How to overcome the fear of leaving home

Feeling afraid to leave home It is usually an indicator of an anxiety disorder called agoraphobia. Generally, it develops when one or more anxiety attacks are suffered outside the home. Or, it may be the result of another unpleasant event outside. Thus, the person ends up avoiding that situation by staying at home and fearing that it will happen again.

The main problem with this disorder is that it is increasing. It begins with the idea that when going out one may suffer anxiety or another accident, so the person limits themselves to going to close and familiar places. Later, the fear grows due to avoidance of leaving the house, which produces more anxiety. And thus a vicious circle is created in which irrational beliefs and fear are constantly reinforced.

The fear of leaving home

Agoraphobia is not the opposite of claustrophobia or fear of closed spaces. It is the fear of leaving home, of being in situations or going to places where it is difficult to escape or find help..

Deep down, the person who suffers from agoraphobia You fear finding yourself in situations or environments that you cannot control. So, when she is helpless, she begins to experience anxiety, which can trigger a panic attack.

Fear of leaving home or agoraphobia is associated with various fears about what can happen on the street. Among them: fear of suffering a heart attack, of not having help, of fainting, of dying, of making a fool of ourselves or of not being able to escape.

The problem is that these fears are so intense that, once on the street, the person experiences anxiety symptoms and interprets them as a dangerous situation. Thus, he will avoid leaving the house, which in turn will generate more fear the next time he goes out. Therefore, it creates a circle of anxiety that is increasingly reinforced and with less freedom.

Furthermore, the condition can be aggravated by exposure to news about your environment. Hearing or reading news about some risks or violent events can make a person experience more fear, reinforcing their idea that leaving home is dangerous.

Symptoms

As with any anxiety disorder, the person experiences a set of physical symptoms. Among the most common are the following:

Chest pain. Feeling of suffocation. Hyperventilation. Dizziness. Fainting. Nausea or other digestive system discomfort. Increased heart rate. Sweating or shaking.

Additionally, the following psychological symptoms are usually experienced:

Fear of being alone. Fear of not being able to escape.Fear of losing control.Dependency on other people.Feelings of distance from others.Hopelessness.Derealization or feeling that the environment is unreal.Depersonalization or feeling of separation from one’s own body.Agitation or irritability.Avoidance of social situations.Staying at home for a long time.

How to overcome the fear of leaving home

If it is an agoraphobia disorder, The best way to overcome it is to go to psychological therapy. There the beliefs surrounding fear will be adequately addressed and exposure strategies will be taught in a controlled manner.

For its part, if this fear is experienced in a mild way or does not meet the necessary criteria to be agoraphobia, a series of exercises can be performed that can help overcome it.

Do relaxation and breathing exercises

Relaxation is essential in the treatment of anxiety and to reduce activation in any situation. These techniques allow you to release tension and calm the mindhelping to take a more clarifying perspective and allowing us to face situations from a lower level of anxiety.

Express fears and dismantle them

Fear is generated by a series of intrusive, negative and, generally, irrational thoughts. Thus, it is important to verbalize thoughts and communicate feelings. This allows you to analyze the situation and know what ideas specifically are generating or reinforcing fear.

Once identified, it is very useful to dismantle these beliefs individually or with help. This will take a more rational perspective and, probably, the fear will decrease.

Learn the technique of self-instructions

This psychological technique It consists of learning to give instructions to yourself in a certain situation. For example, create a series of comments that you should tell yourself when you suffer an anxiety attack.

Some ideas may be “nothing serious will happen to me”, “I can take care of myself”, “the anxiety is temporary and will go away”, “I can relax and continue what I was doing” or “it has happened to me before and I’m still alive, there’s nothing to worry about.”

Train the imagination

Imagining yourself facing feared situations can be very helpful if done repeatedly. To do this, in a relaxed way, you must visualize yourself walking down the street or going to places that generate anxiety.

You can make a list of situations that generate fear, order them from least to greatest intensity and work on them in an orderly manner through your imagination.

Once you imagine the situation, you have to visualize yourself facing all the possibilities, including experiencing an anxiety attack. This strategy It will allow you to dismantle beliefs, by seeing yourself and feeling capable of controlling it.. In addition, it will help you find emotional and behavioral resources to face fear and situations.

Progressive exposure

Once the imagination exercises have been completed, it is time to move on to the live presentation. It must be done gradually, starting with a few minutes and lengthening the time. in each exhibition a little more. You can do as in the previous point and prepare a gradual list of situations to face.

It is important start the exposure being in an optimal state of relaxation and trying not to escape when anxiety increases.

To do this, try not to focus on the symptoms and remember to repeat to yourself that you are capable of controlling the situation and relaxing again, that nothing bad is going to happen, you just need a moment to breathe.

Get your life back

In addition to these specific steps, It is important to recover the routine and stay focused on everything there is to do out there. It can help you to take walks in quiet places, meet with friends, etc. Likewise, avoid taking stimulants such as caffeine or alcohol, as they can lead to a state of alertness that worsens anxiety.

Above all, be patient. Overcoming the fear of leaving the house is not an easy task. However, with small efforts you can achieve something as big as taking back your life, directing how you feel and organizing your time.

However, remember that if you do not feel able to achieve this on your own and your anxiety increases, go to a mental health specialist to overcome it.

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