Agoraphobia is an exhausting – and often a very lonely - anxiety disorder.
It has the power to make your world that much smaller, reducing the vastness and greatness of a person’s existence down to four brick walls.
If you suffer from agoraphobia, you will have a hard time feeling safe in public spaces or situations. Your mental and physical symptoms can become so overwhelming that you find it preferable to stay at home.
Becoming housebound is a lifestyle not many of us would choose, however, when you’re struggling with agoraphobia, it feels like a necessity to protect yourself from any perceived triggers.
It can be very difficult to know where to start, or how to start, tackling the very fears preventing you from leaving your front door. What may be helpful is recognising where your agoraphobia stems from and tackling it at its roots.
It can also be difficult to pinpoint how agoraphobia develops, but commonly trauma is a trigger, as agoraphobia can be an anxiety response to a stressful time and event. Biology can also be a factor, with health conditions and genetics playing a part.
Understanding the underlying causes of your agoraphobia is an important first step in gaining control of your condition.
To help you start gaining some insight into your condition here are some prompts.
When did you first start to experience signs of your agoraphobia?
What do you think started your agoraphobia?
What are the things you do daily that maintain your agoraphobia?
What thoughts are associated with your agoraphobia?
What are these thoughts based on?
It’s important to understand that – fear, alongside anxiety – is your body’s way of emotionally guarding and keeping yourself safe.
Both fear and anxiety serve a purpose, it’s our innate way of dealing with stress. Aging right back to the cavemen days our fear and anxiety would dictate whether we should fight or flee possible danger. Which was always very helpful when sabretooth tiger is lurking just around the corner.
In the case of this day and age however, we do not need the same vigilance. The excess of these emotions is no longer working in your favour - but to your detriment. When fear and anxiety are working in overdrive even commonplace, everyday situations can be seen as a perceived threat. The thought of going shopping on a Saturday becomes daunting. The idea of catching a train can make the stomach churn. Anxiety and fear combined does a great job of distorting our reality to the point where our emotional response is disproportionate to the situation itself.
We can see agoraphobia as operating as a vicious cycle. Surmounting fear and anxiety results in avoidant behaviour which in turn leads to a reduction in activity. Doing less means feeling less pleasure, less connection and purpose – leaving us feeling less fulfilled. The absence of human fulfilment drives down our mood, which exacerbates our feeling of hopelessness and undermines our confidence in our ability to do things. The result? We withdraw and hide away in a bid to keep ourselves ‘safe’.
In a bid to scour out potential danger our mind attaches negative associations to situations and places. Say you had a panic attack when you were at a show, you may then associate the theatre as a ‘unsafe’ place that caused you upset. Perhaps you heard on the news that there was a robbery at a local bank, this may plant a fear that all banks are dangerous places and are to be avoided. These incidents condition us – consciously and subconsciously – to associate the bank and the theatre to be hazardous places. We know logically and rationally that is not true, but our negative associations can be so deeply rooted that it’s hard to turn our thinking back around.
Avoiding activities or duties may bring us a sense of relief in the short term, but in the long term it will only prolong your condition, so what can we do to break ourselves out of that loop?
A great first step is reaching out to either a trusted mental health professional, friend or loved one with the acknowledgment that you need help. There are so many recommended and proven treatment plans out there to help, so it is important to reach out and speak out about the challenges you’re facing.
Talking therapies can provide you with a safe space necessary when confronting difficult feelings and emotions. Person – centred therapy will provide an opportunity to gain a better understanding of the self, offering a place to self-reflect and discover healthier ways to move forward.
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is helpful with addressing habits or patterns in our behaviour which are emotionally holding us back. CBT offers practical self-help techniques to help shift your mindset, helping you engage in a more, constructive logical way of thinking.
In addition, Exposure Therapy may be recommended for agoraphobia, this is a type of therapy where you’re gradually exposed to things, situations and activities you fear. Exposure Therapy helps show you – in a safe, regulated environment – that you’re capable of confronting your fears. Although challenging, together, with your therapist, you’ll form a treatment plan tailored to you, which will help reduce your stress levels in challenging situations.
Depending on the severity of your agoraphobia these therapies can sometimes be offered online or over the phone.
Self – help techniques can also help us stay calm when emotions are heightened. For example, controlled breathing exercises are highly recommended, as stress and breathing are intimately linked, changing one influences the other. Controlling our breathing is a powerful tool for lowering our heart rate, quietening a racing mind and entering a state of calm.
To practice getting into a slower, more stable, breathing rhythm try to breathe in for three seconds, hold your breath for two, and then breathe out for three seconds. While doing this, ensure your stomach expands as you take in each breath This helps you to stop breathing from the chest, which tends to result in short shallow breaths.
Relaxation classes, like the ones hosted at our PSS Wellbeing Centres, can also help you put aside the time to unwind. Relaxation holds many benefits like keeping your heart healthier, cuts stress and reduces muscle tension.
In fact, any activity that encourages good wellbeing, or chases those feel – good endorphins, will not only improve your health but will also help you embrace a new way of thinking and being. Pursuing enjoyable activities can restore that sense of pleasure and purpose, fundamental in escaping a negative mindset.
When you have agoraphobia the thought of conquering your fears may feel like mountain too steep to climb, but, with the right support and a step-by-step approach, it is achievable.
Remember, treat yourself with the same kindness and patience as you would do with a good friend, and that progress is not linear, so expect setbacks but celebrate your wins.