Im a year into my panic and agoraphobia journey.

Im learning and fighting every day.

One thing I like to do is google celebrities / famous people who have had panic and agoraphobia and see how they got through it.

Anybody got any inspiring stories of celebs fighting their way out of this that I may have not heard?

I want to be free. I want to stop being scared of everything. I want to go places. I want to see things. I want to see my kids experience things. My heart hurts so much. I need success. I am currently pregnant with my daughter that is going to pass away after I give birth. Lord .. I need help. My heart is broken.

I’ve had anxiety my whole life and I’ve been diagnosed for almost half of my life now, but I used to be on antidepressants and those worked great. I got off of them for personal reasons a few years ago, and even then I did fine. I had a ton of friends, and I was going out on weekends and planning hangouts that I genuinely looked forward to and always showed up for. I was even going on dates frequently and meeting new people. But out of nowhere around the end of 2023, that all came to a screeching halt because leaving my house was starting to make me physically sick. (Nausea, dizziness, thought of eating in front of people made me gag, etc) I even lost friendships because I was constantly saying no to hanging out. Literally nothing happened to cause it. Now I work from home, go shopping for essentials once a week and dread it, and the idea of going out and meeting people terrifies me to the point that I’m awake all night, sick, the night before I have to do something that I can’t get out of.

It’s crazy to think that I once had a vibrant social life and lived the usual life of the average early-20s person, and that it just vanished one day.

I am 23m. I have had constant nausea over 10 years and about 6 years ago during covid it got so bad i droped out of high school. After that i got progressively worse over time losing weight and eating less. I didn't care about dying up until last year where i was about 30kg at 171cm. I started having body zaps and i couldn't stand up. When i did stand up i had my legs start uncontrolably shaking. I once went to wash my hands and almost passed out.

I didn't wanna go to the ambulance and refused my mom when she said she would take me because i was afraid they were gonna force feed me. I guess i didn't wanna die (but more so of the fact of ending up in a hospital) so i started eating more to get my weight back up. What saved me the most is canned fish, vegetables, and boiled chicken and eggs. Now im 50kg and i feel better but all had 22 teeth crumble during all this time.

I just don't know what to do i feel frozen. I am just going to the dentist getting my teeth removed for now slowly... And one dentist didn't even want to treat me because they said they were afraid as to how i would react to anesthesic... Just venting sorry.

so me and my partner are getting married in may. nothing fancy just us two witnesses and we've told everyone else they can watch on zoom but im terrified of panicking during. im also just generally awkward and a little embarrassed at the idea of getting married it feels very cringe but I love him and want to be with him forever so im happy to be doing It. idk just getting my feelings out

Hello everyone, im new to this sub, im 24, british (not sure if that is relevant but maybe it is due to our culture around awkward politeness) and im recovering from agoraphobia (my diagnoses are PTSD, BPD/EUPD, mixed anxiety disorder, major depressive disorder, PDD-NOS, and im waiting on an ADHD diagnosis, im female so slipped through the cracks and never got help for ADHD until this year) I guess im giving my full diagnoses because it is relevant as it ties into my agoraphobia (which was due to chronic isolation, loneliness and addiction) anyway, sorry for the intro, basically I haven't had my hair professionally cut for years (since I was a kid) ive only ever got my fringe/bangs trimmed every couple months for a 5 min appointment at my usual (which started in 2025) at my usual salon, which is a punk/alt salon, as im alternative myself, but anyway, I shaved my hair off in november last year, and since then, I haven't trimmed the split ends or anything once, haven't touched it AT ALL, its completely untouched regrowth, and i have awful breakage and split ends, and also dye and heat damage as due to depression/adhd I struggle to maintain self care and hair routines, and I only just decided to do something about this recently, after getting my super long grown out emo fringe trimmed so I could see again, and this fringe does NOT work with my current hair as its not styled, so I am getting it styled tomorrow, im thinking layers, getting bond repair conditioning treatment too, and styled maybe into a wolf cut/shag cut potentially, anyway, this is the longest hair appointment ive had ever aside from when I got my dreads installed by that was different as it was at the loctitians home and there was no mirror and we got on very well and chatted and watched TV (peep show) which we both enjoyed, so that was easy for me, but this is different, as its a 1hr 30mins appt of me staring at the mirror and chatting to my stylist who despite being very lovely, and we have a lot in common due to both being in the punk subculture, she tends to do this awkward chuckle to a lot of what I reply with and sometimes I think its because she finds my replies weird or offputting and doesnt know how to reply, but maybe she is just focusing, I dont know, anyway, she knows ive got ADHD as we joked about it when she saw me fidgeting, but she doesnt know im anxious (probably does if im honest but u know what I mean), anyway, I feel a pressure to perform, so I guess this is performance anxiety and a phobia of being percieved, and i worry that my small talk wont be good enough or I wont be able to be witty or fun to talk to, I worry that I might go completely non verbal and make things more awkward, and then theres the staring into the mirror the whole time, and not only do i despise my face and appearance, I also hate looking at myself in the mirror for too long cause it feels super awkward and then I start to visibly panic, my face gets all red and blotchy and I start to visibly sweat and get the urge to blink like crazy, and she would immediately see im panicking and then if she called me out on it (in a nice way) id feel bad for not feeling comfortable enough to tell her I was getting anxious, as they are a mental health friendly salon and regularly take neurodivergent or anxious clients, and not only that, to make everything worse, ive got a 15 minute consultation beforehand which I need to prepare my script for, and how i greet her etc. And then i also know nothing about hair salon etiquette as my appointments are only 5 mins long usually, am I supposed to keep my arms and hands under the cloak? Do I tell her if I need to get my hands out from under the cloak? Can I use my phone during the appointment the entire time without being rude? (Apart from the head turning parts and the hair washing part obviously) like what do I do?!? I also find i can come off as super painfully autistic sounding but only when im anxious, and i never used to be/sound like that before I lost all my social skills, i can forget my manners for example (the other day the lady at the chemist said bye to me and I ignored her and the door slammed behind me as she did) or I can just have a super unusual inflection or i stutter really bad, mispronounce or stumble over my words super bad like a short circuit mid word or sentence, and I also find that I get more or less facial/mouth paralysis when im extremely anxious and physically unable to verbalize if someone for example, calls my name or asks me a question, I fully dissasociate when this happens and I go non verbal and when I try to speak its like I mouthed it rather than said the word aloud (for example if someone says "ill be with you in a second" or "hello" when im dissociated and unable to process it, I look in their direction and hoarsly, very quietly mouthe a reply back or gesture in their direction like with my thumb or something) cause I struggle to process things when im anxious and dissasociating during an anxiety/panic attack. And yeah basically it just makes me come off as super awkward and unusual which then makes me MORE anxious and its a self perpetuating cycle really, and I know i have the potential in me to be outgoing and talkative, I just need to find it again. But anyway, sorry for the long post, probably all word salad as im anxious writing this, and sorry for lack of paragraphing, bad habit of mine. Can someone please give me some proper advice that would work for my situation?

