Allison is in her late twenties:
I am a social phobic. My panic attacks started when I was at secondary school. I was always blushing from an early age but hadn't actually experienced panic attacks until I I was directly asked questions in a classroom or had to give presentations. Simply walking into someone I knew would leave me a mess. After leaving school I chose a university course that avoided presentations and tutorials, for I knew that if I had to talk to a group of people my panic attacks would be unbearable.
However, after I arrived at university I found the course had changed and tutorials and presentations were compulsory. I managed to get away with attending the minimum of tutorials or being signed off sick, but every -presentation I had to do would end in a severe panic attack, even after four years. Sometimes the panic attacks would last up to an hour or more, and the embarrassment and shame lasted for a year afterwards. Sometimes I would get -so drunk the night before that I would still knowingly be drunk while doing the presentation the next morning ... the alcohol helped me to avoid a panic attack.
After leaving university I worked in various jobs where I could avoid any position of responsibility and confrontation with others, although tasks such as typing, writing or answering the phone in front of anybody would leave me shaking, flushed, faint, having palpitations and with a numb left arm for anything up to an hour afterwards. If anyone came to talk to me and looked me in the eye, the same things would happen. I could not even carry a cup of tea without having to sit down if I knew someone was watching.
Socially I could not eat in public without severe tremors - or even lift a glass to my mouth in front of anyone. I could not sit at a table with people looking or talking to me without blushing, which would lead to panic attacks. I could not take hold of salt or pepper pots without shaking, or even sign my cheques or Switch receipts in shops. All these things became impossible and I avoided them at all costs - unless, of course, I was drunk first, knowing that the next day the symptoms would then be much worse! If ever I walked into someone I knew, I would have a panic attack when they saw me and so I avoided going out. If anyone stared at me on the tube I would have an attack, and if I was standing up I would feel I was going to pass out, blinded with dizziness and acute panic.
This has been my life for the last five years, and each new counsellor I got I prayed would help - but to no avail. I have had cognitive behaviour therapy, hypnotherapy and done a lot of work myself to try and solve the problem. Nothing worked, much to the dismay of all my counsellors, who knew that I knew what they were going to say next!
So I ended up severely depressed whereas I had not been depressed before. I was ashamed to go to work where everyone felt sorry for me and I left my job. I was scared to go out in public places where I knew I'd meet someone I knew, and as my depression worsened I couldn't face any public place. Sometimes when I was on my own I also, suffered - if I got a piece of food stuck in my throat, if I thought I had left the gas cooker on, if I thought I might be late for something - so it was not just social situations that instigated the panic. Carrying around an enormous and unbearable weight from my throat to my stomach became my life, until I finally accepted the fact that I would have to take medication as I couldn't continue like this.
I was loath to take drugs but took my doctor's advice and am now on an antidepressant which took some weeks to work, but I persisted. This drug has had some side-effects but I am no longer suicidal. The weight has lifted; I can get out of bed, can work and not panic and I can go out in public. Although nobody believes me I would definitely not be here today if it was not for this drug.
Many social phobic young people find school life very difficult. They may be brilliant scholars but they are struggling with their fears of people and find it difficult to settle in school and make the most of their academic talents.
An adolescent social phobic is in a sorry plight, particularly if he also develops agoraphobia, which often happens, causing him to become housebound. Lack of contact with his peers exacerbates the condition and may result in a retreat into daydreams and fantasies, avoiding contact with the real world outside his home and inevitably losing touch with other people. A girl may hope for a romantic hero to arrive at her front door and sweep her off her feet, though she certainly would not be able to cope if he wanted to take her away from the safety of home.
It is especially difficult to persuade adolescents to take part in a treatment programme, as recovery would mean having to face up to the realities of normal everyday life.
Some older women who have become housebound may focus all their emotions on to a well-known celebrity - often an actor or a pop singer, and often dead (safer). Recently there was a television documentary about a woman who was in love with Elvis Presley, and her restricted life revolved around the singer, his recordings and a mountain of other memorabilia.
It is not only in the Western world that social phobia is a problem. In Japan, 1.2 million young people, 75 per cent of them boys and young men, suffer from severe social phobia known as bikikomori. They become completely isolated in their bedrooms, refusing to see or speak to anyone, including their own parents. Their families are so devastatingly embarrassed and ashamed that they keep it a secret and virtually isolate themselves. Because of their embarrassment the condition is only just becoming recognised, and at last counsellors are being trained to help the sufferers and the rest of their family.
