Agoraphobia is undeniably an uncomfortable and restrictive affliction to suffer from. Its reach is great and impact upon one's life can be huge. Agoraphobia can begin as a feeling of not being comfortable in certain specific situations but it can grow to encompass everything that takes place outside of one's own front door.
Simple things that other people take for granted can become uncomfortable, terrifying or even completely impossible, depending upon the severity of agoraphobia's grip upon you. Walking to the corner shop to buy a newspaper can cause you to erupt in cold sweats, crossing a road can become totally terrifying, or a recreational park can become a horror movie in your mind.
I doubt that anyone who has not experienced agoraphobia can really appreciate the length or breadth of its grip. Even then each individual experiences it in
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But whatever methods a person employs in his or her attempt to cope with agoraphobia it is neither comfortable nor easy. No matter how much will power you have you simply cannot will the fear away. In fact the more you try to will it to go away, the worse the fear tends to get.
It doesn't help to know that your fear is not logical. You know that in the grand scheme of things that to walk down the road or to cross the park is logically speaking a fairly safe thing to do. But intense fear simply takes over even as you think about it, before you even take one step outside the front door. This feeling is not logical. It is emotional and it is automatic. It just happens.
This tells us one very important fact. This fear, this phobia is (like all phobias) triggered and powered from within the subconscious mind. It is not consciously and logically driven. No amount of logic will therefore overcome agoraphobia. You have to find a way to get into the workings of your subconscious mind to find those phobia triggers and relieve
Agoraphobia is a psychological disorder characterised by panic and anxiety. This particular anxiety disorder involves the fear of experiencing a panic attack in a public place where safety may be unavailable, which causes discomfort (Lilienfeld, 2017). This disorder is commonly recognized in women and often arises during adolescent years. Often times, people develop agoraphobia after a previous panic attacks, which than causes them to worry about having another in the future (Agoraphobia, 2017). This results in avoidant behaviours, such as evading places where an attack may occur. There are many causes, symptoms, effects on both the individual with the disorder and their loved ones, as well as a variety of treatments available.
Jackson would be to undergo Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). CBT is a method of psychotherapy that looks to treat psychological disorders by implementing modifications that change dysfunctional thoughts, emotions, and behavior. (Zalyte, Neverauskas, & Goodall, 2017) CBT is the most commonly used and most effective treatments for Agoraphobia. (Gloster, Wittchen, et al. 2011) In this case, therapist guided exposure during CBT will prove to be Mrs. Jackson’s best option. Self-exposure to their trigger can be difficult for phobia patients, and they will often activate avoidance behaviors which can interfere with their progress through treatment. The presence of a therapist can help to counteract this. (Hahlweg, Fiegenbaum, Frank, Schroeder, & von Witzleben, 2001).The therapist’s role in this case would be to reassure Mrs. Jackson about her safety, and identify safety behaviors that Mrs. Jackson can utilize to ensure that she is secure, such as carrying a cell phone for emergency purposes. The therapist’s feedback can help guide Ms. Jackson and promote more effective behavior by providing modeling and verbal instructions. I would recommend setting up a daily plan that included gradual exposure to the world outside of the home, with small steps being taken until Mrs. Jackson is more comfortable and can make larger and larger advances into the outside world. The therapist’s presence will help keep her accountable, and ensure that she is
A phobic disorder is marked by a persistent and irrational fear of an object or situation that presents no realistic danger. Agoraphobia is an intense, irrational fear or anxiety occasioned by the prospect of having to enter certain outdoor locations or open spaces. For example, busy streets, busy stores, tunnels, bridges, public transportation and cars. Traditionally agoraphobia was solely classified as a phobic disorder. However, due to recent studies it is now also viewed as a panic disorder. Panic disorders are characterised by recurrent attacks of overwhelming anxiety that usually occur suddenly and unexpectedly (Weiten, 1998).
Severe anxiety, which can be described as an episode of terror, is referred to as a panic attack. Panic attacks can be extremely frightening. People who experience panic attacks over a prolonged time period may become victims of agoraphobia, which is a psychiatric disorder that is closely associated with the panic disorder. Patients with Agoraphobia avoid certain places or situations such as airplanes, crowded theaters, a grocery store or anyplace from which escape might be difficult. It is said that Agoraphobia can be so severe that it has made certain individuals housebound.
anxiety and panic attacks, and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (1). Many of these symptoms cause people to avoid contact with the outside world, thus thrusting them deeper into their fears.
