Advances in the understanding and treatment of Agoraphobia have been made since the days when my mother suffered from it most severely. I feel that back then, the doctors failed to understand the condition, and the few times she actually consulted with a psychiatric specialist they simply talked about what might be wrong, but failed to provide any actual help or support.
Now the treatment for agoraphobia will almost invariably involve psychotherapy. To be more specific, a type of therapy known as cognitive behaviour therapy, commonly referred to as CBT. In addition anti-depressants and anti-anxiety medicines can also be used to help relieve the symptoms of agoraphobia.
It is my understanding that in recent years, cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) has achieved some success in treating people with agoraphobia. It works on the principle that the way you feel is in part dependent on the way you perceive things. In earlier posts we looked at how an agoraphobic will think that a panic attack will occur if they are in a certain environment outside of their comfort zone. Cognitive delivered exposure is designed to put the person into the very situation they are afraid of, but with support, so that they can live through the situation with the realisation that their fear was in fact unfounded.
Many psychologists describe agoraphobic thought and behaviour as a vicious circle. This occurs because the person is afraid that if they put themselves into the situation that they fear then they will have a panic attack. As a result, they avoid putting themselves into that situation. Because of this the anxieties are not resolved, but instead become worse, leading to an increased fear of having a panic attack. The vicious circle keeps revolving but it's intensity or effect becomes worse. Cognitive delivered exposure attempts to break the vicious circle by placing the patient into real-life environments.
I have recently read a report where the use of cognitive delivered exposure was described thus; "if you were worried that you would hyperventilate if you had to walk to the corner shop, your therapist would accompany you to the corner shop to see if this was the case."
Wow - a therapist that would walk to the corner shop with you. Are they living in the real world? That would truly be a far cry from the treatment that my dear old mum got.
However, the principle seems sound and is used to overcome many forms of phobia. It basically means to expose the person to the very thing that they fear, but in a controlled and supportive way.
The person who fears that they would experience a panic attack if they walked to the corner shop, can indeed be helped if they are accompanied by a friend or helper (if not a professional therapist). The first steps should involve only short journeys, it will feel less scary for them if they remain close to their "safe zone". the process should be approached slowly and with constant support. Often, people's perceived predictions of how they will react in certain situations are a lot worse than how they actually react.
Cognitive delivered exposure should begin by setting small goals before moving on to more ambitious tasks which are complete by the person alone as their confidence increases.
Therapists are aware that many people with agoraphobia by the very nature of their condition would find it impossible to visit a therapist so they will arrange home visits. Also, an increasing number of effective programmes can be conducted via the Internet, or through the use of interactive software. We will investigate these further next time.
Showing posts with label agoraphobia treatment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label agoraphobia treatment. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
How to Overcome Agoraphobia - An Agoraphobia Treatment That Works
How to Overcome Agoraphobia - An Agoraphobia Treatment That Works
By Michael Porteous
Agoraphobia is one of the more restricting and depressing conditions related to panic attacks. While some people know it as a fear of open spaces it is actually a fear of a loss of control where the sufferer will panic once they leave a place of control and security which is usually their own home which leads to the misconception about open spaces. So 'how to overcome agoraphobia' actually means 'how to remain calm when not in total control of a situation' and while most agoraphobia treatments know this they tend to approach it in the wrong way.
While it is natural to feel uneasy when situations are out of your control agoraphobics take this to an unhealthy level having panic attacks whenever they cannot handle the situation, coupled with this is a heightened sense of out of what is controllable and uncontrollable. While most people have no problems being outside or in crowded places because they have a good sense of risk and can handle randomness without being too flustered an agoraphobic cannot maintain this calmness and will break down. This can lead to serious problems with most treatments as most will involve unfamiliarity and uncertainty or no guarantee of success which is again an unknown element.
If we look at the most conventional agoraphobia treatments we can see a list of downsides.
Behavior Therapy
This is where the patient gets exposed to situations that would make them panic gradually to harden them against those things. This is problematic as it is very scary for the agoraphobic and if someone else is setting these situations up there is a lack of trust and control over the entire treatment. It may work but it is long and painful and many sufferers quit before they learn to cope.