It is suggested that the problem arises because of the huge pressures young people are under to succeed at school. They often start by developing school phobia and agoraphobia as they begin to avoid school Severe social phobia develops from there, and the sufferer retreats from the outside world altogether.
This state of affairs wouldn't arise in Great Britain as therapy is available, although the waiting lists may be long. In the meantime, the phobia organisations can offer advice and practical help.
If You Want Immediate Anxiety Relief, Check Out Our New Natural Technique To Stop Panic Attacks and General Anxiety Fast!
Thursday, 29 January 2009
Scial Phobic - Eating In Public
Another problem the social phobic has is eating in public, particularly in a restaurant or at an important social function, though some people may find the experience of eating with just a couple of friends or even members of the family equally distressing.
Rose, aged twenty-two, had an unfortunate experience: when lunching with a group of old school friends, she had to eave the table, feeling unwell and nauseous.
I could not rejoin them because the feelings just over¬whelmed me again, and although my friends were sympath¬etic I felt ashamed and embarrassed. Since that time I have felt unable to eat in front of other people. As I am to be married in six months' time the thought of the wedding reception is with me the whole time and I live in dread of the occasion.
I make no excuses for including all these examples of social phobia. I feel it is important that people understand just how life-disrupting this problem can be for the sufferer.
Blushing is a major problem for those who feel the need to hide their fears from other people. A scarlet face is impossible to conceal and inevitably draws attention to the blusher and comments from their companions.
Martin: I have been a social phobic since I was a child of ten years old. Even before this age I had other phobias and terrible anxiety. This phobia has ruined my whole life. The main symptom is a terrible fear of blushing, which happens instantly in nearly every social situation. The way I deal with these situations may sound pitiful to others who can't possibly imagine how it feels.
At the age of eleven in school I used to sit always against a wall so that one side of my face would be covered. Nobody could see that side because of the wall. Then I would rest my elbow on the desk and cover my other cheek by resting it in my hand. 1 would literally be trying to hide my face from everyone. I would avoid any group situation and I used to spend hours walking the playing fields on my own, avoiding contact with anyone.
Other ways I would try to deal with this phobia were to pretend I had a cold or flu and whenever someone spoke to me I would take my handkerchief and blow my nose (another way of hiding my face). At other times I have burned my face on purpose with a sun lamp so that no one could see when I was blushing. I was teased and ridiculed in school, even by my so-called friends.
I can still recall the terrible anxiety that I felt from 9.00 till 3.45 every day of the week. However, it didn't end there because the phobia applied to absolutely everybody, so when I got home I couldn't eat with my parents. I would take my food on a tray to the darkest room in the house to eat it, as I was ashamed of blushing in front of my family, and unfortunately today at the age of thirty-five I still am.
Because of PAX I have been able to face up to the problem and seek help at last. Though I have a long way to go I am determined to overcome this, having tackled the first obstacle - learning that it doesn't matter.
If You Want Immediate Anxiety Relief, Check Out Our New Natural Technique To Stop Panic Attacks and General Anxiety Fast!
Rose, aged twenty-two, had an unfortunate experience: when lunching with a group of old school friends, she had to eave the table, feeling unwell and nauseous.
I could not rejoin them because the feelings just over¬whelmed me again, and although my friends were sympath¬etic I felt ashamed and embarrassed. Since that time I have felt unable to eat in front of other people. As I am to be married in six months' time the thought of the wedding reception is with me the whole time and I live in dread of the occasion.
I make no excuses for including all these examples of social phobia. I feel it is important that people understand just how life-disrupting this problem can be for the sufferer.
Blushing is a major problem for those who feel the need to hide their fears from other people. A scarlet face is impossible to conceal and inevitably draws attention to the blusher and comments from their companions.
Martin: I have been a social phobic since I was a child of ten years old. Even before this age I had other phobias and terrible anxiety. This phobia has ruined my whole life. The main symptom is a terrible fear of blushing, which happens instantly in nearly every social situation. The way I deal with these situations may sound pitiful to others who can't possibly imagine how it feels.
At the age of eleven in school I used to sit always against a wall so that one side of my face would be covered. Nobody could see that side because of the wall. Then I would rest my elbow on the desk and cover my other cheek by resting it in my hand. 1 would literally be trying to hide my face from everyone. I would avoid any group situation and I used to spend hours walking the playing fields on my own, avoiding contact with anyone.
