Agoraphobia

You'll have all heard of claustrophobia (fear of enclosed spaces), arachnophobia (fear of spiders) and astraphobia (the fear of thunder and lightning). But have you ever heard of agoraphobia? This literally means "the fear of the market place".

There are two types of agoraphobia:

Panic Disorder with Agoraphobia - People with this type of agoraphobia experience recurrent panic attacks related to their agoraphobia. This is the most common type of agoraphobia.

Agoraphobia without a History of Panic Disorder - This uncommon type occurs in people who have never experienced panic attacks.

Agoraphobia affects around 3.2million Americans (aged 18-54). Now, agoraphobia is not the fear of public spaces or open spaces, but sufferers are afraid of having a panic attack in a place where it might be difficult to escape, or they might embarass themselves.

Agoraphobics may be too scared to leave the house, or will only go to certain places that they deem 'safe' or with a 'safe' person. These are places and people where they feel safe and are more comfortable. For example, the sufferer may feel that they can only go to an aunt's house or that they can only leave the house with their sibling because these things are what they call 'safe'.

Some agoraphobics cannot use public transport or feel they cannot even make eye contact with a stranger. Agoraphobics usually avoid anywhere that they are more likely to have a panic attack or have already experienced a panic attack. Even though neither panic attacks nor agoraphobia are actually harmful, they can be very frightening, causing the sufferer to be constantly terrified of their symptoms.

This disorder can leave people housebound and unable to work or socialise. If this is happening to you, please seek medical help. Agoraphobia is a serious condition that needs to be taken more seriously by medical staff. It ruins people's lives and their livelihood, but it is a treatable disorder.