Agoraphobia
Megan Bullen
Period 1
Agoraphobia is an anxiety caused by fear of open spaces because you feel
like you can’t get out fast enough.
These places are usually public and have large crowds such as elevators,
sporting events, lines, bridges, public transportation, driving, shopping
malls and airplanes.
“Agoraphobia” literally means fear of the marketplace.
It is an anxiety disorder that is half phobia and half panic disorder.
Background Information
Symptoms
• Agoraphobia often accompanies another anxiety disorder,
such as panic disorder or a specific phobia.
• If it occurs with panic disorder, it usually starts in a person's
20s, and women are affected more often than men.
• If you have agoraphobia, you usually have difficulty breathing,
chest pains, dizziness, sweating, nausea, vomiting, numbness,
and tingling.
• Though depression is not technically a symptom, 50% of
people with agoraphobia also experience depression.
Causes
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People usually develop Agoraphobia
from being alone in a house for a
long time, feeling detached from
others, feeling helpless, or feeling like
they or the environment doesn’t
exist.
Frequently, people report that the
onset of their agoraphobia followed a
stressful or traumatic event in their
lives.
Feeling like you can’t get help causes
panic attacks.
No one knows for sure what causes
agoraphobia, but there are several
theories.
• It could be genetic.
• It's also thought that
chemical imbalances are the
reason.
Diagnoses
• People diagnosed also
experience confusion,
heavy and rapid heart
beating, and
lightheadedness.
• To be diagnosed, you have
to meet the criteria of a
Panic Disorder.
– Anxiety
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Prevention may not be possible.
There are three main types of
treatment : Therapy, medications,
and a combination of both.
Systematic desensitization is a
technique used to treat phobias. You
are asked to relax, and then imagine
the things that cause the anxiety,
working from the least fearful to the
most fearful.
Medications and therapy have been
found helpful, but the cure usually
comes from confronting your fears.
Behavior and cognitive therapy are
the treatments of choice for
agoraphobia.
– Research suggests that an
effective cognitive-behavioral
recovery program takes 12-16
weeks to significantly reduce
anxiety and panic symptoms.
If panic accompanies the
agoraphobia, people are sometimes
referred for a brief course of a
prescribed medication, such as an
anti-anxiety medication.
Treatment
Meds
• Medication does not offer a cure.
• The most common medications
prescribed for agoraphobia are
benzodiazepines (Xanax, Ativan,
Valium) and SSRI anti-depressants
(Paxil, Prozac, Lexapro, Zoloft).
• However, medication stops
working when you stop taking it
and some medications can be
addictive or have bad side effects.
Americans and Agoraphobia
• 3.2 million Americans
have agoraphobia.
• Less than one percent
(1%) of the population
of the United States is
thought to have
agoraphobia.
Notable People with Agoraphobia
•Woody Allen (1935-), American actor, director, musician.[22]
•Kim Basinger (1953-), American Actress.[23]
•Dane Cook (1972-) American comedian.
•Paula Deen (1947-), American Chef.[24]
•Philip K. Dick (1928-1982), American science fiction writer.
•William Gibson (1948-), science-fiction author.[25]
•H.L. Gold (1914-1996), science fiction editor; as a result of trauma during his wartime
experiences, his agoraphobia became so severe that for more than two decades he was
unable to leave his apartment. Towards the end of his life he acquired some control over
the condition.[26]
•Daryl Hannah (1960-), American actress.[27]
•Howard Hughes (1905-1976), American aviator, industrialist, film producer and
philanthropist.[28]
•Olivia Hussey (1951-), Anglo-Argentine Actress. [29] [30]
•Rose McGowan (1973-), American Actress. [31]
•Robert Pattinson British Actor [32]
•Bolesław Prus (1847–1912), Polish journalist and novelist.[33]
•Peter Robinson (1962-), British musician known simply as Marilyn.[34]