I love characters puking from food poisoning, stomach bugs, motion sickness and overindulgence of alcohol as much as everyone else, but can we talk about some less common for someone to puke?
I’d love to see some sick fics with the following emeto scenarios:
1. Altitude sickness! People from low elevation areas can sometimes suffer when the altitude changes too much, and it can cause nausea and vomiting. Imagine a person from say, Florida, going to a place like Mt. Rainier in Washington, which is over 14,000′ above sea level. That’s a huge change, and someone who suffers from altitude sickness would be in for a really bad time. Plus, altitude sickness can affect anyone, wether or not they’re prone to motion sickness.
2. Ear infections! Specifically, the type with internally dripping fluid due to an inner ear blockage. Swallow too much of that stuff and you’ll be feeling really sick. The sick character would likely be dizzy as well, and they might need someone to help them get to the bathroom.
3. Concussions! I’m not talking life threatening knockouts, but more minor head injuries. Unlike movie characters, real people can’t simply walk off a concussion. If you get knocked out for more than a couple seconds, you’ll probably feel really sick and throw up upon waking. Even if someone doesn’t get fully knocked out, head injuries will often make people puke. Emeto + injury = A+ whump.
4. Zinc poisoning! This one is rather obscure to people who don’t work in the trades, but the whump potential is great. There’s a reason why welding is done in a well ventilated area: the zinc galvanization can cause vapors that make you sick. When welding galvanized metal, the zinc coating needs to be ground off. If it gets too hot, it can release harmful vapors that might make you dizzy, nauseous and cause you to puke.