Agoraphobia is a type of anxiety disorder in which the sufferer doesn’t
fear crowded situations, as is commonly believed, but rather, the individual
fears having a panic attack in general in any place, be it home, at work, out
to eat, etc. Social anxiety disorder (SAD) is often confused for agoraphobia.
Agoraphobia often leads to avoidance of situations such as being alone outside
of the home; traveling in a bus, car or airplane; or being in a crowded area
where they may have a panic attack and won’t be able to receive help.
Some people with agoraphobia are comfortable seeing visitors, but only in a
defined space they feel in control of. These people may live for years without
leaving their homes, while happily seeing visitors and working, as long as
they can stay within their safety zones.
Agoraphobia Symptoms
A person with the disorder may have severe panic attacks in situations where
he/she feels trapped, out of control, insecure, or simply too far from his
or her comfort zone. In times of severe anxiety, the person may be confined
not only to his or her home, but to one or two rooms, and may even become bed-bound
until the over-stimulated nervous system is calmed, and adrenaline levels have
returned to normal.
Individuals with agoraphobia are often extremely sensitized to their own bodily
sensations, subconsciously over-reacting to perfectly routine events. For example,
the exertion required to climb a flight of stairs may lend to a full-blown
panic attack, because it increased the heart and breathing rate, which the
agoraphobic interprets as the start of a panic attack. People with severe agoraphobia
learn to avoid situations where an attack may be brought on.
How Common is Agoraphobia?
Agoraphobia occurs in women twice as commonly as men. This may be attributable
to social/cultural factors that encourage, or permit, the greater expression
of avoidance coping strategies by women, though other reasons may play into
this.
The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) reports that one out of three
people with panic disorder will develop agoraphobia as well. It’s estimated
that 3.2 million Americans aged 18-54 are living with agoraphobia. Most people
develop agoraphobia after the onset of panic disorder, and as such, the diagnosis
of panic disorder with agoraphobia was established. However, for people who
do not meet full criteria for panic disorder, the formal diagnosis of Agoraphobia
without history of panic disorder is used.
Treatment Options for Agoraphobia
Successful treatment of agoraphobia is possible for many people through a
very gradual process of exposure therapy combined with cognitive therapy and
sometimes antidepressant or anti-anxiety medications. Anti-anxiety medications
include benzodiazepines such as alprozalam. The antidepressants most often
used are SSRIs like paroxetine, fluoxetine and sertraline. The treatment options
for panic disorder and agoraphobia are similar.
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Behavior therapy for agoraphobia helps the individual modify and gain control
over unwanted behavior, and allows them to cope with difficult situations,
often through controlled exposure to them. Cognitive therapy gives the sufferer
the tools to change unproductive or harmful thought patterns, and allows them
to examine his or her feelings and learn to separate realistic from unrealistic
thoughts. As with behavior therapy, the individual is actively involved in
his or her own recovery and has a sense of control. Cognitive-Behavior Therapy,
or CBT, is a combination of the above two therapeutic approaches. One of the
benefits of these types of therapies is that the patient learns recovery skills
that are useful for a lifetime.
While those are the most commonly used treatment options, others include relaxation
techniques, hypnotherapy, neuro-linguistic programming (NLP), and energy psychology.
With proper treatment and techniques, agoraphobia can be treated and the person
can go on to live a productive life. There’s no miracle for agoraphobia,
but there are numerous options that will help the sufferer learn to deal with
and overcome the fear and anxiety that has become so prohibitive to their daily
functioning.
Author: Jase Donaldson
Website: http://www.insightjournal.com/
Have you felt an overwhelming desire to escape in a situation where you
experienced a high level anxiety? Did you tremble or shake
uncontrollably, excessively sweat, felt dizzy or had tingling
sensations? These symptoms indicate that you may have experienced a
panic attack. Find out more about panic attacks here.
Research shows that panic attacks can be caused by multiple factors.
Enclosed spaces, social events, crowds, phobias, heredity and anxiety
are just some of the potential factors explored here.
What are the steps to diagnosing a panic disorder? Find out what your
healthcare professional will need to learn in order to determine
whether you experience occasional anxiety and panic or have a panic
disorder.
What type of person develops a panic disorder? Learn more about what
researchers have discovered, including temperament and triggers, the
‘gender factor’ as well as family history.
There are actually several different types of panic attacks that a
person can experience if they have panic disorder. Situational
predisposed panic attacks, spontaneous panic attacks, and cued panic
attacks share certain characteristics, but they are each triggered
differently. Find out more about the different types of panic attacks
here.
Individuals who have been diagnosed with panic disorder have many
treatment options available to them. Psychotherapy (including
Cognitive-behavior therapy (CBT) and Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy
(REBT), prescription medications, as well as Complementary and
Alternative Medicine (CAM) are just some of the many treatments for panic attacks.
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