Agoraphobia is an anxiety disorder characterized by fear or panic in situations or places where the person perceives that he/she may suffer an anxiety attack, where it is difficult to escape or where help may not be available, and avoidance of those places or situations.
In the agoraphobia it ends up generating “fear to be afraid” and avoidance that is usually generalized to more and more situations. It usually occurs after the person has suffered an anxiety crisis or panic disorder, being associated with places or situations where he/she experienced the discomfort or those that he/she perceives as more inescapable and starting to avoid them. Avoidance is what distinguishes panic disorder from agoraphobia.
What causes agoraphobia?
In agoraphobia disorder, intense fear and anxiety appear in at least two of the following situations: using public transportation, being in open or enclosed spaces, in lines, in crowds, or alone outside the home.
Also, an intense fear of “putting on a show” in front of others may appear, and here another fear would appear. The fear of making a fool of oneself. Patients with agoraphobia disorder find this very overwhelming.
People with agoraphobia tend to avoid places that may provoke fear, although if they are accompanied they may feel safer, thus creating a relationship of dependence.
What symptoms can we identify?
Fear is an emotion that appears when we approach a feared situation. In agoraphobia it is very difficult to maintain a rational thought pattern, since the fear that originates it is purely irrational.
This discomfort generated by fear causes avoidance behavior in these situations.
In agoraphobia disorder, all or several of the following physiological symptoms can be identified:
- Tachycardia.
- Tremors.
- Dizziness.
- Dizziness.
- Tingling.
- sweating
- difficulty breathing
- fainting
- vomiting
- Palpitations, etc.
Psychological symptoms are related to fear of losing control such as:
- “I’m going to faint”.
- “I’m going to get dizzy”.
- “I’m going to put on a show”.
- “No one is going to help me.”
- “I’m going to have a heart attack.
- “I’m going crazy.
What is the treatment for agoraphobia?
Agoraphobia disorder is successfully treated with the help of a specialist in psychology.
Through psychotherapy, specific skills can be learned to better tolerate anxiety, cope with worries in a direct manner, and thus gradually resume activities that have been avoided due to anxiety. Symptoms will improve as they build on the initial progress.
What guidelines can the patient follow in his or her daily life?
In agoraphobia the guidelines we should follow are to face the feared situations gradually, that is, little by little. If the fear has been developing over a long period of time, we must be aware that the treatment may take a long time until the initial confidence is regained.
The person suffering from agoraphobia disorder will have to face the situation of going for a walk, shopping, taking the subway, etc. every day. He/she will have to face in stages each of the situations that frighten him/her. First, the easier ones, leaving the more difficult ones for the end, until the confidence that has been lost is achieved.
We must know and have foreseen the way to face it, since at the beginning we will feel fear. It does not mean that we have to force the situation until we feel maximum levels of anxiety, but to know that we are going to experience it. Not to be frightened by it and also to know that it is the key to the treatment.
We must also work with a professional on the schemas, beliefs or conflicts that are at the base of the disorder. For this, a detailed and detailed evaluation is necessary.
In summary:
1. To face every day the feared situations, as if we were training a sport.
2. Start with the situations that are less difficult, and then face the difficult ones.
3. Do not forget that it is natural to feel fear, do not be frightened by it because it is key to achieve the goal.
4. Avoid depending on other people. Think that you can do it alone.
5. Work on the conflicts, schemas and beliefs that are at the base of the disorder.
Has Covid-19 increased the cases of agoraphobia?
After the crisis caused by the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic, cases of anxiety, depression, panic disorders and phobias increased. After the current situation we begin to face an increase in mental illnesses such as anxiety and depression and, of course, agoraphobia.
We may feel fear, sadness, anger, emotions that are not usually pleasant, but are necessary to survive and guide us in our needs and actions.
After this situation of Covid -19 a small degree of anxiety may appear for a while. But in this situation it is adaptive and functional, because it helps us to prevent the contagion of many people. In some specific cases, these worries occupy so much space in our mind that they can end up slowing down our daily life.
This anxiety can appear and overwhelm us when we are in crowded spaces, agglomerations or even taking public transport. If this fear were to turn into panic, a panic disorder with agoraphobia could develop.
This situation would lead the sufferer to avoid situations or to perform behaviors with certain security such as being hypervigilant, going to places where there are not many people, going to less densely populated areas, etc. In short, being in a continuous tension.
In other words, by wanting to prevent a problem (COVID-19 contagion) creating another problem.
Has Covid-19 led to the appearance of agoraphobia in people?
Beyond the damage that Covid-19 may have caused in the organism, the truth is that the measures we have used to contain it have caused damage to mental health that is not always indicated.
Experts point out that the fear of contagion, together with the measures to protect ourselves (confinement), have been the factors that have most influenced the increase in cases of agoraphobia, as well as obsessive-compulsive disorder and depression.