Cognitive Therapy
This is the classic 'lie on a couch and talk about your problems' approach which poses many problems for agoraphobics. It is often very hard for them to make appointments to meet therapists, it is long and costly and the presence of the therapist is an uncontrollable factor for a long time until a large amount of trust is gained. The reliance on the therapist can also just transfer the sense of control to the therapist's room not curing the root causes.
Relaxation Techniques
While not harmful and sometimes helpful no amount of breathing techniques can cure the root cause of agoraphobia, it is often used in conjunction with other treatments and helps against the symptoms but is not a cure in its own right.
Hypnotherapy
This method allows the therapist to "reprogram" the sufferers thought patterns to a degree and has been shown to work with some phobias however agoraphobics fear of handing over control of themselves are usually horrified of the thought of someone else tinkering with their brains!
By now you can probably see a pattern emerging. All of these require heavy outside influence and often harsh methods that will scare off many sufferers. What is needed is an Agoraphobia treatment that gives the power and control to the individual with the condition. Only when the agoraphobic can feel in control as they progress further along their treatment can they keep motivated and learn to ease themselves into a more healthy state of mind.
While the goal is to remove the need for total control one needs a great measure of control of their destiny to start along the path so they can eventually learn they can handle the unexpected and unusual. How to overcome agoraphobia is not about other people beating a new reality into the agoraphobic's brain but about the agoraphobic taking control of his own life and knowing that control of his own self will make him stand strong against those things that are out of his control!
Do you want to take control of your life and break free of Agoraphobia? Do you want to live life free of the restrictions you impose on yourself and enjoy every breath in any place at any time? If so click hear to find out how you can cure your agoraphobia!
http://Anxiety.1001-Solutions.info
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Michael_Porteous
http://EzineArticles.com/?How-to-Overcome-Agoraphobia---An-Agoraphobia-Treatment-That-Works&id=845759
By Michael Porteous
Agoraphobia is one of the more restricting and depressing conditions related to panic attacks. While some people know it as a fear of open spaces it is actually a fear of a loss of control where the sufferer will panic once they leave a place of control and security which is usually their own home which leads to the misconception about open spaces. So 'how to overcome agoraphobia' actually means 'how to remain calm when not in total control of a situation' and while most agoraphobia treatments know this they tend to approach it in the wrong way.
While it is natural to feel uneasy when situations are out of your control agoraphobics take this to an unhealthy level having panic attacks whenever they cannot handle the situation, coupled with this is a heightened sense of out of what is controllable and uncontrollable. While most people have no problems being outside or in crowded places because they have a good sense of risk and can handle randomness without being too flustered an agoraphobic cannot maintain this calmness and will break down. This can lead to serious problems with most treatments as most will involve unfamiliarity and uncertainty or no guarantee of success which is again an unknown element.
If we look at the most conventional agoraphobia treatments we can see a list of downsides.
Behavior Therapy
This is where the patient gets exposed to situations that would make them panic gradually to harden them against those things. This is problematic as it is very scary for the agoraphobic and if someone else is setting these situations up there is a lack of trust and control over the entire treatment. It may work but it is long and painful and many sufferers quit before they learn to cope.
Cognitive Therapy
This is the classic 'lie on a couch and talk about your problems' approach which poses many problems for agoraphobics. It is often very hard for them to make appointments to meet therapists, it is long and costly and the presence of the therapist is an uncontrollable factor for a long time until a large amount of trust is gained. The reliance on the therapist can also just transfer the sense of control to the therapist's room not curing the root causes.
Relaxation Techniques
While not harmful and sometimes helpful no amount of breathing techniques can cure the root cause of agoraphobia, it is often used in conjunction with other treatments and helps against the symptoms but is not a cure in its own right.
Hypnotherapy
This method allows the therapist to "reprogram" the sufferers thought patterns to a degree and has been shown to work with some phobias however agoraphobics fear of handing over control of themselves are usually horrified of the thought of someone else tinkering with their brains!
By now you can probably see a pattern emerging. All of these require heavy outside influence and often harsh methods that will scare off many sufferers. What is needed is an Agoraphobia treatment that gives the power and control to the individual with the condition. Only when the agoraphobic can feel in control as they progress further along their treatment can they keep motivated and learn to ease themselves into a more healthy state of mind.
