Agoraphobia

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steve30

steve30

Veteran
Location
Rotherham, South Yorkshire
Just wondering if anyone has a cure for agoraphobia?

I had this problem for ages but it has got worse recently and has a tendency to affect the amount of walking and cycling that I do.

Much as I like exercise, I'm one of those people for whom it doesn't improve mood/anxiety. In fact, sometimes it makes it worse.

Got some new anxiety medications from the Doctor the other week so maybe that will help a bit.
 
Darren Jeffrey

Darren Jeffrey

Über Member
Location
Newmains
What meds did they give you? I've struggled with anxiety and depression for years and at the start of this year was starting to have agoraphobic tendencies as I was constantly worried about being in a situation where I could potentially have a panic attack and not have an escape route. In my mind the safest place was my house. I'd even get anxious crossing the front door in the morning to go to work. It was horrible.

I tried everything from counseling, CBT, hypnotherapy but eventually succumbed to medicating for it. That was 6 months ago and I've got to say my life has improved beyond my wildest dreams. 6 months ago I would never have considered cycling the 8 miles to work but I do now. I sleep Bette, more happier and just back to my old self.

Just give the meds some time (I'm fluoxetine by the way) and I'm sure it will get better

Good luck
 
ColinJ

ColinJ

Puzzle game procrastinator!
Location
Todmorden - Yorks/Lancs border
I suffered very badly from agoraphobia in my early 20s after dropping out of university. I was unemployed for a long time after that and it was only when my dad finally snapped and told me to get a job or get out that I forced myself out of the house.

I got a job as a factory labourer and did a lot of overtime. It was hard physical graft and I found that the harder I worked, the less anxious I was. I also started running in my lunch breaks and swimming after work so I got really fit.

I am not a doctor, so don't just drop your medication without discussing it with her/him, but ... I think that discovering and sorting out the reasons for your anxiety is the way forward rather than just masking the problem with drugs. I basically self-medicated with alcohol for several years which definitely relaxed me, but to the extent that I wasn't interested in doing anything else. Not the answer ...

I am surprised that cycling isn't helping you. It might be that you are not riding in the right places? I certainly wouldn't recommend riding on busy roads to anybody suffering from an anxiety problem like agoraphobia.

I still do not like crowds and can get anxious in certain situations, but I am a lot better now than I was 30 years ago. These problems can be sorted out - you just need help to find what works for you. Good luck, Steve!
 
OP
OP
steve30

steve30

Veteran
Location
Rotherham, South Yorkshire
What meds did they give you? I've struggled with anxiety and depression for years and at the start of this year was starting to have agoraphobic tendencies as I was constantly worried about being in a situation where I could potentially have a panic attack and not have an escape route. In my mind the safest place was my house. I'd even get anxious crossing the front door in the morning to go to work. It was horrible.
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I had Escitalopram for about 18 months and recently changed to Sertraline. I found the escitalopram helped a lot with mood, and helped the anxiety a bit, but it got a lot worse over the last few months.


I am not a doctor, so don't just drop your medication without discussing it with her/him, but ... I think that discovering and sorting out the reasons for your anxiety is the way forward rather than just masking the problem with drugs. I basically self-medicated with alcohol for several years which definitely relaxed me, but to the extent that I wasn't interested in doing anything else. Not the answer ...
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Hehe. Unfortunately, I have been unable to find a cause of the anxiety. I think I am just very prone to it for some reason. I always have been the anxious and easily upset type.

My chemist jokingly recommended alcohol as a cure :biggrin:. I suppose a little may help, but I stay away from it as a general rule.

I am surprised that cycling isn't helping you. It might be that you are not riding in the right places? I certainly wouldn't recommend riding on busy roads to anybody suffering from an anxiety problem like agoraphobia.
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I've never really found exercise to help with anxiety unfortunately. Sometimes I feel better, sometimes I feel worse. Seems to be pot luck really. I do tend to prefer quiet roads and use them more often than the busy ones.
 
