Panic Attacks - How Can I Overcome My Agoraphobia and What Are My Treatments? By Bertil Hjert At Isnare.com Ezine Articles

Treating agoraphobia is difficult because you have to face your fears and who wants to do that?

The best way to confront it is a two-part program called cognitive behavior therapy. Cognitive behavior therapy seeks to help you understand the origins of your fear and face that fear head on.

By learning the factors that trigger your particular panic attacks and how to control them you can work with breathing exercises and relaxation techniques to help you battle through the symptoms or prevent them altogether.

Another part of therapy is facing your fears head on. If you are afraid to go to the supermarket, then you need to go but go with a safe person. The person you go with will be there for reassurance and to help you if you experience panic symptoms. Simply knowing that you have assistance if something were to happen is often enough to prevent a panic attack.

As time goes by you go to more and more places and realize that panic attacks are either not as severe or not occurring at all. You can then wean yourself from the safe person that has been accompanying you. Your mind and body have been trained and have learned that fears don´t come true and that anxiety can be diminished or go away entirely over time.

Addressing your panic attacks is the key to either preventing agoraphobia or managing and eliminating it if it has already developed. Good ways to cope and care for yourself while dealing with this disorder include:

1. Don´t avoid fearful situations. The more you avoid fearful situations, the more you enforce that fear. Try to go to places that cause anxiety or fear because by confronting that fear your mind realizes, that the place or situation that seemed so fearful really isn´t.

2. Learn calming skills. Taking yoga, participating in meditating, learning relaxation or deep breathing techniques can all be helpful in terms of getting your mind and body in a place where it is not responding as forcefully to anxiety producing situations.

3. Practice relaxation techniques. Relaxation techniques include yoga, meditation and breathing but also include imagery techniques and positive thought redirection.

4. Find Support. Talk to people about what you´re going through, you may realize that there are more people than you thought struggling with fear, anxiety, panic attacks and agoraphobia. Support groups are also a great help.

5. Avoid alcohol and illegal drugs. A lot of people who suffer from agoraphobia turn to excessive alcohol or illegal drug use to ease the disturbing feelings that they have to cope with every day.

You need to change your lifestyle, your habits and even some of your thought processes to make an impact and change your life.

Agoraphobia treatment can include both medications and therapy or it can be treated with just therapy alone. If you´re on prescription medication, follow the instructions and take them as directed. The drugs that you might have been prescribed include Prozac, Paxil or Zoloft.

Even if you have a prescription, more likely than not, it will not be the cure all you were looking for. The problem with drugs is that they have side effects and can eventually trigger dependency issues. However, for some people with acute problems, they may be the only answer to get short term relief.

Relief over the long-term comes from changing your lifestyle and your thinking to better enable you to confront the situations that inspire such fear and anxiety and walk through the anxiety, realizing that you can handle it and come out the other side.

Once both your body and mind realize that you can survive and manage the panic, the fear of them lessens, the need for avoidance decreases, the stresses and anxiety naturally diminish and you will find yourself able to go places and do things you weren´t able to before without having an attack or even worrying that you are going to have one.

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