Agoraphobia has its roots in the Greek words ayopa (marketplace) and yobia (phobia).  The direct translation would mean fear of the marketplace, but it is better translated as the fear of having a panic attack in  a setting in which there would be no easy means of escape.

Looking over my own life there has been countless times that I had experienced Agoraphobia.  Including:

• Public Movie Theaters – I often would feel as though I could not breath, I would have to sit on the outside aisle in case I would need to get up and leave quickly or if I would get an  upset stomach and have to rush to the washroom. All this fear brought on the physical symptoms of anxiety and the more I thought about it the more intense the physical symptoms.
• High School ( During a Test or Exam) – I would always have heightened anxiety going into a test or exam.  It wasn’t so much because I was worried about passing or not, but rather I was worried that I may get an upset stomach and would not be allowed to leave until the  test or exam  was completed. I guess the teachers thought people would go to the bathroom look at their notes and rush back to ace the test.  I remember a few times rushing through my test/exam to simply get out of the room for fear that I would get an upset stomach and not be able to leave to use the toilet. Looking back now it was ridiculous. My marks suffered because of it.

You may have experienced the above situations yourself or maybe other common situations that could trigger your heightened anxiety. Perhaps you fear open spaces, crowds, traveling  (even a short distance). Maybe you fear remote space like a cottage or camping setting.  I know I use to fear the country or going camping because it was far away from the hospital. I would often wonder what would happen if I couldn’t breath and the nearest hospital was not until the next city.

All these fears seem ridiculous to me now, but at the time they felt real and justifiable.  Living life with mismanaged anxiety was not fun.

The interesting thing about Agoraphobia is that the anxiety associated with it is often compounded by a fear of social embarrassment.  All my examples including the fear of not being able to breath in the public movie theatre to the fear of having to use the toilet while locked in a classroom are all great examples of how my fear was compounded by the not wanting to embarrasse myself in a social setting.

How do you get over this? Remember that you are always in control.  And remember that agoraphobia feeds upon your fear of  “having” a panic attack in a setting that may seem to have no easy means of escape.   It is the fear of having that fuels your thought process.  When you start fearing having a panic attack  your thoughts are therefore focused on it and soon you will be noticing physical symptoms to justify your thoughts.

So, stop focusing on what “could” happen, because unless you allow it to happen it won’t, and start focusing on simply enjoying the situation — watch the movie, and due well on your test. And if for any reason you need to get up and leave, do it! You are always in control.