Taking a Look at Agoraphobia

As you walk the streets all around you there are individuals who may live their life in fear of the petrifying clowns that appear out of nowhere, the spine-chilling darkness that creeps in at dusk, or even the nauseating germs of others surrounding you, but what if you knew someone simply terrified of the outdoors. This may seem strange, but these individuals are constantly living in fear of the outside world away from their “Safe Zone”. From the moment they wake they fear the outside world, constantly panicking about what could happen if they venture to the outdoors. Agoraphobia affects between 5-12% of Americans (Misconceptions of Agoraphobia), and is essential to become aware of the true definition of Agoraphobia.

Panic disorder is where individuals experience severe, mainly unexpected, panic attacks in which they might think they are dying or otherwise losing control. It isn’t a coincidence that agoraphobia is mentioned because these two disorders somewhat go hand and hand. Agoraphobia is closely related to panic disorder because it is a fear and avoidance of situations in which a person feels unsafe or unable to escape to get home or to a hospital in the event of a developing panic symptom or other physical symptoms. People with this disorder tend to stay away from places that have a lot of crowded people or close quartered areas. Some of these places include: Shopping malls, trains, planes, elevators, stores, waiting in line and even restaurants. PD is a fairly common disorder in American and approximately 2.7% of the population has this disorder given a one year period (Kessler, Chiu, 2005) and 4.7% of the population has met this criteria at some point in their

Panic disorder and agoraphobia are two separate disorders that often go hand in hand with each other. An individual can be diagnosed with panic disorder, but a diagnosis without agoraphobia can often take place as well. Some individuals develop symptoms of agoraphobia, but do not have the classic panic disorder symptoms, hence the reason they are both listed as separate disorders in the DSM-5. Panic disorder can be identified as “recurrent unexpected panic attacks. A panic attack is an abrupt surge of intense fear or intense discomfort that reaches a peak within minutes, and during which time four or more physical and cognitive characteristics take place (Hooley, J. 2017, pg.188).” When dealing with panic disorder it can often become debilitating, due to the fact that the individual does not know when the onset of an attack will occur. Individuals with panic disorder more commonly develop agoraphobia as a comorbid disorder, and if left untreated, can have a difficult time even leaving their home. Agoraphobia can be defined as “the individual fears or avoids

Among the many diseases in this world, some of the most interesting and least understood are illnesses of the mind. One aliment in particular, Agoraphobia, is of particular interest to me as it affects many of my family members in ways both subtle and drastic, and I cannot help but wonder if I too will fall victim to it. I know from previous knowledge that this particular ailment is a mental one, though I have witnessed it causing drastic physical symptoms, and that it generally involves a fear of leaving home for an open, public place. Through research, I aim to find the cause of agoraphobia, including anything that predisposes one to it, and treatments for it, including both medications and therapy. I would also like to know just how

Because Agoraphobia was only recently recognised as a distinct disorder little is known about how it is caused, however it is noted that Chambless and Gracely explain it to be a fear of fear (fear of panic attacks and their real or imagined consequences) rather than simply a fear of public places and of being away from home (Chambless & Gracely, 1989). It should also be noted that most people with Agoraphobia will often also have other mental disorders, most frequently other anxiety disorders (Association., 2013).

Agoraphobia is the fear of going to places or being in certain situations that might cause panic, helplessness, and/or embarrassment. Agoraphobia develops after one has experienced two or more panic attacks and then will not want to go to those places again in fear of another attack. Certain situations that are prone to cause panic are then avoided by avoiding people that may trigger an attack, which in turn can cause the victim to fear leaving their house. Anticipated fear will cause one to avoid going to places or attempt to face their fears (Staff).

