Overcoming Agoraphobia

Anxiety and agoraphobia are two of the most searched for terms related to mental health in the UK. On average the two terms are searched for 122,000 times a month on Google suggesting a large need for help with this area. Agoraphobia is typically found in up to 3% of the population. Mainly people aged 20-30 with it being twice as prevalent in women. But anyone can suffer from this regardless of age, sex or gender. Under the 5th edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, agoraphobia is defined as a condition where individuals have a disproportionate fear of public places. People often see environments as too crowded, too open and too dangerous. These judgments are usually about a fear of becoming ill or hurt, or a fear of public scrutiny or embarrassment like falling over and being made fun of. Agoraphobia is classified as an anxiety disorder and is often seen as symptoms of panic and distress which interferes with someone’s day to day living. As a result, people become isolated, end up needing to rely on others too much and stop leaving the house. People often ask about the why. Why is this happening? Why me? What causes this? In essence there is not a single cause of agoraphobia as it has been linked to chemical or hormonal imbalances in the brain and body, certain personality types particularly in people who need significant amounts of control or approval, it can be learned from role models who display excessive control or fear themselves. In ad...
Source: Psych Central - Category: Psychiatry Authors: Tags: Agoraphobia Anxiety Panic Disorder Exposure Therapy Panic Attack Source Type: news