Majority of individuals with agoraphobia can be treated by utilizing self-help techniques. Of course, the success would greatly depend upon the treatment chosen, and the patient. The duration of therapies vary from one person to another. Some would take more than a year to be freed from the disorder, while others would just take a few months.

The treatment could extend to more than a year because some patients have a number of phobias to deal with. Hence, it makes the treatment more complicated. For instance, the complications are true with people who are clinically depressed or addicted to a substance, and they also have agoraphobia.

Since one case of agoraphobia can be different from another sufferer of the same disorder, the treatment is individualized. Meaning, it is tailored to the specific needs of the patient. Mostly, therapists would make use of more than one treatment, or a combination.

These are the different treatments available to people who have agoraphobia

Behavior therapy’s purpose is to rid of the unwanted behaviour. To do this the individual is coached by the therapist to be able to modify this behaviour and control it on his or her own.  There are different coping strategies that would be presented by the therapist, to help the patient go through difficult situations. The drawback for this treatment is it can get uncomfortable at times. Hence, it is one of the least utilized treatments, or it usually partnered with another one.

The next one is Cognitive therapy. The main goal of this treatment is to alter the unproductive or harmful thoughts of the patients. To do this, the individual is guided by the therapist to reflect and examine his feelings. Then, learn how to distinguish between realistic and unrealistic thoughts. On this treatment, the patient is greatly active in his or her own healing.

The third one is an example of a combination. This treatment makes use of cognitive and behaviour therapy at once. It is called cognitive-behaviour therapy or CBT. Similarly, the goal of this method is to help the patient develop his or her recovery skills. This kind of self-help cure has been proven to be of help to patients on long-term basis.

The fourth one concentrates on relaxation tactics. There are cases when the panic attack is triggered by stress. This kind of technique helps people relax in times of stress, and stops the agoraphobia from surfacing. Of course, it includes breathing exercises that could lessen the severity of physical symptoms.

Hypnotherapy taps the subconscious part of the human mind. The goal is to reprogram the aspects of the subconscious that are responsible for Agoraphobia. As the name suggests, there are tactics utilized here that are similar to hypnosis. Patients tend to stay away from this treatment, because the idea that some is in control of you is quite scary for some. Also, there are a lot of critics to this method.

NLP or Neuro-Linguistic Programming tends to focus more on how a patient creates his or her reality. The assumption is that people are the one who built the constructs that triggers or made the agoraphobia. In the sessions, the so-called constructs would be distinguished and changed. In effect, the episodes of panic are extinguished or at least minimized.

The last treatment for agoraphobia that I will be discussing would be the newest discovery, Energy Psychology.  This is usually compared to acupuncture. However, there are no needles involved. It is more of an emotional acupuncture. The treatment is believed to be safe, effective, and long-lasting Most of all, cure can be reached in just a short span of time.

There are people who get pangs of panic or anxiety in a crowded place. The reason for this would be the idea that they will have a panic attack in front of many people. Hand in hand with fear and anxiety, people with Agoraphobia would rather stay at home, where they feel safe.

It is not correct to conclude that Agoraphobia is a fear of huge spaces. It is more of being afraid by embarrassment. Moreover, the fear of not being able to escape a crowded area is another trigger for the attack. Since their anxiety attacks are quite severe, an agoraphobic would not like to be stuck in a place where he or she could not get help or treatment immediately. The mere thought of that can produce an attack.

For a case to be called agoraphobia, it is important to take note of the past six months. Try to plot your episodes, take note of the intensity, and the symptoms. This would definitely be of help once you consult with an expert. You may also look at your family tree, and find ancestors or relatives who have the same case.

Now, let us go to the case of panic disorder. Before a certain case is validated as a disorder, the episodes should be re-current, intense, and it can cease the pursuant of an individual’s daily routine. The usual symptoms for panic are: difficulty of breathing, palpitations, profuse sweating, and dizziness. Sometimes, there are people who feel that they are going crazy or depersonalization.

For the panic disorder, there can be different triggers for this episode to surface. It does not necessarily mean that they are afraid of crowded spaces, or an area where it would be difficult to escape. For some, public speaking is a huge deal, and nervousness usually sets in before they talk in front of the audience. Some maybe caused by fear of spider, this one is called arachnophobia.

Hence, Panic Disorder and Agoraphobia is not vice versa. It does not necessarily mean that if you have panic disorder, that you automatically have agoraphobia. On the other hand, agoraphobics may have panic disorder. There are some patients who actually develop panic disorder due to agoraphobia.

For these two, the treatments are quite similar. I will be giving some simple tips that could actually lessen the cycle of your episodes. First, let’s go to your diet. If you are consuming too much sugar and caffeine, you are attracting another panic attack. These ingredients are uppers, making you vulnerable to anxiety. Consequently, cut out the sodas, sweets, chocolates, and coffee. You may also do substitutions. Like replacing your sugar with sweeteners, sweets with fruits, and decaffeinated coffee in replacement for your usual espresso.

