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Why
not join chat
or find more information on the forum
Hello ... Again not much
here at the moment!!!
This is where people can put down there experiences of there phobias
how it's affected there lives, how it's affecting there life now, if
they've managed to overcome their phobia and what helped them overcome
it, Hopefully it will help us all knowing were not alone in suffering,
If you would like to see your story here just email me with it, you
can contact me (Paul) by clicking on "Contact Us"
I think if people can see
how panic and phobias affect other people it will only help them in
there isolation.
It doesn't have to be too long, it can be about what phobia you suffer
from, how long you've suffered from it how it's affected/affecting you,
It doesn't really matter what the phobia is if you think it might help
others then that's great, also you don't have to put a name to "My
Story" it can be Anon if you wish, but i reserve the right not
to include it if i think it may offend other people.
Ok I've managed to put something
down so here goes .....
Where do I start, I know from the beginning?
Well I started off with agoraphobia and panic attacks about 19 years
ago now, how did it start, well I can remember that day as if it was
yesterday,
I’d been out that night
with my brother drinking it was December time there was snow on the
ground, that night I’d had a bit to drink and was feeling a bit
rough,
Before this though I’d never heard of agoraphobia or knew anyone
with it or panic attacks, anyway I got home about 11pm only to find
that my daughter had been ill so we had to call the doctor out, he gave
us a prescription for in the morning and left after he left my daughter
was physically I`ll, this didn’t make me feel too good especially
with the drink,
I woke in the morning and
I went off walking to the shops to collect the prescription I was rapped
up warm as it was so cold out, I still felt a little hung over from
the night before but nothing I hadn’t felt before, I got to the
chemist and it was full of people so I handed the prescription in and
decided to wait for it, because it was so busy they told me it would
be a while before it was ready, I thought no problem I’ll wait,
well as I was waiting in the chemist I started to feel hot and dizzy
I put this down to the hangover from the night before, so I just went
outside for some fresh air and to cool down a bit, I went back into
the shop and the same feelings returned, dizziness and feeling hot I
felt like I was going to pass out, so again I went outside, I must have
done this about 4 times, in the end it got so bad I left the prescription
there and returned home it was only a 5 minute walk away and I felt
ok,
The next day I decided to
go to town on the bus we got on the bus no problem travelled into town
which was about a 15 minutes bus ride away,
It was only after about 10 minutes after getting off the bus into town
which was very busy because of the time of year that I started to have
the same feelings I’d had in the shop I couldn’t understand
this or what was happening to me, so I decided to walk out of the town
to where it was less busy as I did so that’s when the first panic
attack really hit me, at the time I didn’t know what was happening
or what it was but all the same it felt like I was going to die, the
pounding heart, the dizziness feeling like I was going to pass out,
well at this stage I was so scared that I told my partner to phone my
friend to come and pick us up, the waiting for him was unreal the panic
was still there and I still didn’t know what was wrong with me,
I managed to get home in the car as we neared home I started to feel
a bit better, got back to the flat and had something to eat and felt
ok,
The next day I decided to
go visit some friends, well on the way there the same feelings returned
so I thought I’d just carry on walking and I’d be fine,
but no it got worse in the end I turned around and headed back home,
it wasn’t until I got back that I started to feel ok again, I
decided then to make an appointment with the doctor to find out was
going on,
Well while waiting in the room to see the doctor the feelings came back
yet again I couldn’t believe it, up until this point I’ve
travelled abroad I was working went out to the pub most nights thought
nothing of going to the shops and town etc,
The doctor couldn’t
find anything wrong with me so he gave me some medication to take which
were Oxazepam, I left the doctors still feeling what I now know is panicky,
Anyway as time went on I became more and more Agoraphobia until it got
to the stage that I was housebound, at about the same time there was
a piece in the local paper about Agoraphobia and panic attacks someone
had just started a local support group up, everything they seemed to
put in the paper matched my symptoms exactly, so I phoned the group
up and they sent me some information and a relaxation tape through,
