Agoraphobia and Panic Disorder - Why Are They Connected?

Panic disorder is defined by extreme panic in situations that most people would not see the danger. This can manifest itself in a number of different ways, and one of the most common of these is avoidance of whatever situation they were in when the panic attack struck. This pattern of avoidance can lead to a serious problem known as agoraphobia, and it is the common link between the two afflictions.

Many people who suffer from panic disorder will eventually develop a form of agoraphobia. Agoraphobia is actually defined as “a fear of wide open places” yet this is not a very good description of all forms of agoraphobia. Generally, agoraphobics who suffer from panic disorder are avoiding any situation that they find themselves in where they have experienced a panic attack, or extreme instance of anxiety. It can be a horrible health and social cycle that anxiety ridden people find themselves trapped in.

Like many agoraphobics, they can find themselves entirely housebound, or tied at the hip of a trusted friend or loved one. This is because they often feel safe in those places or with those people, and so they hang onto it desperately attempting to avoid any further panic attacks.

Panic attacks are one of the most frightening experiences a human being can find themselves in. The episodes of extreme panic can manifest themselves with any number of horrible symptoms, up to and including symptoms very similar to a heart attack. A person might feel chest pain, racing heartbeat, heart palpitations, shortness of breath, dizziness, nausea, profuse sweating, and thousands of other symptoms. These symptoms are very scary to the panic disorder patient, and avoiding them becomes priority number one in many cases.

The problem arises when they begin to avoid places they really have to be to live their lives. Work, school, or even the grocery store can all be places an panic disorder patient may begin to avoid. Once this avoidance begins to set in, agoraphobia is often diagnosed as well due to the behavior. There are a number of ways that one might find themselves in this pattern, but panic attacks are often the main culprit.

Fortunately, there are a number of effective treatments for both agoraphobics, and sufferers of panic disorder. These include biofeedback, medicines, and a number of mental health cognitive therapies just to name a few. If you or a loved one are experiencing panic attacks, or similar symptoms that seem to have no medical cause, you may want to look into this as a potential cause.