Other ways I would try to deal with this phobia were to pretend I had a cold or flu and whenever someone spoke to me I would take my handkerchief and blow my nose (another way of hiding my face). At other times I have burned my face on purpose with a sun lamp so that no one could see when I was blushing. I was teased and ridiculed in school, even by my so-called friends.
I can still recall the terrible anxiety that I felt from 9.00 till 3.45 every day of the week. However, it didn't end there because the phobia applied to absolutely everybody, so when I got home I couldn't eat with my parents. I would take my food on a tray to the darkest room in the house to eat it, as I was ashamed of blushing in front of my family, and unfortunately today at the age of thirty-five I still am.
Because of PAX I have been able to face up to the problem and seek help at last. Though I have a long way to go I am determined to overcome this, having tackled the first obstacle - learning that it doesn't matter.
If You Want Immediate Anxiety Relief, Check Out Our New Natural Technique To Stop Panic Attacks and General Anxiety Fast!
Tuesday, 13 January 2009
Social Phobias and Panic Attacks
Dr Alan Wade, a GP from Clydebank, became aware of the condition through his interest in phobias and panic attacks.
'Sufferers grossly underachieve/ he says. They often don't earn as much as the average person and favour solitary jobs where they can avoid scrutiny. They may even choose t& be unemployed because they can't face going out. They are prone to depression and other disorders such as agoraphobia, which has similar symptoms.
These phobias do not evoke much sympathy in those who have never experienced them. On the whole they seem trivial and sufferers do their best to hide them, feeling that they might be laughed at. Walking past a line of people standing at a bank counter, writing a cheque, speaking in front of a class - such simple actions for most of us, but agonising for many social phobia sufferers.
How can a visit to the bank be as traumatic as a visit to the dentist? It is the way that a phobic person's mind works ¬always jumping ahead, expecting the worst. One member of PAX explains his fear of his bank and the thoughts that run through his mind.
There are a lot of people waiting, I feel trapped already. I should have checked how much there is in my account. Supposing there isn't enough to cover this cheque? Why is the bank clerk looking at me in that funny way? What is the computer telling her? Why has she walked away? Everyone is looking at me.
By this time he can hardly take his money because his hand is shaking so much.
Another PAX member, this time a woman, wrote;
I cannot bear to be looked at. I am afraid I might do something silly, make a fool of myself, make a mistake or lose control in some way. More than anything I am afraid of anyone KNOWING I'm afraid.
Again, the problem is the need to escape before she commits the dreadful crime of drawing attention to herself. As we see, this is closely linked to the agoraphobic state. Avoiding social situations means that she may become housebound, but unlike the agoraphobic who can find sanctuary from her fears in her home, the social phobic finds that her problems follow her indoors.
To this person, the arrival of an unexpected caller can be a disaster. The sound of the doorbell, a knock on the door, sets off warning signals. Who is it? Why are they here? What do they want? These thoughts flash through her mind as she ducks into a corner where she cannot be seen. Her heart races, her mouth dries up as she feels the situation is getting out of hand and she won’t be able to cope. The only thing to do is to stay hidden until they go away. Unfortunately there are times when visitors must be faced,
If You Want Immediate Anxiety Relief, Check Out Our New Natural Technique To Stop Panic Attacks and General Anxiety Fast!
'Sufferers grossly underachieve/ he says. They often don't earn as much as the average person and favour solitary jobs where they can avoid scrutiny. They may even choose t& be unemployed because they can't face going out. They are prone to depression and other disorders such as agoraphobia, which has similar symptoms.
These phobias do not evoke much sympathy in those who have never experienced them. On the whole they seem trivial and sufferers do their best to hide them, feeling that they might be laughed at. Walking past a line of people standing at a bank counter, writing a cheque, speaking in front of a class - such simple actions for most of us, but agonising for many social phobia sufferers.
How can a visit to the bank be as traumatic as a visit to the dentist? It is the way that a phobic person's mind works ¬always jumping ahead, expecting the worst. One member of PAX explains his fear of his bank and the thoughts that run through his mind.
There are a lot of people waiting, I feel trapped already. I should have checked how much there is in my account. Supposing there isn't enough to cover this cheque? Why is the bank clerk looking at me in that funny way? What is the computer telling her? Why has she walked away? Everyone is looking at me.
