Chocs away: Man has a crippling fear of CHOCOLATE
THE mere sight of chocolate makes Andrew Bullock flake out.
The TV producer suffers with xocolatophobia - an irrational fear of chocolate.
Andrew, 31, said: "I know that for some people living without chocolate would be a nightmare. For me it's the opposite. I can't stand to even look at it, let alone put it in my mouth.
"The worst chocolate bar is Cadbury Flake because it crumbles easily. If I touch chocolate I feel dirty. Even if I wash my hands I feel like it's still there.
"I'm not a cleanliness freak. If I get anything else mucky on me I feel fine. Only chocolate stresses me out."
Mr Bullock, from Maidenhead, Berks, can trace his phobia back to his childhood when he noticed his mother was also afraid of chocolate.
He said: "I can't think of any specific incident which left me traumatised about chocolate. My mother has the same problem, so I got it from her.
"I have accepted that my fear of chocolate is just a part of who I am."
The phobia has played havoc with his social life.
When I go out for dinner and someone has a big chocolate thing for dessert it freaks me out and I feel stressed
He said: "If I see someone else eating it I start to feel worried about the chocolate getting on me.
"If I see someone with a chocolate bar I will make a conscious effort to avoid coming into contact with them.
"When I go out for dinner and someone has a big chocolate thing for dessert it freaks me out and I feel stressed.
"I don't let anyone bring it in my car or my house, but in a public place I can't expect people to not eat chocolate around me."
Christmas and Easter are the worst times of year for him.
He said: "I even hate walking past a shelf of boxed Easter eggs - the supermarkets are full of them in March and April.
"Christmas is similar, at every family gathering there seems to be a box of chocolates flying around.
"Last year I went to an Easter party and everyone was given a giant chocolate egg. I pretended to be happy about it but it was a nightmare for me.
"Everyone starting cracking them open and little bits of chocolate started flying everywhere. I couldn't handle it.
"Messy kids were running around with chocolate all over their hands. It was like a warzone. I had to grin and bear it.
"I know it's an irrational phobia. I couldn't ask everyone to stop and put their easter eggs away – that would be ridiculous."
