About 5% of the American population struggles with this potentially very severe and disturbing anxiety disorder. It has the power to disrupt lives, ruin careers, tear apart families and turn you into a recluse. Of course, this problem comes in many degrees of severity and while your life may not have been shattered, it has certainly been inconvenienced.
The term agoraphobia means a fear of open spaces. However, this is not the essence of this problem. For people suffering from this condition, what they really fear is having a panic attack in a place where assistance is limited, unavailable or embarrassing to obtain.
The unpredictability of anxiety attacks creates a disturbing chain of events that leaves sufferers fearful of exposing themselves to situations where attacks will take place. Imagine driving with your daughter, or sitting in a movie theater, or supervising a play date at the park.
What if you were suddenly struck by a rapid heartbeat, shortness of breath, sweating, loss of sensation and sheer terror? How would you be able to focus on the road, stay in your seat or watch the kids? You couldn´t and suddenly you are exposing yourself or others to danger or embarrassment. This is the worry that keeps agoraphobia sufferers from venturing to far from home or even leaving their home altogether in its severest form.
Agoraphobia is participated by panic attacks, usually ones that are particularly terrifying or happen at horrendous times and in bad places. People who deal with this problem have usually structured their lives to avoid certain situations.
You probably avoid going to the grocery store, malls and even many restaurants. Public transportation like buses, subways or trains are usually something to be avoided because how would you escape a moving bus or speeding train if you were to suddenly experience a panic attack? Venturing too far away from home to drop your child at a friend´s house, meet someone or do something is usually also avoided.
While panic disorder seems to lead to agoraphobia it is not entirely clear why some sufferers develop this problem and others do not. Some people just contend with the disorder, while others have their problems morph into this more severe phobia.
There seems to be a strong genetic predisposition to this. In studies using identical twin siblings, it was discovered that if one sibling had this problem, it was very likely that the other did as well. Overly critical, overly anxious or overly protective parenting may have also contributed to the present problem.
This phobia is dominated by women but it affects people in all age ranges in all walks of life. While it is a disturbing condition there are many ways to improve it and resolve it. The best starting place is to find a method to help your body to relax and cope with the stress and pressures of daily life. Meditation, yoga and other relaxation techniques are a good starting point. Relaxing your body through exercise and muscle relaxation is a good way to release tension and help calm your mind as well.
Author Resource:-
Download your free eBook Stop Panic Attacks and Deal with Your Anxious Thoughts here:
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- From Bertil Hjert - The author of the Panic Goodbye Program. Read more about this brand new course at the: Panic Goodbye Program
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