By this time he can hardly take his money because his hand is shaking so much.
Another PAX member, this time a woman, wrote;
I cannot bear to be looked at. I am afraid I might do something silly, make a fool of myself, make a mistake or lose control in some way. More than anything I am afraid of anyone KNOWING I'm afraid.
Again, the problem is the need to escape before she commits the dreadful crime of drawing attention to herself. As we see, this is closely linked to the agoraphobic state. Avoiding social situations means that she may become housebound, but unlike the agoraphobic who can find sanctuary from her fears in her home, the social phobic finds that her problems follow her indoors.
To this person, the arrival of an unexpected caller can be a disaster. The sound of the doorbell, a knock on the door, sets off warning signals. Who is it? Why are they here? What do they want? These thoughts flash through her mind as she ducks into a corner where she cannot be seen. Her heart races, her mouth dries up as she feels the situation is getting out of hand and she won’t be able to cope. The only thing to do is to stay hidden until they go away. Unfortunately there are times when visitors must be faced,
If You Want Immediate Anxiety Relief, Check Out Our New Natural Technique To Stop Panic Attacks and General Anxiety Fast!
Social Agoraphobia Sufferer - Escape to Safety
The agoraphobia sufferer has a need to escape to safety. She may be in a crowd of people, she may be alone in her phobic situation, but she feels trapped by her inability to detach herself quickly from the place where she is un¬comfortable and escape to her home or somewhere where she feels safe.
The person who suffers from social phobia does not have the same need to escape from a situation; it is other people he finds threatening, He cannot bear to be looked at, to have his body space invaded, to be touched, even inadvertently. Some sufferers find it physically impossible to touch or be touched by anyone other than members of their own immediate family.
Social phobics feel they are under scrutiny all the time; they imagine that all eyes are upon them and experience symptoms of acute anxiety, displaying outward signs of distress such as blushing, sweating and hyperventilating which they are sure everyone notices and despises them for. They are afraid of drawing attention to themselves, of being embarrassed by making a mistake or making fools of themselves. At the root of their shame is a fear of losing control in some way or not being able to continue what they are doing while they are being watched.
Social phobics often find themselves unable to relate to other people on any sort of personal level. They may have difficulty in expressing their emotions and feel that they cannot get close to others physically or emotionally; often, they are children who have had an over-protected upbringing, have not developed a sense of independence and are therefore unable to function adequately in an adult social world.
If You Want Immediate Anxiety Relief, Check Out Our New Natural Technique To Stop Panic Attacks and General Anxiety Fast!
The person who suffers from social phobia does not have the same need to escape from a situation; it is other people he finds threatening, He cannot bear to be looked at, to have his body space invaded, to be touched, even inadvertently. Some sufferers find it physically impossible to touch or be touched by anyone other than members of their own immediate family.
Social phobics feel they are under scrutiny all the time; they imagine that all eyes are upon them and experience symptoms of acute anxiety, displaying outward signs of distress such as blushing, sweating and hyperventilating which they are sure everyone notices and despises them for. They are afraid of drawing attention to themselves, of being embarrassed by making a mistake or making fools of themselves. At the root of their shame is a fear of losing control in some way or not being able to continue what they are doing while they are being watched.
Social phobics often find themselves unable to relate to other people on any sort of personal level. They may have difficulty in expressing their emotions and feel that they cannot get close to others physically or emotionally; often, they are children who have had an over-protected upbringing, have not developed a sense of independence and are therefore unable to function adequately in an adult social world.
If You Want Immediate Anxiety Relief, Check Out Our New Natural Technique To Stop Panic Attacks and General Anxiety Fast!
Social Phobia - Other people are quite dreadful The only possible society is oneself
A cure for shyness!' Newspaper headlines in the late 1990s were quickly taken up by the programme This Morning when Richard Madeley and Judy Finnegan told the nation that this new drug would transform the lives of people who suffered from devastating shyness. In fact, this drug - Seroxat (Paroxetine), an antidepressant - was not new. ?or several years it had been prescribed for depression, panic attacks and agoraphobia, and a large number of PAX members were finding it very helpful towards over¬coming their problems. Recently, though, Seroxat had been hailed as the new treatment for social phobias and acute shyness.
