What is Agoraphobia?
Agoraphobia is often mistakenly believed by many people to be a fear of open spaces. Whilst that may well be a common symptom of agoraphobia for some sufferers, the reality is that the disorder is far more complex than that. In actual fact agoraphobia is the fear of places or situations from which escape is perceived to be impossible, difficult or embarrassing. This perceived threat will often bring on extreme anxiety and panic attacks. Sufferers may well avoid situations and places if they fear that those circumstances will trigger another panic attack. In extreme cases an agoraphobic person’s symptoms may be so severe that they are unable to leave their home or even their room. This can go on for many years if the sufferer does not seek help and support.
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Agoraphobia can often seem to come from out of nowhere with no apparent cause. That first panic attack can be so frightening that the person may fear that they are going to die or have a heart attack. In fact agoraphobia can be the fear of fear itself as the sufferer will avoid situations because they are scared of the fear and panic that they believe they will experience if they were to step too far outside of their safe zone.
During a panic attack the person will usually feel weak and helpless. Their heart will pound and they will break into a sweat and find it difficult to breath. It’s not surprising panic attacks can be mistaken for a heart attack by the people who experience them. They literally become gripped by the terror and are unable to cope with the situation. Doctors may be able to provide reassurances about their physical health as panic attacks are no indication of any serious medical conditions. But the doctor will most likely find nothing physically wrong. Agoraphobia is something that requires the help of a mental health professional or treatment with complementary therapies.
Once a panic attack has been experienced any future situations that are similar to that first experience can possibly act as triggers that will cause further panic attacks. The sufferer will find that situations that they could once face without any problems suddenly begin to make them very uncomfortable and agitated. The further they are from home the further they are from their safe zone and the more likely they are to be triggered into experiencing another panic attack. Agoraphobia is a condition where a person can be triggered to experience panic in these situations or avoids these situations altogether in order to avoid another panic attack.
Social gatherings can become difficult for people with agoraphobia especially amongst crowds. Agoraphobia can develop into a social phobia as it’s easier for an agoraphobic person to escape from a situation if they are alone and don’t have to worry about what other people might think of them. As a result they may avoid the company of others. As an agoraphobia sufferer myself being with friends and family can be difficult if I feel that they might suddenly decide to do something or go somewhere that I am not comfortable with. This situation is especially true in the working environment where I might suddenly be asked to visit a client several hundred miles outside my safety zone. Combining the symptoms of agoraphobia with the fear of losing my job because I was unable to do the job because of my condition would just make the experience even more unbearable. Agoraphobia is a condition that will usually start after a person experiences a panic attack. It can be caused by the fear that this experience may happen again if they experience a similar situation. People with agoraphobia are constantly fearing their next panic attack even if they aren’t aware of their fear most of the time. Agoraphobia really starts to become a problem when the person begins to change their routine to avoid placing themselves in situations that might bring on another panic attack.
People with agoraphobia will often have what they consider to be their “safe zone”, which may be a radius of a certain distance in which they feel safe extending from where they live. If they experienced their first panic attack several hundred miles from home then they may well still be able to function normally within quite a large safe zone. But this safe zone can gradually decrease in size if they experience another panic attack whilst within its radius. Agoraphobia is a condition that starts off slowly and can gradually worsen as their safe zone decreases in size.
In the most extreme cases this safe zone will shrink to the size of the person own home or even just their room. They will be unable to leave this safe zone and if they try to leave they may feel as there if is an immovable and impassable barrier that they cannot cross without experiencing intense fear.
There are many treatments that can help people suffering from agoraphobia. Even if the person is unable to leave their home to a see a therapist there are many effective therapies that can be learnt online. Please read our article on agoraphobia treatments to learn more.