Rohloff_Brompton_Rider

Rohloff_Brompton_Rider

Formerly just_fixed
Cbt or more precisely ccbt......computerised cognitive behaviour therapy. Your gp will give you "voucher" which is essentially password for online access. It' a well proven and evidence based therapy approach. Also there is the flood approach and graded exposure, if You google those terms you'll get plenty of websites that'll explain them.

This website is very useful but more aimed at us pro's


http://www.getselfhelp.co.uk/
 
Darren Jeffrey

Darren Jeffrey

Über Member
Location
Newmains
bromptonfb said:
Cbt or more precisely ccbt......computerised cognitive behaviour therapy. Your gp will give you "voucher" which is essentially password for online access. It' a well proven and evidence based therapy approach. Also there is the flood approach and graded exposure, if You google those terms you'll get plenty of websites that'll explain them.

This website is very useful but more aimed at us pro's


http://www.getselfhelp.co.uk/
Click to expand...

I'd heard good things about CBT but found in my experience that I couldn't follow through with all the exercises etc as I was in such a negative place. The meds have given me a clearer mind which in turn helps me to focus on things like CBT
 
OP
OP
steve30

steve30

Veteran
Location
Rotherham, South Yorkshire
CBT never really appealed to me. Same with other self help stuff.

I find so called self help either suggests doing things that I do anyway, or suggests things that I know will either not help or will make it worse.
 
The Jogger

The Jogger

Legendary Member
Location
Spain
I use to get bad panic attacks for years at 23 after the loss of a parent. I medicated with alcohol but this magnified the attacks so I gave that up, eventually. I still had the attacks but a bit more manageable the along came my daughter and I focussed my fears on her, worrying about cot death and all that stuff which was having a high media profile at the time. My self centered fears seemed to leave me along with the panic attacks.
 
M

Mad Doug Biker

Just a damaged guy.
Location
Craggy Island
I'm not a sufferer, but because I am not doing anything much at the moment, I never have to leave the house much, so I can go for days on end, weeks even without ever going through the front door.
When I do, wow, what a novelty!! (And invariably something has changed).

It is a strange existence and I wouldn't recommend you do it for too long, getting out and about is still the best cure 'fraid. :thumbsup:
 
Andrew_P

Andrew_P

In between here and there
You need to keep exposing yourself in a small doses and then when comfortable with that level move it out again. You have not mentioned what the fear is (if you know it) or if it is genralized anxiety?

Medication will take a while to kick in. Relaxaion is the difficult thing to learn as you sound like you may well be anxious and it keeps going round.

CBT is helpful, as is learning basic relaxation techniques.

With all the NHS mental health support and or private you have to have an open mind, I was blown away when I first went to one, just the relaxation technique was a revelation that first 15-30 minutes of feeling normal again gave me the hope to come out of it, so do not write anything off because "you know" it wont work. Although I had to get pretty desparate to have given it a try to be fair.
 
Lee_M

Lee_M

Guru
I am not a doctor, so don't just drop your medication without discussing it with her/him, but ... I think that discovering and sorting out the reasons for your anxiety is the way forward rather than just masking the problem with drugs. I basically self-medicated with alcohol for several years which definitely relaxed me, but to the extent that I wasn't interested in doing anything else. Not the answer ...​
Hehe. Unfortunately, I have been unable to find a cause of the anxiety. I think I am just very prone to it for some reason. I always have been the anxious and easily upset type.

My chemist jokingly recommended alcohol as a cure :biggrin:. I suppose a little may help, but I stay away from it as a general rule.
Click to expand...

ive never found any sort of theray to help my in my anxiety/depression, and even my GP thinks its just something I'm prone to.

However I have found relaxation meditation helps massively.

I have used a website called http://www.getsomeheadspace.com/. Its free to try, and I never found the need to pay for anything further - you can also use it on an iphone - give it a try - its nothing clever or psycho it just helps you relax and forget about your troubles

good luck
 
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