This Mornings presenters announced that they would hand out supplies of the drug to volunteers, who would be asked to try it out Tor a few days' and then report back to the programme, hopefully to tell viewers that their shyness had disappeared and that they were able to enjoy a full social life once more.
Fortunately, some concerned doctors and some of us involved in the phobia organisations managed to stop this irresponsible experiment before it got under way. Can you imagine the hopes raised and then dashed to the ground? Of course, the drug has been of great help to thousands with anxiety problems, but it takes a good three weeks to act and it needs to be prescribed by a doctor or psychiatrist, preferably in conjunction with further therapy.
What a fuss to make about being shy, you might think. After all, thousands and thousands of people suffer from shyness and a lack of self-confidence. Surely it is a matter of facing up to life and tackling problems, something that would automatically improve with maturity.
Social phobia is a growing problem which affects equal numbers of men and women, unlike agoraphobia, which is a condition more often attributed to women, though there is a considerable overlap between social phobia and agoraphobia.
If You Want Immediate Anxiety Relief, Check Out Our New Natural Technique To Stop Panic Attacks and General Anxiety Fast!
This Mornings presenters announced that they would hand out supplies of the drug to volunteers, who would be asked to try it out Tor a few days' and then report back to the programme, hopefully to tell viewers that their shyness had disappeared and that they were able to enjoy a full social life once more.
Fortunately, some concerned doctors and some of us involved in the phobia organisations managed to stop this irresponsible experiment before it got under way. Can you imagine the hopes raised and then dashed to the ground? Of course, the drug has been of great help to thousands with anxiety problems, but it takes a good three weeks to act and it needs to be prescribed by a doctor or psychiatrist, preferably in conjunction with further therapy.
What a fuss to make about being shy, you might think. After all, thousands and thousands of people suffer from shyness and a lack of self-confidence. Surely it is a matter of facing up to life and tackling problems, something that would automatically improve with maturity.
Social phobia is a growing problem which affects equal numbers of men and women, unlike agoraphobia, which is a condition more often attributed to women, though there is a considerable overlap between social phobia and agoraphobia.
If You Want Immediate Anxiety Relief, Check Out Our New Natural Technique To Stop Panic Attacks and General Anxiety Fast!
PAX newsletters
PAX newsletters are full of enthusiastic reports from recovering members.
Penny (thirty): I was never completely housebound but was heading that way. My GP prescribed Seroxat, and although it took several weeks before I noticed any effect it has been extremely helpful. I was told by my GP that I also needed to see a cognitive behavioural therapist as I could not rely on drugs for ever and must learn how to manage panic attacks if they returned. I found this a rather depressing outlook. Eventually I did see a behaviourist, by which time my GP had weaned me off Seroxat, encouraging me to try and do without it.
Unfortunately the panic attacks returned. It had been so easy to live a normal, panic-free life and I rather resented finding myself back to square one. I had to learn to tolerate the panics - though it took several attempts to get through the first occasions when I had to stand outside the super¬market. I didn't know it at the time, but my husband was hovering about, out of my sight. He wasn't convinced that wasn't going to react badly, collapse or burst into tears. The therapist wasn't too pleased when he found out and Richard was told quite firmly that he was to keep right way and let me work towards recovery on my own, without im fussing around me.
I realised how much I had depended on Richard's support in the past, but it was pointed out to both of us that his attitude was holding me back.
After four months I can now shop in the supermarket on my own. I still dread the panic attacks but am learning to tolerate them. My next step is a train journey - alone. I would feel happier if the trains were more reliable, as they are inclined to stop sometimes for fifteen minutes between stations. If this happens I shall look on this as an oppor¬tunity to put into practice all I have been taught about going through panic.
Many people have written to me who are having professional help and making progress with their recovery, and remind me about the late Dr Claire Weekes. In the 1960s her books helped thousands, and her advice is as appropriate today as it was forty years ago when Self Help for Your Nerves was the most requested book in libraries all over the world.
William wrote to the PAX newsletter:
I am a man of thirty-one and a recovered agoraphobic (note 'recovered', not 'recovering'). I have had six months of treatment - behavioural therapy at my local hospital - and I am for ever grateful to those who have helped me tackle my fears and overcome them.
I also attribute much of my present happy state to Claire Weekes, the Australian doctor whose books helped me through the worst time in my life when suffering constant panic attacks. I had to be persuaded by my mother to look at these books - I thought they were just for neurotic women.
