Panic Attacks and Agoraphobia
Panic Attacks are part of the group of anxiety conditions and are seldom understood. Many individuals do understand what constitutes a panic attack, many others do not know what can bring on these panic attacks. The connection between panic attacks happening and agoraphobia is interesting, agoraphobia can be one of the causes of the attacks.
Agoraphobia is also misunderstood, because so many individuals are not aware of this being part of the disorders that take place due to anxiety. Precisely this is a disorder that occurs when people have anxiety due to unfamiliar environments and situations. An example of this is an individual who is afraid of wide open areas or surroundings, that are not familiar with may have trouble adjusting to a rural setting. The numerous types of environments that an individual afflicted with agoraphobia can be afraid of can be endless. These surroundings may differ greatly but it can trigger the same reaction. The reaction being panic attacks.
Panic attacks as the words imply, are when people get overwhelmed with anxiety to the point that they start having extreme physical and mental issues because of this. The attacks could be sort or long in length, but they should always be taken seriously. In what way does the panic attacks happen in regards to the agoraphobic episode? Simply put, being afraid of wide open areas brings on a flight or fight type reaction. This simply means that all creatures that are living have this instinct when they think danger is near. Basically, the creatures will either fight the threat or leave the area of the threat to protect themselves. But as far as agoraphobia goes, this situation is made worse with just plain confusion being added to the other feelings.
How does the panic attach develop in an agoraphobic situation? Basically, the fear of open spaces leads to a fight or flight response. For those not familiar with the term, this is a very base instinct found in all living creatures when they feel they are in danger. In short, they will seek to confront the danger or remove themselves from the situation. With agoraphobia, this problem is compounded by raw confusion.
What does the person do if the panic attack happens at a time that is inconvenient? First you need to calm yourself, take control of your breathing by taking deep breaths, and get your heart to quit beating rapidly in the same way. This helps cure the issue when it happens. This is only a temporary remedy and the primary issue still needs to be treated completely to cut down on future occurrences.
Obviously, the correct method of trying to minimize the effect that the panic attack, and the connection with the agoraphobia is to search out medical assistance. A certified mental health physician or counselor will be able to develop a plan for therapy, to cut down on the many issues involved in having these disorders. In fact these disorders will not disappear on their own.
Clearly, the best way to deal with curtailing the effects of a panic attack and its association with agoraphobia would be to seek professional help. A qualified mental health professional can certainly provide a treatment plan that would reduce the many problems associated with these conditions. As such, seeking professional help is recommended since the problem will not go away on its own.
Agoraphobia on its own is a very serious condition and when coupled with panic attacks, should be treated with a lot of care. Again to repeat, this disorder will not cure itself.