im 18 years old and agoraphobia is ruining my life

[xchelsea-maex]

hiya, am chelsea and ive suffered agoraphobia for about a year now. i dont know how its come about, and i think that makes it worse. ive decided to come on here and talk about my feelings on the hope that it will make me feel a bit better. it all started due to panic attacks, my first one occured on the bus as i felt i was going to be sick and panicked at the thought that i may embarass myself. eventually i had more panic attacks as the days passed, i dont know what triggered them but my best friend(sarah) was seriously ill fighting cancer, but i cant see how that could affect me like that as she wasnt dying. saying that though my agoraphobia came about 2 week after sarah had died (this was after the 2nd time she had been diagnosed). im trying to find the answers and its making me worse.
im quite lucky as i can go out of the house , shopping partying etc. but as long as im with someone i know fairly well, but if i cant see them or know that theyre not close enough to me thats when i start to feel dizzy, unreal and hyperventulate. i got kicked out of college because i couldnt attend anymore and myh goal was to go to university and it kills me that all my friends started attending this year , i wish so much that i was joining them, i know i shouldnt dwell on the bad but i just cant help it...

would be nice if somebody on here could talk to me about it or give me some sort of advice or help?

sorry i have waffled lol , but i had a lot to get off my chest


thanks
x

 

[LonelyLeaf]

First I'm sorry about your friends death...probably your agoraphobia developed due to this traumatic experience. About university..surely there's got to be some way to finish college and/or go to university? Have you tried counselling/psychologists?

 

[nonentity]

I can relate

I was right about your age when I too became agoraphobic. The trigger for me was also panic attacks, at the time I was in high school and I kept having them. At the time they weren't widely understood, I had no idea what was happening to me and neither did the nurse. She wanted to call an ambulance! A doctor even gave me an inhaler, they thought I had asthma (because my throat constricted and I couldn't breathe). The thing is, seventeen years later I'm STILL agoraphobic. I don't want to scare you, but it's vital you get treatment NOW and nip it in the bud before it takes over your life and becomes a part of you. You're still very young and have your whole life in front of you. I'd suggest you seek a psychologist or psychiatrist, medication might greately benefit you. Many anti-depressants can help you overcome anxiety disorders, something like Zoloft might really benefit you. If you ever want to talk to someone who understands and has been there just send me a PM. I wish you well and am sorry for what you're going through.

 

[kayelle]

Yup, i agree with nonentity. I started getting mine when I was 14, and I didn't tell anyone about them. For the last year I've hardly been able to leave the house. Don't wait until something like this happens to you! I'm finally recovering now, but I've had to take a year out of uni, so all my friends will be graduating this year and i'll be stuck a year behind, I suppose something similar to you. I was pissed off at first too, but I've come to appreciate it as a chance to learn and become a better person.

You really need to go to see a psychologist (I would recommend a psychologist over a psychotherapist, they can be a bit hit and miss!), and sort out the issues behind your anxiety because if you don't, you'll just get worse and worse.

But this is completely treatable, and especially if you get it dealt with now!

 

[Livingwithoutlivin]

I have agoraphobia too. It's the worst thing in the world, It was so hard for me to go to the cashier at the store today, I was so afraid because of my anxiety and my fear of causing an ackward situation. How the hell am I going to buy anybody Christmas presents feeling this way? Fuck, I hate my life. I don't know what to say.


Today when I was in an aisle at the 99 cent store, a woman was shopping and she seemed like a bitch after she slammed a product into her shopping cart, while near me. I thought, this person is probably trying to intimidate me because I'm in here wearing this long ugly black coat and my hair messy, because I dragged myself out of my house to buy a few things. I hate people like that. On one part, they make me want to toughen up, but on the other side, I think it's people like that who got me afraid of the world too. They confuse me, especially when I'm left to wonder why they dislike me. It only makes me think about it for days, because I don't have people who can empower me.

 

[xchelsea-maex]

ive been to the docs for help but i dont think they understand how serious it is, so im going back , they put me in for CBT (cognitive behavioural therapy), thank you all for your replies made me feel a bit better x

 

[Liz17]

CBt has definately been the most effective treatment Ive had so far! Stick with it xxx

 

[xchelsea-maex]

i will be doing thanks all for ur suggestions xx