How to Deal with Agoraphobia and Anxiety Attacks?

Agoraphobia is thought to arise as a complication of panic attacks. Agoraphobia steals people’s lives to the extent that some people become so afraid to leave the safety of their home. Sufferers of this kind of anxiety disorder shy away from open spaces such as the mall or cinema, because they perceive there is no place to hide for safety. Statistics reveal that agoraphobia is more common in women than men, and happens between the ages of 20 to 40. It is known that more than 2% of the US population suffers from agoraphobia, and this amounts to more than 3 million adults.

Generally, agoraphobic sufferers have experienced a panic attack in a particular situation, and they will avoid it at all costs because they fear another attack. There are a few theories that explain the cause of this anxiety disorder. One of them states that when a person is repeatedly exposed to situations that trigger anxiety, he or she can develop this kind of phobia. Other theories blame it on mental struggles that leave a person feeling unfulfilled in life, mostly related to the Oedipal complex. Yet, there are many other factors that point the finger at genes and say that this type of phobia runs in families. Apart from that, substance abuse is known to provoke agoraphobia. Misuse of sleeping pills, mainly benzodiazepines, and tranquilizers can cause this type of anxiety attack.

There a several symptoms of agoraphobia that can be identified. The most common one is when people begin fearing that they are going to face a panic attack and firmly believe that an escape is almost impossible or extremely threatening. What is worse, they tend to have a terrible fear of dying and feel totally out of control of their emotions. This feeling is generally accompanied by dizziness, diarrhea and overpowering fear. Besides that, agoraphobia sufferers also tend to have rapid heartbeat and terrible feelings of confusion in terms of direction and position. Agoraphobic people are prone to face sudden panic attacks when they are in situations or locations that they fear. This panic attack usually lasts for about 15 minutes, and could go on for more than half an hour in severe cases, but this happens very rarely. During this time, sufferers can experience shortness of breath, sweating, trembling hands and body as well as nausea.

People who suffer from these panic disorders as a result of agoraphobia can take heart that not all hope is lost. There are a number of ways of treatment that patients can seek. The most common, and probably the most effective, is the cognitive behavior treatment. In this kind of treatment, patients can seek either systematic desensitization treatment or exposure treatment where they are exposed to the panic causing situations until anxiety abates. Another way is through cognitive restructuring where rational and positive beliefs are fed into the person’s mind to replace irrational perceptions. Besides that, they can also undergo psycho pharmaceutical medical remedy which involves the use of antidepressants. Other simpler ways to overcome panic attacks and agoraphobia is to learn simple relaxation techniques and join support groups to share experiences and encourage one another. Of course, needless to say, exercise and a healthy diet is a must.

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If you are suffering from generalized anxiety disorder and feel depressed all the time, then you should talk to your doctor about the possibility of taking anxiety medicine. There are many ways to treat and manage anxiety and the most popular ones are the use of anxiety medicine and the various therapies such as the Cognitive-Behavioral therapy (CBT), the Exposure therapy, and the Psychoanalytic therapy. If you get a recommendation by a health professional, you should take part in such therapies since most of them are beneficial for the anxiety disorder sufferers. The main goal of such therapies is to replace your negative thoughts with realistic thoughts, lessen your worries and thus reduce your stress levels.

However, in some cases the effects can be relatively short-term and you might consider other options in order to manage your worries and fears. One such option is the anxiety medicine treatment. You should never take these medications on your own – always consult with a medical professional and once you both agreed on the use of medicaments, follow his instructions to the letter.

What kind of anxiety medications is available and how can they help you if you are a sufferer?

The medications can be divided into four major groups:

Tricyclic anti-depressants are mostly prescribed to people that suffer from panic disorder. You might be suffering from anxiety (panic) disorder if you experience frequent and intense panic attacks. These have symptoms, similar to a heart attack, and can be quite frightening. Once you have consulted with your physician and have been diagnosed with panic disorder, then you might talk to him about the possibility of managing your condition with tricyclic anti-depressants. Different types of this group of drugs are also used for treating depression and obsessive compulsive disorder, but even though they are some of the most often prescribed in some cases their side effects might outweigh their benefits.

Benzodiazepines (called “benzo” for short) is actually the most prescribed drugs to anxiety sufferers and are also given to people that suffer from seizures, insomnia, alcohol withdrawal, and other conditions. They in turn can be divided into short, medium and longer-acting and the latter are used for treating anxiety disorders. The effect of the drug is that they lower the GABA (Gamma-Amino Butyric Acid) levels and thus inhibit and thus reduces excitability.

Serotonin-specific reuptake inhibitor (SSRIs) is a class of medications, used for treating personality disorders, depressions, insomnia, as well as anxiety disorders since the 1980s. The different anxiety disorders that they are used to manage are the panic disorders, OCD, social anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, and others. They work by increasing the serotonin levels, which in turn heightens the sending of nerve impulses.

Serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) are mainly prescribed to patients that suffer from severe depression, mood disorders, and various other disorders like anxiety disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), OCD, and others. They work by increasing the norepinephrine and serotonin levels, which are two of the main neurotransmitters that influence the mood. The SNRIs are more widely used than the SSRIs, even though they have been introduced after them, and are believed to have stronger antidepressant effect.

When treating your anxiety you should always talk to a medical professional, you might want to try a few therapies first and learn a few ways to manage your anxiety levels on your own. However, if you determine that none of these measures is effective, then you should ask your doctor about the available medication and take them the prescribed way. As with almost all other medications, you must be aware that there are side effects that might harm your health – take that into consideration too.

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The fear of an anxiety attack by itself can trigger an attack. This is true as reported by many anxiety disorder patients and after resolving the “meta” fear, most reported an immediate cessation of anxiety attacks.

Learn how to get rid of the "meta" fear, and you will be able to naturally prevent anxiety attacks.