Quote:
Originally Posted by Manarinorange
Anyone here also struggle with agoraphobia?
|
I struggled with pretty severe agoraphobia about 15 years ago. My DD was a toddler, and I was exhausted and dealing with anxiety. My mind was so keyed up and reactive that leaving home was nearly impossible- being at home was bad enough. It was a challenge just to leave the house and walk down the driveway to get the mail.
Dr. Claire Weekes wrote a book titled
Simple Effective Treatment of Agoraphobia that changed things for me. Unfortunately, it's out of print and can be a difficult book to find for a reasonable price, but Dr. Weekes understood that agoraphobics can have difficulty getting treatment, so geared her approach to a guided, self-help model. Some people refer to her as the OG of cognitive behavioral therapy, which is what her method is.
She also has another good book, that's a little more readily available, titled
Hope and Help for Your Nerves.
CBT is a slow and steady process, but can be effective. Fifteen years later, I can walk out the door and go pretty much anywhere without anxiety or a second thought. I had very noticeable improvement within about six months of starting, and by year 8 had developed a relatively high anxiety/stress tolerance. There is hope.
Sending lots of hugs and prayers your way.