A good friend called me and told me about an experience that recently caused her a breakdown: about half a year ago, she was afraid of taking the elevator. As soon as she approached the elevator, she began to feel inexplicably anxious, with obvious dizziness, palpitation, difficu

A friend called me and told me about an experience that recently caused her a breakdown:

She was afraid of taking the elevator about half a year ago. As soon as she approached the elevator, she began to feel inexplicably anxious, with obvious dizziness, palpitation, difficulty breathing and other reactions. In severe cases, she felt like she was about to faint. Due to this strong sense of fear and painful experience, no matter where she goes, no matter how high the building is, she avoids elevators and will choose to climb the stairs. Although she is tired, she is not afraid. At the same time, my friend did not dare to go shopping or eat in a restaurant. He panicked whenever he went to a crowded place and always wanted to be alone...

(Source: Internet)

Before his friend could finish speaking, I was thinking in my mind whether she was suffering from agoraphobia? I suggested she go to the hospital for a checkup. After a series of tests, my friend was diagnosed with agoraphobia.

Some people may ask: Are you afraid of going shopping? Stay away from crowded places? Isn’t your friend suffering from social phobia? What is the difference between agoraphobia and social phobia? Isn’t it all about avoiding social interaction?

But this is not the case. Place phobia and social phobia are two completely different anxiety disorders.

The main characteristic of social phobia is a "marked and persistent fear" when you are in public places or interacting with people. For more knowledge about social phobia, we have published in "How to tell whether you are "social phobia" or "introvert"? 》 has been introduced in detail in the article. Interested friends can click on the blue words to learn about it for themselves.

Today, let’s talk about what exactly is place phobia.

What is agoraphobia?

Is agoraphobia just a fear of taking elevators or going to crowded places? No, no.

People with agoraphobia will have unusual fear or anxiety reactions in a variety of scenes (such as taking public transportation, crowded times, or open places, etc.), often accompanied by dizziness, sweating, palpitation, and difficulty breathing. and other symptoms. And they also know that this fear reaction is unnecessary and abnormal, but it is difficult to control the fear caused by these places.

They will deliberately avoid places that make them fearful in order to reduce anxiety, but this avoidance also affects their social circle and inhibits what should be a wonderful life.

I believe someone will ask after reading this: Is there such a disease that affects food, clothing, housing and transportation? Even if it exists, it’s rare!

In fact, the prevalence rate of agoraphobia is 0.6% to 6%, and the average age of onset is 17 years old. Two-thirds of patients develop the disease before the age of 35, with more women than men.

Good Mood has summarized 3 forms of place phobia for you:

1. Fear of open places

People with place phobia will have fear when passing through open places, accompanied by strong anxiety. Therefore, patients are afraid of wearing clothes. Crossing the wilderness, in severe cases, even afraid to cross streets, bridges, courtyards and corridors.

2. Fear of confined places

People with agoraphobia will have fear in relatively crowded and confined spaces. For example, they are afraid of taking elevators, subways, and entering movie theaters.

3. Fear of transportation

People with agoraphobia are often afraid of taking public transportation. Such as buses, trains, subways, airplanes, etc.

You can also use the knowledge points in the picture below to distinguish whether you just have fear or are suffering from agoraphobia?

What should I do if I suffer from agoraphobia?

Asophobia is a type of anxiety disorder. The treatment principles for anxiety disorders should be followed, emphasizing the full course of the disease and comprehensive treatment. The main treatments include psychotherapy and medication, which can be used alone or in combination. Place phobia should be treated mainly with behavioral therapy and drug combination.

1. Psychotherapy

Behavioral therapy is the preferred method for treating place phobia. Systematic desensitization therapy or exposure therapy to the feared environment has a good effect on phobia.

You must have the courage to "Know that there are tigers in the mountains, and go to the tiger mountains". If you want to bravely go out, you can start activities near home and gradually move to some distant places; you can start activities with family members first, and gradually move to a People can move. In short, you can't always think about hiding at home. Only by stepping out can you overcome this fear. Of course, this process also needs to be done step by step.

(Source: Internet)

At the same time, cognitive behavioral therapy is also recommended in clinical guidelines as the first-line psychological treatment for place phobia. It is generally performed once a week, with 12 to 18 consecutive treatments, often lasting at least 3 months.

2. Medication treatment

Medication treatment is also an important treatment method for agoraphobia, which can help patients reduce anxiety and depression. It should be noted that you need to go to the hospital for a clear diagnosis and take medication under the guidance of a doctor.

Anti-anxiety drugs are fast-acting and are very effective for severe panic or anxiety in emergency situations (such as alprazolam , lorazepam , etc.).

Antidepressants have a therapeutic effect on patients with agoraphobia who are not depressed but often have panic attacks .

To deal with place phobia, you can also do this in daily life:

1. Positive self-suggestion

Understanding fear is an instinctive reaction of people. It is necessary to rationally confirm the safety of the surrounding environment and learn to calm down slowly from fear. You can take about 10 minutes a day and say loudly to yourself in the mirror: "I believe that I can easily overcome irrational fears!" Repeat this many times, and carefully experience the changes that have occurred in your heart. Find out if you believe this.

2. Dare to practice boldly, dare to contact a variety of places, hone in practice, and improve psychological quality through contact.

3. Learn to divert attention. Move away from the object of fear and move on to other aspects.

4. Express yourself more often in public, fully demonstrate your talents, and let others see your shining points.

References:

[1] Hao Wei, Lu Lin. Psychiatry. 8th Edition. Beijing: People's Medical Publishing House. 2018.

[2] National Health Commission. Standards for Diagnosis and Treatment of Mental Disorders (2020 Edition)