While the goal is to remove the need for total control one needs a great measure of control of their destiny to start along the path so they can eventually learn they can handle the unexpected and unusual. How to overcome agoraphobia is not about other people beating a new reality into the agoraphobic's brain but about the agoraphobic taking control of his own life and knowing that control of his own self will make him stand strong against those things that are out of his control!
Do you want to take control of your life and break free of Agoraphobia? Do you want to live life free of the restrictions you impose on yourself and enjoy every breath in any place at any time? If so click hear to find out how you can cure your agoraphobia!
http://Anxiety.1001-Solutions.info
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Michael_Porteous
http://EzineArticles.com/?How-to-Overcome-Agoraphobia---An-Agoraphobia-Treatment-That-Works&id=845759
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Fear of Open Spaces and Agoraphobia Disorder - A Psychotherapist Explains
The following is an article written by Peter James Field. It looks at Agoraphobia from the point of view of a practising Psychotherapist. He concludes that the condition can be helped through the medium of transformational hypnotherapy. Please read it to get some insight into the nature of the condition.
Agoraphobia is an anxiety disorder seen often in our hypnotherapy practice here in the UK. In fact, about 5% of the adult population will suffer from an agoraphobia disorder at some time in their lives. In the UK, it is the one phobia that is regularly treated as a medical issue.
As anyone who has ever experienced agoraphobia anxiety or a similar anxiety disorder is only too well aware, it is a condition that has the ability to produce intense and often incapacitating feelings of fear and panic.
Until fairly recently, agoraphobia was defined simply as the fear of open spaces, but the term has now been expanded to include a number of other fears, including the fear of public places and crowds, the fear of travelling alone, or simply the fear of leaving the home or other 'safe' area.
When the individual is in the grips of agoraphobia and panic, the feeling can be one of absolute terror. Because these attacks can be unpredictable, occurring anywhere and at any time, the person experiencing them is very often terrified of them happening in a public place, where they feel the most vulnerable.
This can really compound and intensify feelings of anxiety and panic, producing a very real fear of public places, fear of crowds, fear of travelling alone and fear of leaving home.Indeed, such intense fear can virtually force the person needing agoraphobia help to avoid leaving the home and putting him or herself into a situation that they feel might leave them vulnerable.
Agoraphobia disorder does appear to be more common in women than in men, although this may simply be because women tend to seek outside help with the condition more than do men. This is a disorder that can often manifest in a person's twenties and can persist for years, if left untreated. The good news is that skilfully applied transformational hypnotherapy can indeed be used as an effective agoraphobia treatment leading to an agoraphobia cure.
We know that agoraphobia and panic are intense feelings generated at the level of the subconscious mind - the home and repository of all feelings. The scary feelings are experienced because of an over-reaction by the subconscious mind which produces feelings inappropriate to the situation and circumstance. It imagines danger and so produces fear where no real reason for that fear exists.The truth is, of course, that the subconscious mind cannot tell the difference between that which is imagined and that which is real.
You only have to think about sucking on a lemon to prove this to yourself. An imaginary lemon can produce exactly the same effect as a real lemon - tightening of jaw muscles, increased salivation - because for the subconscious mind there really is no difference between the imagined and the real.With agoraphobia and panic, the subconscious mind has got things wrong. It imagines that a harmless and essentially non-threatening situation is inherently threatening and dangerous and so it responds as though the individual were in real danger by flooding the body with adrenalin - in much the same way that an imagined lemon floods the mouth with saliva - and this in turn produces feelings of anxiety and panic.