Another common type of anxiety disorders are panic disorders. Panic disorders are described as repeated and unexpected panic attacks. Sometimes panic disorders may be accompanied by agoraphobia, which is the fear of being in places where escape or help would be difficult in event of an attack. Most people with agoraphobia are more likely to avoid public places like stores or restaurants in case a panic attack occurred. (Smith,

In order for a diagnosis of agoraphobia to be made many factors play a role, including symptoms, situations, and duration of the symptoms. All of the contributing factors revolve around some type of fear or anxiety. As mentioned earlier the fear or anxiety often revolves around being away from home. An individual in various situations, such as open spaces, enclosed places, being in a crowd or in need of using public transportation worries about something bad happening to themselves, especially if they are alone (American Psychiatric Association [APA], 2013, p.217). Therefore, people with agoraphobia, if they are able to go into a situation they fear, will often want to have a companion with them in public spaces.

There are over four hundred specific phobias that are recognizable by therapists. “Phobias are relentless, irrational fears that people have of certain objects or situations” (D'souza n.p.). For instance, there are many phobias and some seem random and ridiculous to others but are horribly terrifying to the person with the phobia. Furthermore, some phobias can be so overwhelming, even to the point where the person with the fear will do absolutely anything to stay away from that object or situation. Knowing what causes a phobia is important because it will help people know what it is and how to treat it.

People with social phobias have one or more fears of being watched, embarrassed, or judged by others in public. This can carry on into social situations, such as performing on a stage in front of a large crowd. In Addition, people with social phobia may have trouble eating in a restaurant, signing their name in front of others or using a public restroom. Just as phobias are confused with fears, social phobia is confused with shyness. On the other hand, Agoraphobia is the intense fear of feeling trapped and having a panic attack in a public area. “Agoraphobia starts at the ages of 15 and 35, affecting three times as many women as men; moreover 3% of the population” (Davidson). Having an episode of spontaneous panic attacks is the first trigger for the development of agoraphobia. After experiencing the first panic attack, that individual will grow more and more afraid of having a second one. Eventually the person completely avoids public places. In severe cases, people with agoraphobia can no longer leave their homes for fear of experiencing a panic

Now we come to the third category. Fear of open spaces. In this writers opinion this one is the worst. It can severely impact how one lives their day to day life. Could you imagine not being able to step outside of your home? In over 12 years? Unfortunately that does happen to people. The term they use for this is Agoraphobia. This literally means “the fear of leaving home or a safe place”. While once again, no physical harm comes with this, the mental toll it can take on someone is not to be underestimated. Anxiety is bad as it is, but the extreme anxiety of one who suffers from Agoraphobia is even worse. It usually starts with a more mild panic attack which then makes the person fear having another type of panic attack while away from the home. This obviously leads them to not want to leave their home, constantly fearing another attack and avoiding anything that might trigger one.

There are two different type of symptoms that anxiety disorders are characterized by. One is agoraphobia, when a person is afraid and develops anxiety to avoid places in case the individual has an attack. The second one is when there is a presence of panic attacks. Specific anxiety disorders included in the DSM-IV include panic disorder, social phobia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder (Robertson and long, 2008). Social phobias generally are associated with significant anticipatory anxiety for days or weeks before the dreaded event, which in turn may further handicap performance and heighten embarrassment. (Kennedy, 2010).

Agoraphobia is the fear or anxiety about a situation characterized by active avoidance of situations due to thoughts that escape might be difficult or help unavailable if panic-like symptoms occur. [1]

Have you ever imagined something in the highest esteem and when it came down to the experience, it did not live up to the hype? This was true for me in my experience on a highly anticipated visit to the so-called “happiest place on earth”, with a name like that will the hype ever be met or exceeded? Sleepless nights led up to the much-anticipated trip to Disneyworld where dreams of mice, princesses and magic danced in my head. It seems as if in an instant I woke up to a nightmare when the agoraphobia set in.

Definition: Phobia disorders are characterized by persistent, irrational fear of places, situations, or objects that are believed to provoke the person’s fears. Phobias often interfere with the person’s life or work performance. There are different types of phobia disorders; the most common form of phobia is social phobia, in which the person is afraid of being embarrassed in a social situation. Also some phobias are labeled specific, meaning people have an out of proportion fear of specific things.