over in my head.

The kids stop school on Friday and it cant be soon enough for me (in fact, if I had my way, I would probably just not send them this week at all). I keep thinking - only 3 more days of them mixing in a school and then hopefully if they havent picked anything up by then they should be ok..

My husband knows I have this phobia but unfortunately he has a different phobia and feels his is worse than mine. When he asks what is wrong with me and I tell him I am struggling to cope with this at the moment, he says it's just all scaremongery....I know he is trying to help but it doesnt! I just need to hear on the grapevine that someone has been sick and that is enough to put it in my head that I will catch it - even if I've been nowhere near the person.

My daughter knocked on the bedroom door last night and said she had a sore stomach and felt sick - well, that was it, I hardly slept a wink all night. She seemed ok this morning and went to school as usual but I'm constantly worried in case one of them is incubating this bug.

My dad has bought us tickets to go and see Joseph during Christmas and New Year and I reall do not want to go - why? - because its an enclosed space and any one person could have or could have had this damned bug or even worse one of us could have it and be ill when we are there.

Sorry for rambling on but I'm in total panic at the moment.