Dr Weekes teaches four concepts of fear:
Face fear - do not run away.
Accept fear - do not fight it.
Float through fear - do not run away.
Let time pass - do not be impatient.
I would urge fellow PAX members to read Self Help for Your Nerves.
If You Want Immediate Anxiety Relief, Check Out Our New Natural Technique To Stop Panic Attacks and General Anxiety Fast!
Penny (thirty): I was never completely housebound but was heading that way. My GP prescribed Seroxat, and although it took several weeks before I noticed any effect it has been extremely helpful. I was told by my GP that I also needed to see a cognitive behavioural therapist as I could not rely on drugs for ever and must learn how to manage panic attacks if they returned. I found this a rather depressing outlook. Eventually I did see a behaviourist, by which time my GP had weaned me off Seroxat, encouraging me to try and do without it.
Unfortunately the panic attacks returned. It had been so easy to live a normal, panic-free life and I rather resented finding myself back to square one. I had to learn to tolerate the panics - though it took several attempts to get through the first occasions when I had to stand outside the super¬market. I didn't know it at the time, but my husband was hovering about, out of my sight. He wasn't convinced that wasn't going to react badly, collapse or burst into tears. The therapist wasn't too pleased when he found out and Richard was told quite firmly that he was to keep right way and let me work towards recovery on my own, without im fussing around me.
I realised how much I had depended on Richard's support in the past, but it was pointed out to both of us that his attitude was holding me back.
After four months I can now shop in the supermarket on my own. I still dread the panic attacks but am learning to tolerate them. My next step is a train journey - alone. I would feel happier if the trains were more reliable, as they are inclined to stop sometimes for fifteen minutes between stations. If this happens I shall look on this as an oppor¬tunity to put into practice all I have been taught about going through panic.
Many people have written to me who are having professional help and making progress with their recovery, and remind me about the late Dr Claire Weekes. In the 1960s her books helped thousands, and her advice is as appropriate today as it was forty years ago when Self Help for Your Nerves was the most requested book in libraries all over the world.
William wrote to the PAX newsletter:
I am a man of thirty-one and a recovered agoraphobic (note 'recovered', not 'recovering'). I have had six months of treatment - behavioural therapy at my local hospital - and I am for ever grateful to those who have helped me tackle my fears and overcome them.
I also attribute much of my present happy state to Claire Weekes, the Australian doctor whose books helped me through the worst time in my life when suffering constant panic attacks. I had to be persuaded by my mother to look at these books - I thought they were just for neurotic women.
Dr Weekes teaches four concepts of fear:
Face fear - do not run away.
Accept fear - do not fight it.
Float through fear - do not run away.
Let time pass - do not be impatient.
I would urge fellow PAX members to read Self Help for Your Nerves.
If You Want Immediate Anxiety Relief, Check Out Our New Natural Technique To Stop Panic Attacks and General Anxiety Fast!
Only Way Tackle Agoraphobia
Those of us who have emerged from the shadow of agoraphobia know that there is only one way to tackle it, and that is by exposure to the situations which you feel you cannot face - exposure to the situation and exposure to the unpleasant symptoms. Agoraphobics are inclined to judge their progress on their ability not to feel panic. Two or three panic-free trips to the supermarket; they are doing really well. Then on the next occasion the old frightening feelings come flooding back and it's back to square one again.
Face the fear. Enter into the phobic situation. Sounds simple and easy to do, but it can seem an insurmountable task for the agoraphobic. The most traumatic approach is known as flooding, where the patient is exposed to her most dreaded situation and encouraged to remain within it, experiencing the worst sensations that her phobia can produce, facing the panic feelings and the distress that follows until the peak is past and the symptoms gradually evaporate. This might take a few minutes, or it might take an hour or two, but the important point is that the sufferer stands her ground until the anxiety starts to lessen, and has to be prepared to remain "until it does.
The patient's fear is that her system cannot tolerate the acute phase of a panic attack, that there must be some terrible climax which will prove fatal. This is not so; when the panic feelings reach a peak there is only one way they can go -down. They will gradually subside and the sufferer will find herself sick and shaky but still in one piece ... and a step nearer recovery.
There is no doubt that such an experience is more exhaust¬ing than exhilarating, but it cannot be denied that if she is well prepared by her therapist and has the motivation and the courage to co-operate, this can be the fastest way to overcome agoraphobia.