Another substance that you have to avoid would be nicotine. So, if you are smoking you have to kick the habit. This, like sugar and caffeine, is also an upper. What we are doing here, is to lessen the triggers of your attack. As of now, experts haven’t found of an overnight solution for panic attacks. The treatment is in sessions, and would take a lot of time and effort from your end.

During the attack, there is simple breathing exercise you could do. According to doctors, people tend to lose oxygen and gain carbon dioxide during an attack. Hence, you must extend out breathe to release the carbon dioxide. To do this, you may simple hum or count, then inhale.

Also, you may distract yourself because concentrating on your agoraphobia and panic disorder would only make things worse. You may open the television or pop in your favourite cd, anything that would remove your focus on your symptoms.

Fear, panic, anxiety and embarrassment, these are the 4 major feelings or symptoms that a person with Agoraphobia mostly experiences. Basically, they have a fear of experiencing an anxiety or panic on a situation that is embarrassing or difficult to escape from. Another concrete example would be the idea of choking in front of a crowd or in the presence of strangers. We know that choking is not exactly the best reason for you to be known for. Moreover, the aid for choking demands another person, which can be a scene stealer.

The symptoms of agoraphobia can extend to fear of being in an elevator, being left home alone or leaving home. In these circumstances, the panic may surface in the idea of no escape in an elevator. While being left alone, is difficult for the sufferer because nobody might lend a help in time of a panic or anxiety attack.

Agoraphobia’s intensity varies from one person to another. There are some sufferers who live a normal life as they simply avoid the potential situations that may provoke their panic attack. On the other hand, people with severe form of Agoraphobia are home bound. These are the sufferers who completely avoid any kind of triggers or events that pushes their panic button.

These are the two major characteristics connected to Agoraphobia:

1.     People experience panic while thinking of being in a place, event or situation that is out of their comfort zone. Also, there is a fear of being trapped, where they perceive it would be embarrassing or difficult for them to escape from the situation.

2.     People steer clear of situations that might bring them panic or anxiety. It is their intense fear of anxiety that leads to Agoraphobia.

According to studies, there are about twice as many women than men who sufferers from agoraphobia. Most of the people with this disorder have undergone a stressful or traumatic event before they had their first experience of their panic or anxiety episode. In terms of age, the most common sufferers had their first experience of agoraphobia during their mid or late 20’s.

Often times, people with agoraphobia go through a phase where they feel that they are losing their mind or they are in the verge of being crazy. They have such feeling due to the overwhelming physical, emotional, mental and psychological effect of fears and anxiety. Accordingly, they seek for the help and advice of a mental health professional.

Another common incident that leads to diagnosis of Agoraphobia, is through the testimonials of a family member or a friend. Sometimes, the people around the sufferer notice a great reluctance to leaving home without a companion. For example, a wife might notice her husband usually seeks reason for not leaving home. Hence, the family member is urged to advice the sufferer to consult for professional help.

On the actual diagnosis, the mental health professional carefully takes note of the personal history of the client or patient. In diagnosing agoraphobia, laboratory test is no longer required to confirm a case nor physical conditions that must be met. However, the therapist must be careful not to overlook illnesses that might be similar, to a point that it mimics the psychological disorder. When the psychologist encounter doubt during the diagnosis, he / she can ask for the help of a physician, who has the authority and knowledge to execute a complete physical examination and laboratory tests.

Agoraphobia is serious but it can be treated. These are the following treatments that are commonly used to help the sufferers of this disorder:

Behavior Therapy, this is the kind of treatment that aims to modify and control the unwanted behavior. The sufferers are taught to cope with difficult scenarios, by exposing them to the actual situation but with control. This therapy is somewhat effective because the patient develops a feeling of being control in his / her life.

Cognitive Therapy, this intervention appeals on the cognitive aspect of the patient. The objective is to alter the sufferer’s harmful and unproductive thinking patterns. The sessions enable the person to reflect and examine his / her feelings, and be able to fish out realistic from unrealistic perceptions.

Cognitive-Behavior therapy or CBT is a combination of cognitive and behavior techniques. One of the perks of this intervention is its capacity to allow the patient to acquire recovery skills that he / she can utilize for a lifetime.

Relaxation Technique is effective in helping patients to empower them with ability to cope with the stress that may contribute to their fears. Also, it relieves the physical effects of phobia. Most of the techniques taught in this treatment are breathing exercise and other physical work-outs.

Other forms of therapy include Hypnotherapy, Neuro-Linguistic Programming or NLP and Energy Psychology. These are the new installments in the treatment arena of Agoraphobia. Bear in mind that this disorder is just an obstacle. You have the power to bring an end to it. There will come a time that you’d be able to enjoy life again and be freed from the symptoms of agoraphobia.

