The Accidental Jogger: How I Discovered Running as Treatment for Agoraphobia

I was an accidental jogger. The day I started running I was actually trying to “desensitize” myself to being outside to overcome my agoraphobia. My plan was just to see how far I could walk away from my house every day without feeling too much panic.

I would try to go just a little bit further each day than the day before, then turn around and go home when I started to get too anxious. I started by walking to my mailbox. A few days later I made it to the end of my cul-de-sac about three houses away. A few days after that, I turned the corner and went a little ways down the street.

Once I made it off my cul-de-sac, I suited up in running attire for my walks. I thought if anyone saw me from inside one of the houses, they might wonder why some teenage kid was walking down the same stretch of sidewalk every day. Since I didn’t want anyone to suspect I had agoraphobia, I disguised myself as a jogger to give me a socially acceptable reason to be out on the sidewalk so often.

My ultimate goal was to make it around the whole block. It took about a month to make it almost halfway so I expected to meet my goal in about two months. Long story short, my calculation was wrong. I made my goal in half the time and this is where the running comes in.

On the day I made it exactly halfway around the block, I realized to my utter horror that finishing the block would be just as far as turning back the way I came. I don’t know why I hadn’t thought of this before, but my anxiety shot into overdrive when I discovered this. 

I had a choice to make. I could finish the block or turn back. Either way it would be just as far. In a split second, I decided to meet my goal of finishing the block and ran home as if running for my life. At that point the jogging suit didn’t matter. I didn’t care if people thought I was crazy. I could have been running naked for all I cared. I just wanted to make it home before I passed out from panic and hyperventilation.

I made a discovery as I ran from the panic. While running my hardest, I quit hyperventilating. Not because my breathing got slower, but because my need for oxygen increased.

When I thought about it later, it made perfect sense. Whenever I panicked anywhere, my “fight or flight” response was activated, which is the body’s natural inclination to fight or flee when faced with perceived danger.  In most cases, there is nothing to fight and nowhere to run without looking odd. Running is not possible while sitting in a car, a classroom, in church, or while walking through a mall trying to look normal and calm.

Though the body doesn’t actually run in these scenarios, the respiratory system is activated just the same, provides lots of unneeded oxygen, and sends energy to the muscles just in case. If the body remains motionless, this activation can lead to light-headedness and tingling sensations in the hands and feet. If the body is running, then all the fast breathing and adrenalin rush is actually used to fuel the body’s activity. Instead of producing panic symptoms, the body gets the oxygen it needs to support its “flight.”

Whether running from a tiger or just running to be running, to my body it was all the same. There was no way to hyperventilate when my body actually needed all the extra air.
After I stopped running that day, I made a couple of other discoveries. First, since my breathing had fallen into the rhythm of my activity while running, it naturally slowed down when my body slowed down. Second, I enjoyed a tired euphoric feeling brought on by the release of endorphins into the bloodstream.

Endorphins are neurotransmitters produced by the brain following exercise. They cause a pleasurable euphoria that some people call “the runner’s high.” The euphoria is felt because endorphins interact with opiate receptors in the brain to decrease pain. Their physical effect is similar to drugs like morphine and codeine.

I can tell you from experience that endorphins rival Valium, Xanax, or any other anti-anxiety pill on the market in terms relaxation properties. The difference is that endorphins are a natural substance produced in the body and are not addictive.

A running program can help you eliminate the “fight or flight” response (or panic attacks) by satisfying the need to flee in the most natural way. Running will also give you confidence that you can get your body and breathing under control.

If you have agoraphobia or a serious panic disorder you’ve probably ruled out running or doing anything outside because you can’t get far enough out of your house. I can identify. I experienced debilitating panic every time I walked out my front door when I first started my running program. Ironically, I found running to be the most natural way to respond to the urge to fight or flee that comes with a panic attack.

Running also gave my body a use for the extra air I sucked in while hyperventilating. The effort forced my breathing into a consistent pattern, bringing it under control. The endorphins, or natural tranquilizers, produced in the bloodstream by running for long periods were an added bonus.

The more regularly I did running workouts, the more I proved to myself that my lungs were healthy, and gained confidence in my physical body so I could start going places. Though it was not always convenient, I learned that I could always stop a panic attack or hyperventilation spell by running. This gave me the sense of control over my body and breathing that I needed during a “fight or flight” response.

I could also overcome my fear of open spaces by breaking new ground while running. Wherever I ran, it was nearly impossible to panic. After I started the running program, I wasn’t out of the woods with the agoraphobia, but at least I knew I could run anywhere!

Needless to say, a good running program can help you in your recovery from agoraphobia.

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

Stephen Price is a recovered agoraphobic with a master's degree in psychology. His insightful e-book, "Goodbye Anxiety," containing 11 principles he learned in his recovery from agoraphobia can be found at: www.agoraphobia.ws/goodbyeanxiety.htm

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