Diagnosis of Agoraphobia
A doctor after carefully excluding any or all other signs of mental & physical disorders, or diseases, that might be related to the patient's fears, diagnosis Agoraphobia.
Based on the individual's description of their symptoms, the doctor usually makes his diagnosis of Agoraphobia.
There are two characteristic features for the diagnosis of Agoraphobia namely-
- Agoraphobia with Panic attacks
- Many individuals associate the onset of their symptoms with panic attacks.
- Agoraphobia without Panic attacks.
- There are many cases where the condition sets in spontaneously depending on situations.
The doctor normally considers the following before he could make his diagnosis-
- The symptoms expressed by the patients should be due to anxiety and should not be secondary to other symptoms, like Delusions or obsessions.
- The anxiety episode must be triggered in at least two of the following situations:
- Crowds.
- Public places.
- Travelling away from home.
- Travelling alone.
- Shorter Oxford Textbook of Psychiatry (IVth Edition): Oxford University Press - Michael Gelder, Richard Mayou & Philip Cowen.
- A Short Textbook of Psychiatry (Vth Edition): Jaypee Brothers, -Niraj Ahuja, MD.
- Oxford Handbook of Clinical Specialities. 6th Edition. Oxford press. -Judith Colier, Murray longmore, Peter Scally.
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hello sir..may be i have this kind of phobia when i travel in crowded train...staying away from my family for job purpose....i feel sweating, vometing, uncomfirtable what should i do....i feel losing control on my body. is der any treatment available for this...
respected sir i am also feeling these type of fear and facing the same situation presently..... some more situation i face is that due to fear of crowd my stomach is unable to digest food due to fear whatever i had eaten 5 minutes earlier leads to 1st stomach ache then intestnal contraction and then loose motion plz help me
It isn't like me to ever be first for anything. I am 53 and have not left my home but twice in over a year. I have suffered shyness my whole life. I have had a number of stressful episodes in my life and still have been able to overcome them except this one. But now I am at the mercy of my daughter to help me and I want to find a way forward. I don't have insurance so I can't get medical help. What help is there for me????
I've had agoraphobia since I was 16 and the best book is by Claire Weeks, Simple Effective Treatment for Agoraphobia. It's simple, makes sense and really helps. The correct medication is really helpful. You can do it!
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