Simple phobias include irrational fears of things like animals such as dogs, cats, or the most common snakes. Specific phobias are centered around specific situations such as small spaces, claustrophobia, or heights, acrophobia. Social phobias are irrational fears of interactions with other people. For example, a person might have a social phobia of public speaking or fear of embarrassment. Another form of social phobia is agoraphobia which restraints a person from being in unfamiliar, open or closed spaces, typically resulting in panic attacks. These different types of phobias have two things in common; they are irrational, and they are treated in similar
According to Klasco (2011), psychological disorders "are abnormalities of the mind that result in persistent behavior patterns" that can have an impact on daily tasks and life in general. There are many different groups of psychological disorders, one of those being anxiety disorders, which King (2013) states features "motor tension, hyperactivity, and apprehensive expectations and thoughts" (p. 448). There are also many subgroups of anxiety disorders, including phobic disorders, in which agoraphobia is included in. Agoraphobia is considered a panic disorder because its’ ability to limit people from doing their daily activities.
Change your response to the fear as you confront it. You can, for instance, learn to laugh at your fear. This is what comedian Kevin Hart learned to do, and he became
One of the characteristics of a phobia is a feeling that is greater than the fear of a situation or object with an exaggeration of the danger associated with the said situation or even object. This persistent fear often leads to an anxiety disorder that leads an individual to develop mechanisms that ensure one avoids the object or situation that triggers the occurrence of the phobia. Phobias can have highly debilitating effects on an individual including the development of depression, isolation, substance abuse, and even suicide. Many people take phobia for granted however, it is clear that it has the potential to impair the quality of life for both the affected and the people around them. The fact that many of the phobias are manageable using
Having anxiety is common and a part of everyday life however; there is a huge difference between a fear and a social phobia or anxiety disorder. The difference and important distinction psychoanalysts make between a fear and a phobia is “a true phobia must be inconsistent with the conscious learning experience of the individual” (Karon 1). Patients with true phobias “do not respond to cognitive therapy but do respond well to psychoanalysis and psychoanalytic therapy” (Karon 2). Social phobia is a serious anxiety disorder that should not be taken lightly or mistaken as a fear you will simply grow out of the older you get. Social phobia has the power to destroy lives and can prevent people from living and enjoying their life to the fullest. Social phobia is a disabling condition that often starts between the ages of early childhood and late adolescence. The origins of social phobia can be linked to “traumatic social experiences and social isolation” (Hudson118-120). Social phobia is treatable however; research and statics show that not many seek help.
Memory is defined as “the faculty by which the mind stores and remembers information” (“Tmesis”, n.d.); and it is a purely mental process that always access to stored information. Memories can either be pleasant or unpleasant, but the fact is, they still exist either way. They are an essential part of who we are and without them, we would struggle to establish our identity. Besides being images of the past, memory is equally emotions too. Emotions are the main reason a memory is either stored or forgotten. They are a key factor in memory.
Phobias are irrational fear to a person, place or object and they are classified as an anxiety disorder. There is a term for every phobia imaginable. Phobias affect approximately nineteen million individuals, with the fears ranging from blood to women and every thing in between. The symptoms one experiences when suffering with a phobia include profuse sweating, headaches, extreme nausea and a variety of other physical symptoms.
Everything suddenly becomes unfamiliar and I’m no longer comfortable in my own skin. I’m absolutely terrified and unable to collect thoughts properly. Tormenting-thoughts shoot left and right through my brain and after each hit I find my heart beating faster by the second. My chest becomes tight and it is hard to breathe. I’m paralyzed with fear; it is impossible to find the right words to say, and I have a sudden aura of loneliness. I am having a panic attack.
In conclusion, phobias are a big part of many people’s lives these days and a growing medical condition. People do not realize how badly phobias can affect their lives so they don’t receive medical attention. There are no cures for phobias but there are treatments which will help the phobic get over their fear. I personally believe that if people care enough about their lives, they will treat their phobias. Phobias can totally alter your life so if you have any of the symptoms I have listed above, please go and get treatment.
Fear can have such a powerful grasp on my mind that it will cause me to be consumed with it. Understand that I have the power to control my thoughts. Memorize encouraging quote and when the feelings of fear creep into my mind, I repeat this over and over until it becomes the guiding thought. When I leverage the power of shutting down undesirable thoughts with optimistic statement, I create a gate of opportunity to my self to break out of that dreaded Series of Fear.