Agoraphobia is a type of anxiety that is focused on the fear of having a panic attack or they they will be in a place that will be unsafe to have a panic attack. The fear can often be related to being scared of feel trapped, helpless or that they will be humiliated for losing control in front of others or in public.
Some of the most common situations people that with agoraphobia avoid are:
- Being alone
- Being away from home
- Driving (especially on highways, bridges & in traffic)
- Crowded public places (grocery store, movie theater, malls, sports events)
- Enclosed & confined places (elevators, small rooms, tunnels, bridges, airplanes, subways, buses, long lines)
Unfortunately these types of safety seeking behaviors become a vicious cycle that only interfere with the person’s life and don’t let them build useful coping skills instead.
Similar to GAD, this is a disorder that is twice as common in women than in men.