I received this and started to read it I couldn’t believe that
after about a year I could put a name to it,
Well I started to feel a
bit better and with help from my friends who now seemed to understand
a little more helped me to start going out, at first it wasn’t
very far I was lucky if I could make it to 100 yards before the panic
would return,
So at the same time I decided to start and get fit again and also listen
to the relaxation tape, over about a period of about 3 years I got to
the stage where I could travel anywhere and I did, it was like being
reborn again I had so much fun I didn’t have any problems going
to the shops etc,
To cut a long story short … probably boring you now hehe …
10 years later I was out
shopping and suddenly felt hot and dizzy again at the time I thought
nothing of it as I’d almost forgotten what it was like to panic,
anyway I was only about 5 minutes drive from home so I got back into
the car and drove home, but this time the symptoms were still there
and this time I was feeling as dizzy as I’ve ever done and was
running a temperature so we called the doctor out to see me I know at
the time I was suffering from the flu but thought nothing of it as other
people get over it, the doctor came out to see me and told me to rest
and I’d be fine I did this for a few days and I though I was ok
so decided to got out for a drive, well yup you guessed it the panic
ounce again hit me and I ended up driving as quickly as I could to get
back home ….. well here I am again back where I started as I’m
typing this I’m as good as housebound, Living 6 floors up hasn't
helped me at all,
But hopefully one day I'll get a ground floor flat which I know will
help me to overcome it once more,
Any way I decided to set
up this website so other people can come and find out about different
phobias and talk to like minded people,
One good thing is I never give up hope of getting over this as I’ve
managed it once before. Remember plenty of positive thinking and the
right help and we will get there in the end.
Jk. (Paul)
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Web Site
News:
I am a psychiatrist with over 30 years’ experience of
working with agoraphobia and have written “Freedom From
Agoraphobia.” This is a program for overcoming agoraphobia
both for people who have the condition and for therapists.
In order to make its contents available to more people, I
shall be sending in the educational portions of this book
as articles free to subscribers to Phobics-Awareness.org.
Mark Eisenstadt, M.D.
Read More
Here
There are Thirteen articles now.
We would like to welcome Steve Woods to the
site, I am the Hypnotist, Chinosis Coach and joint Director
of Positive Thoughts based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire.
I also spend a lot of time in Birmingham so have a business
base there, My qualifications are R.Hyp, R.Chi.C, S.N.H.S.
Dip(Hypnotherapy). I am a Member of the Academy of Hypnotic
Arts (M.A.H.A.).
Steve is going to help out with any Q&A you may have,
The Q&A will be on the
Forum
Under Hypnosis.
You can find Steve's site Here
New Book:
We though agoraphobics may be interested in this book.
Jack Madigan is, by many accounts, blessed. Thanks to his
legendary rock star father, he lives an enviable existence
in a once-glorious, but now crumbling, Boston town house with
his teenage son, Harlan. There's just one problem: Jack is
agoraphobic. While living on his dad's dwindling royalties
hasn't been easy, Jack and Harlan have bumbled along just
fine. Until the money runs out...and so does Jack's luck Read
More
click the banner below to visit
www.hypnoshop.com
Self Hypnosis is a powerful tool for making positive changes
within your life. Hypnosis has been used for centuries and
has been put to many great uses, helping millions of people
to stop smoking, lose weight, conquer fears and phobias, and
much more.
Relaxation Tapes & CD's
We are hoping to offer tapes and CD's very soon, The only
cost will be for postage and packing, We believe in trying
to keep the price as low as possible, You can find some CD's
on the forum
Storm Phobias
I know this time of year in the UK can be a worrying time
for people who suffer from storm phobias,
Especially thunder and lightning, I will be working on this
part of the site over the next few weeks, In the mean time
I've added a lightning detector so you can see where the storms
are, It refreshes every 60 seconds, You can find It Here
Also check out the Net Weather web site Here.
More about Storm Phobia Here
Books
The Driving Fear Program
The Driving Fear program is a self-help resource for those
with a fear of driving, or a driving related phobia such as
fear of highways or bridges. It includes articles on specific
coping techniques and a comprehensive e-book program in use
by clinicians and individuals worldwide, Find out more Here
.
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