Sill having a hard time with agoraphobia plz help

Hey all
I'm doing better than I was before, and drove 25 min away from home and been away from home for hours during day time in the past weeks , but I still have severe anxietu while I'm out I fear not the attack it self but the fact that it will last a long time or until I get home and If I'm 30 min away panic attack lasting that long with my pulse being super high during attacks makes me think like the worst ,
Today I went out not too far ten min away and I got a panic attack and i was rushing home like a maniac it was bad ,
I know my home isn't going to save me so i know it's all mental but how do I change the thinking ?
What do I say to my self when I'm panicking my heart is pounding and I'm not close to home ?

I've don't cbt with a therapist didn't seem to help that much .

Plz plz any tips or suggestions ?
The fast pulse is my biggest trigger and I go to extreme measures to prevent my pulse going up , but me staying home isn't helping my life and Family, i don't even care about living a life for my self I just want to get better for my boys and hubby !
Agorophobia is one of the hardest things I ever had to deal with , it's super debilitating ... Its a rational feaJr but with so many bad panic expereinces while being away from homes make it real threat :(.

Post Edited (Rn1987) : 3/18/2015 12:00:22 PM (GMT-6)

Im so sorry you are going through this. I don't know of any particular books but I'm sure you could find some if you googled the condition. I had a period of this many years ago that lasted over a year so I know exactly how you are feeling. I guess the only thing I can say is to keep doing what you are doing and, believe it or not, it WILL get easier with time. I'm proud of you for trying because some people don't even do that and end up never being able to leave their homes. You are on the right track by making the effort and eventually it will get easier and easier. I never thought I would get through it but I did the same things that you are doing and with time it went away and I've never experienced it again. I will admit that when I'm particularly anxious, I feel more comfortable being at home but I can still leave when I need to. And you're right - its our bad THINKING that causes us to have these panic attacks when we go against what we think we are capable of....I still experience that myself with other issues and I have to keep fighting those myself. I usually have severe attacks when waking in the morning so my bad thinking just expects my pulse will start racing so it does....I just keep talking to myself until it finally passes but it sure is so difficult to get through....but I know you can do it. Try to keep telling yourself positive things about yourself as you're going through these attacks and the good thinking will eventually overcome the bad thinking...because that's really all it is.

I have heard that instead of trying to fight the anxiety feeling just go with it. My one therapist told me to think of my anxiety as a large ball floating around me in a pool or water. I keep trying to push the ball (my anxiety) down and what happens when I do that? It pops back up with force. But what if I leave it alone? Then it just floats around me and eventually floats away. I always think about that in the middle of a panic attack and sometimes it helps.

Hi

First of all well done on the progress you have already made as SC mentioned it is important to acknowledge this.

These things take time and you just need to try and make a small step each day and if you do have a setback try not to beat yourself up as these are to be expected. If you did not find CBT useful there are other options so maybe go and speak with your doctor about these options and see what is available to you.

Hibee

andwes
Thank you it means a lot when you guys encourage me :)
I too hope that once I beat this I'll never experience it again Like you.

Mom .
I'm sorry your going through this also :(, can you go far from your house ? And have you ever had a period during the Agorophobia that you didn't leave your house at all ?

Lisa oh how I hope that I'll get over this soon and it will all be like a bad dream , do sweet to hear someone has faith in me . Thank you for your encouraging words , today I went out and drove around did a little grocery shopping done freeway driving went okay ...
Oh how I want to be anxiety free while doing outings . :/

I can go out of town. I've been about two hours away. I am okay, if I'm not driving. When im driving, I only go around town (and not too comfortably).

There was a time, this summer, when I couldn't leave the house. The only place I went in May and June was my daughters soccer games and it was TERRIBLE. The soccer field is about two miles from my house and the games lasted about 30 minutes. And I was miserable the entire time.

I didn't start forcing myself to go places until late August. I did use Xanax while doing exposures, but I didn't take enough where I wouldn't still get some nervousness (and sometimes a lot).

My hope is like yours, to be anxiety free while being out and about. I used to love being "busy" and was the farthest thing from a homebody that you can imagine. I love traveling!! I'm just trying to be as patient as I can during this whole ordeal:)