Systematic desensitisation was popular in the 1970s as this as a more acceptable form of therapy for the patients. It involved learning to relax completely before visualising the phobic situations that the agoraphobic most feared. Learning o curb her out-of-control imagination was difficult, but the therapist would then guide her to the next stage - actually going to these places and finding that she could tolerate them without experiencing a panic attack.
This approach was very time-consuming for the therapist and unrealistic for the patient who, happily acclimatising herself to the phobic situations, was unprepared when a panic attack did materialise, didn't know how to cope with it and became disillusioned with the treatment.
These days the patient is instructed to take a different view of her phobia, changing her negative attitude towards e problem ('I know I shall have a panic attach) and telling herself instead, 'I shall probably feel panicky but I am no longer frightened by the thought of this as I understand how to over¬come it!
Instead of the flooding approach, where the agoraphobic was plunged into her worst nightmare and forced to endure the panic until it peaked then subsided, she is now instructed by her therapist to take it a step at a time.
She is told to 'construct a hierarchy' - making a list of her phobic situations ranging from the very mild to the most alarming. Listing them from one to ten, she will then proceed up the scale, learning to tolerate each one before progressing to one she finds more difficult.
The object of the exercise is not to try and avoid a panic attack but to actively encourage it to do its worst. Knowing that it is not going to damage her in any way, the agoraphobic goes through the experience, emerging at the end unscathed. Unlike the flooding technique the process is gradual, and the patient does not have to tackle her worst fears until she is well prepared.
If You Want Immediate Anxiety Relief, Check Out Our New Natural Technique To Stop Panic Attacks and General Anxiety Fast!
Face the fear. Enter into the phobic situation. Sounds simple and easy to do, but it can seem an insurmountable task for the agoraphobic. The most traumatic approach is known as flooding, where the patient is exposed to her most dreaded situation and encouraged to remain within it, experiencing the worst sensations that her phobia can produce, facing the panic feelings and the distress that follows until the peak is past and the symptoms gradually evaporate. This might take a few minutes, or it might take an hour or two, but the important point is that the sufferer stands her ground until the anxiety starts to lessen, and has to be prepared to remain "until it does.
The patient's fear is that her system cannot tolerate the acute phase of a panic attack, that there must be some terrible climax which will prove fatal. This is not so; when the panic feelings reach a peak there is only one way they can go -down. They will gradually subside and the sufferer will find herself sick and shaky but still in one piece ... and a step nearer recovery.
There is no doubt that such an experience is more exhaust¬ing than exhilarating, but it cannot be denied that if she is well prepared by her therapist and has the motivation and the courage to co-operate, this can be the fastest way to overcome agoraphobia.
Systematic desensitisation was popular in the 1970s as this as a more acceptable form of therapy for the patients. It involved learning to relax completely before visualising the phobic situations that the agoraphobic most feared. Learning o curb her out-of-control imagination was difficult, but the therapist would then guide her to the next stage - actually going to these places and finding that she could tolerate them without experiencing a panic attack.
This approach was very time-consuming for the therapist and unrealistic for the patient who, happily acclimatising herself to the phobic situations, was unprepared when a panic attack did materialise, didn't know how to cope with it and became disillusioned with the treatment.
These days the patient is instructed to take a different view of her phobia, changing her negative attitude towards e problem ('I know I shall have a panic attach) and telling herself instead, 'I shall probably feel panicky but I am no longer frightened by the thought of this as I understand how to over¬come it!
Instead of the flooding approach, where the agoraphobic was plunged into her worst nightmare and forced to endure the panic until it peaked then subsided, she is now instructed by her therapist to take it a step at a time.
She is told to 'construct a hierarchy' - making a list of her phobic situations ranging from the very mild to the most alarming. Listing them from one to ten, she will then proceed up the scale, learning to tolerate each one before progressing to one she finds more difficult.
The object of the exercise is not to try and avoid a panic attack but to actively encourage it to do its worst. Knowing that it is not going to damage her in any way, the agoraphobic goes through the experience, emerging at the end unscathed. Unlike the flooding technique the process is gradual, and the patient does not have to tackle her worst fears until she is well prepared.
If You Want Immediate Anxiety Relief, Check Out Our New Natural Technique To Stop Panic Attacks and General Anxiety Fast!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
