Avoidance Behavior of Agoraphobia

Generally, people with agoraphobia avoid places and situations that are hard to escape from or that might be embarrassing to have to suddenly leave. This is usually because they fear having a panic attack or unexpected catastrophe and not being able to get help or get away. In other words, people with agoraphobia avoid situations in which they are likely to feel trapped or stuck without help.

Examples of situations avoided by most people with agoraphobia are:

being outdoors,
being away from home alone,
being in crowds,
sitting in a middle row in a theater,
standing in lines,
taking an elevator
crossing a bridge,
driving a car (especially in heavy traffic), and
using public transportation like buses and planes.

To sum it up, people with agoraphobia are likely to avoid the risk of getting caught in any situation that escape would not be easy, immediate and unnoticed.

In many cases, agoraphobics avoid going anywhere that is beyond certain distance from their home, unless it is a “safe” place or they are with a “safe” person (read below). Because of the dire need to avoid unsafe places and the possibility of a dreaded panic attack, people with agoraphobia become masters at making up excuses to explain their avoidance behavior.

Article Source: http://www.agoraphobia.net

Stephen Price is a recovered agoraphobic with a master’s degree in psychology. He has an informational website on agoraphobia with a free newsletter. It is found on the web at www.agoraphobia.ws

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