Have i got agoraphobia? im 15 years old.?
it was last minute so i was rushing about getting ready, the party was about 5 miles away from home. when i got in the car i felt slightly sick but i pushed myself to go anyway. when i got to where the party was my mum pulled up outside and i got out and started to walk towards the front door, i was half way there and had to rush back to the car because i felt so sick. i really wanted to go to the party and i was so frustrated that i could'nt go.i can compfortably go out in my own village with friends. i think i feel more compfortable when i turn up to the destination with a friend (i was alone turning up to this particlular party). now that im home i dont feel sick at all. what is up with me???
Tips for dealing with agoraphobia?
I, too, have severe agoraphobia. I know what you're going through. I, too, cancel appointments. It's very difficult for me to go in. Is there someone that can go with you? Do all of the talking for you while you go and sit where no one is sitting? If it is that bad, surely they have prescribed you with xanax or something of the sort. I have to have mine in order to even think about going.... I also find that it is easier if the doctor can see me that day because I stress so badly before the appointment. Let your doctor know that it might help if they could work you in on the days that you feel you can just go...even though those days are limited!!
What is the impact agoraphobia has on society?
I have social phobia. When it was bad I couldn't leave the house for fear of embarrassment or a difficult situation where I couldn't escape, causing me to have a panic attack. Agoraphobics will not leave the house for general fear of a panic attack in public. Translated from Greek, it means "fear of the marketplace". As for society, I have very little impact - only welfare until I can return to work. My doctor has ordered me to choose work carefully or I could end up in hospital. I know it doesn't help much, but I wanted to clear things up a bit
Agoraphobia... might be going on a vacation?
I think the entrapped feeling of not being able to go home is what gets most people, actually. Hell, even people without agoraphobia can be very bothered by this. If, and I'm talking absolute worst case scenario, if it came to it, you could go home. You could have a shorter trip, whatever. I think if you keep that in mind, you should enjoy yourself, because you won't feel so trapped. Also if you can take things with to make where you're staying a little more like home, it would definately help.
What does it feel like to be agoraphobic?
Horrible. Absolutely horrible.From my experience, I was never not aware of my situation. There could be moments, like let’s say playing an online video game with friends I made through the game, where you lose yourself and would feel normal. But inevitably either the game ends, or someone asks about your personal life (in a shoot-the-breeze, friendly manner, like normal people do), and then that moment crashes back to reality and you realize exactly where you are…who you are.It made me bitter and hateful. I was jealous of everyone living their normal lives, and here I am stuck in this eternal loop, with no idea how to fix myself. I knew something was wrong, everyone who knew me knew something was wrong, but addressing it and treating it was the 1,000 pound elephant in the room. Other than video games as an anonymous player X, I was entirely antisocial. My friends had moved on with their lives, started families and careers; and to my own family, I was a nightmare to interact with. As badly as I wanted help, I couldn’t explain it. I didn’t know what was wrong with me, and it was literally sickening to try to discuss it - or most anything else - in a face to face conversation.While laying in bed I would stare at the corner of my room where the wall meets the ceiling, thinking how many times - how many years - I have sat and stared at this corner and had my thoughts of how much I hated myself and my life. How much I wanted to die and never have to stare at this corner again. How I have to figure out how to fix my life and move on, only to be staring at that same spot, for another day out of the hundreds just like it, feeling like a failure.There’s more: the missed funerals of loved ones and literal sickness on a daily basis, the damaged relationships and missed opportunities. But I think one can grasp the general idea of what my life was like.I’m fortunate to have moved on, and feel obliged to tell my story, because I know right now there are people who are struggling through this, or know someone who is. I’ve turned my life around, was able to make amazing friends, get an education and travel the world. You can move on, you can live the life you never thought possible. You’re not alone.
What is it like having severe agoraphobia, to the point where you are homebound?
It’s scary, and you slide into it slowly. You’re nervous about driving; you may hit someone and kill them. Better to stay home and not hurt anyone. Then you get scared to go to market; I look awful, I’ll just get my groceries delivered today.Before you know it, you’re checking outside to make sure none of your neighbors are out before you take the bin to the street. Unexpected calls terrify you. You don’t even answer the phone for your friends; they can text you. You hate going to the mailbox; either someone will want to talk to you, or it’s a letter saying I owe someone thousands of dollars.Then your brain convinces you, “Hey, you spent all this money making your ‘nest’ comfortable! Why do you need to leave?”And that’s how it happened to me….