Through the medium of transformational hypnotherapy, we can adjust false beliefs and perceptions held by the subconscious mind and correctly align them with reality. Once we have understood the origin of the subconscious mind's faulty perception, we are in a position to correct and neutralise it, thereby freeing the person to move on with their life, free of this really restricting, confining condition.There really is no need to continue to experience agoraphobia and panic. If agoraphobia disorder is a part of your life, real help is available:
Transformational hypnotherapy can indeed provide effective agoraphobia treatment leading to an effective agoraphobia cure.A leading British hypno-psychotherapist, with practices in London and Birmingham, UK, Peter Field is the author of many articles on psychotherapy and hypnosis. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Health and Member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy.More of his interesting articles and other useful information can be found on his website: http://www.peterfieldhypnotherapy.co.uk/Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Peter_James_Field
From my own experience of family members actually having the condition, effecting a cure is certainly not such a simple process as the above article would have you believe. In fact the very nature of the condition prevents people from making themselves available to this type of treatment. I welcome comments from anyone who has tried transformational hypnotherapy and can share their experience.
Agoraphobia is an anxiety disorder seen often in our hypnotherapy practice here in the UK. In fact, about 5% of the adult population will suffer from an agoraphobia disorder at some time in their lives. In the UK, it is the one phobia that is regularly treated as a medical issue.
As anyone who has ever experienced agoraphobia anxiety or a similar anxiety disorder is only too well aware, it is a condition that has the ability to produce intense and often incapacitating feelings of fear and panic.
Until fairly recently, agoraphobia was defined simply as the fear of open spaces, but the term has now been expanded to include a number of other fears, including the fear of public places and crowds, the fear of travelling alone, or simply the fear of leaving the home or other 'safe' area.
When the individual is in the grips of agoraphobia and panic, the feeling can be one of absolute terror. Because these attacks can be unpredictable, occurring anywhere and at any time, the person experiencing them is very often terrified of them happening in a public place, where they feel the most vulnerable.
This can really compound and intensify feelings of anxiety and panic, producing a very real fear of public places, fear of crowds, fear of travelling alone and fear of leaving home.Indeed, such intense fear can virtually force the person needing agoraphobia help to avoid leaving the home and putting him or herself into a situation that they feel might leave them vulnerable.
Agoraphobia disorder does appear to be more common in women than in men, although this may simply be because women tend to seek outside help with the condition more than do men. This is a disorder that can often manifest in a person's twenties and can persist for years, if left untreated. The good news is that skilfully applied transformational hypnotherapy can indeed be used as an effective agoraphobia treatment leading to an agoraphobia cure.
We know that agoraphobia and panic are intense feelings generated at the level of the subconscious mind - the home and repository of all feelings. The scary feelings are experienced because of an over-reaction by the subconscious mind which produces feelings inappropriate to the situation and circumstance. It imagines danger and so produces fear where no real reason for that fear exists.The truth is, of course, that the subconscious mind cannot tell the difference between that which is imagined and that which is real.
You only have to think about sucking on a lemon to prove this to yourself. An imaginary lemon can produce exactly the same effect as a real lemon - tightening of jaw muscles, increased salivation - because for the subconscious mind there really is no difference between the imagined and the real.With agoraphobia and panic, the subconscious mind has got things wrong. It imagines that a harmless and essentially non-threatening situation is inherently threatening and dangerous and so it responds as though the individual were in real danger by flooding the body with adrenalin - in much the same way that an imagined lemon floods the mouth with saliva - and this in turn produces feelings of anxiety and panic.
Through the medium of transformational hypnotherapy, we can adjust false beliefs and perceptions held by the subconscious mind and correctly align them with reality. Once we have understood the origin of the subconscious mind's faulty perception, we are in a position to correct and neutralise it, thereby freeing the person to move on with their life, free of this really restricting, confining condition.There really is no need to continue to experience agoraphobia and panic. If agoraphobia disorder is a part of your life, real help is available:
Transformational hypnotherapy can indeed provide effective agoraphobia treatment leading to an effective agoraphobia cure.A leading British hypno-psychotherapist, with practices in London and Birmingham, UK, Peter Field is the author of many articles on psychotherapy and hypnosis. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Health and Member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy.More of his interesting articles and other useful information can be found on his website: http://www.peterfieldhypnotherapy.co.uk/Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Peter_James_Field
From my own experience of family members actually having the condition, effecting a cure is certainly not such a simple process as the above article would have you believe. In fact the very nature of the condition prevents people from making themselves available to this type of treatment. I welcome comments from anyone who has tried transformational hypnotherapy and can share their experience.
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