Having Agoraphobia is a double whammy since it is associated with another disorder called panic attack. A person who has this case is not comfortable to be in a rock concert, the peak hours of the underground, the airport, shopping mall or any assembly where there is a huge space and a lot of people. Hence, sufferers are often perceived as anti-social which is not actually the case.

Their fear is rooted from embarrassment. They are afraid to have a panic attack amidst an event and in front of many people. Also, they are thinking of “what-ifs” when they have an attack. For them, it would be difficult to find a place to hide in an open space.

Mostly, they just prefer to stay inside their homes where they feel face. Even the simple task of going to the grocery to buy the essentials is a difficult task for them. Travelling is also impossible because of their irrational fears regarding their panic attacks and embarrassment.

The usual treatment for this case is cognitive behaviour approach. One popular technique under this approach is cognitive restructuring. This focuses on replacing their irrational fears or beliefs with realistic information. It is actually greatly informational. A simple tactic that can do wonders for the sufferer.

Another treatment available for people with agoraphobia is Psycho-pharmaceutical approach. In this case, a person is given anti-depressants and other medication that would provide chemical balance to lessen their anxiety. Also, some counselling is applied too.

The most important part of treatment is determining whether you really have a case of Agoraphobia or not. This episode is characterized by fear of crowds, fear of public transportation, social isolation and panic attacks. A concrete example would be concert. People with agoraphobia often avoids this event because they are afraid that they might not escape successfully when their panic surfaces.

Panic attack usually surfaces during Agoraphobia. Its symptoms include palpitation, nervousness, difficulty of breathing, nausea, dizziness and trembling.  There are people who experience all of these symptoms while others only have a few. They even differ in their intensity.

The most important thing to do during this kind of attack is to control breathing. To do this, use a brown paper bag to cover your nose and mouth. This tactic will allow you to control the amount of air you are breathing. Just do breathe-in and breathe-out exercise for the panic to subside.  As an alternative to the brown paper bag, your cupped hands can also do the trick.

The technique that I have given you is first aid treatment for agoraphobia. It does not have the capacity to bring an end to the cycle of this episode. It’s best to consult an expert for you to receive the necessary treatment.

The treatment for Agoraphobia varies. Some experts would make use of psycho therapy, hypnosis, behaviour modification plus breathing exercise. Most of the solutions that will be given to you are combination. Possibly, breathing exercise would be an ad- on since it greatly helps patients to overcome the associated panic attacks.

Agoraphobia is an anxiety disorder that is triggered by a crowded or small space. People who have this condition experiences panic when they thing of the idea that they don’t have an escape. Most of the time, the panic starts with a difficulty of breathing then it escalates to trembling, nausea, dizziness or palpitations. The effect can sometimes be too intense that the victim has to be sent to the hospital to receive medication.

Similar to other anxiety disorder, Agoraphobia can be battled by proper diet and exercise. In the aspect of diet, it’s best to avoid food and drinks that are rich with caffeine and sugar. These ingredients tend to heighten one’s energy. Instead of having a rich brew, a person who suffers with Agoraphobia should have decaffeinated beverage instead. Moreover, instead of having sweets, fruits can be a perfect alternative.

Smoking should also be avoided. Nicotine also provides unnecessary energy that can make the body very vulnerable to panic attacks. On the other hand, exercise should be regularly observed, moving around and sweating makes use of your excess energy. This practice can also improve your breathing.

For a quick relief, the old tactic of breath-in breath-out is very effective. It’s best to use a small brown paper bag to control the air that you are inhaling. Simply breathe through this until you feel that the difficulty of breathing has subsided. If there is no paper bag in sight, you may use your cupped hands to block excess air, which will only make breathing more difficult.

There is no overnight solution for Agoraphobia. It’s a long battle but there is a huge chance of success.

People who suffer with panic and anxiety attacks often end up becoming agoraphobic to some extent. This phobia of ‘the outside’, is a reaction in which the phobic retreats into a space that he or she feels comfortable in.

I’ve always used agoraphobic type behaviour as a coping mechanism.  If things are too much for me I’ll often retreat, and stay indoors, or I’ll only do things that I feel safe doing.

The Secure Base (to use the title of the book by psychoanalyst Dr John Bowlby) doesn’t always have to be indoors.  It can be where someone lives, or it can be as big as a town or whatever boundaries the agoraphobic individual places on themselves.

And there is the crux of the matter, the individual chooses those boundaries, and through re-enforcing behaviour becomes unable to go outside of them, for fear of panic attacks.

My own experience with agoraphobia is pretty severe, I once spent over a year unable to go outside the apartment building I lived in.  I ‘recovered’ to an extent, but since then have often chosen to retreat to a space I feel secure in times of anxiety.