By Simon CrabbAgoraphobia is serious yet treatable. According to experts, it is caused by a combination of different factors, such as biological and environmental effects. In this article I will be discussing a possible treatment for agoraphobia. It might not be an overnight solution, but the effects would be long-term freedom.
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.