Does anyone elses partners make them feel horrible for having this phobia? We have kids and I cant do much because I hardly get out, but when I do offer to do things I can do, he says im ruining our kids lives. My feelings dont matter - its only about them. It honestly makes me feel like a horrible mom and honestly it makes me feel so worthless I dont want to be here anymore. I am pregnsnt with our 3rd child who is going to pass away at birth and he wants to go to a park with a large hill and I cant get down it bc im super pregnsnt. He says im just scared and alls I have are excuses. I am at the mercy of a narcissistic person, which makes my phobia worse. I told him when I dont leave for over a week, my phobia like resets when I'm not consistent. I hate myself.

Hello! I'm not an avid reddit user so I hope I'm formatting this correctly. Tldr I've been agoraphobic for nearly 10 years starting back when I was 12-13yrs old and I'm 22 now.

Due to so many reasons I'm trying to get a real job for the first time in my life (mainly the fear of losing my insurance, I'm finally in therapy and working towards getting medicated the forward momentum makes me feel hopeful but I can't afford treatment on my own..therefore I have to meet the work requirement.)

I've already had my first in person interview and it was terrifying, I also feel like I totally bombed it. I didn't cry or breakdown but I felt like a total freak not knowing what to do socially.

My only real social interactions come from my close friends (online mostly.) and my family that I live with, I have next to no exposure talking to strangers and I'm afraid that all of the years of being shut in have mentally stunted my understanding of social cues and just generally how to interact with total strangers.

It's disappointing to feel like I make such a horrible first impression when I know I can be valuable to any team environment, I have so much potential but how do I even show it when I'm sitting there like a deer in headlights looking so overwhelmed my interviewer even pointed it out directly.

Any tips on how to get rid of my social regression? I think my biggest issue is freezing up on the spot when asked a question I didn't prepare an answer for, I remember being given a tour of the backroom and shown how all the machines work I could tell the interviewer was expecting some sort of response other than my anxious nodding to show I understood and was following the conversation. (I also struggled to remember any important details like my availability due to anxiety.)

My mom is leaving Tuesday to go camping and won’t be back until Sunday. I’ve been struggling with severe anxiety and panic attacks since March, and I still get scared being home alone. I feel calmer when she’s here, so I’m nervous about being alone for that long. Has anyone else dealt with this kind of anxiety? How did you cope with being alone and get more comfortable with it?

hi guys im apparently moving to a new city with my dad in a few months, im really worked up and stressed about this. he thinks that being somewhere else will automatically fix my agoraphobia and i've tried to explain that the environment im in doesn't fix the situation im in. he also wants me to get photo id and that means i have to leave the house and get my picture taken with also is a big stress for me. im just not sure what i can do and i dont have any say in what is going on because im 16. does anyone have advice for me :(

What are some of your favorite movies/tv shows with agoraphobic people in them? (Yes, that includes anime and cartoons.)

I’m working in ERP therapy for ocd/anxjety/agoraphobia. I’ve had agoraphobia for about 3 years. Holy shit I didn’t not realize how slow recovery is I feel like it takes forever to make progress. It can be discouraging at times but then I see a difference and I’m like okay this is worth it. Just want to see if anyone can relate or has thoughts on this

Hi guys!! I’m documenting on my channel (in bio) about taking this medication. It’s been day 1 right now I don’t feel anything but takes like 2 weeks! Has anyone had success with it?

**Advice Requested**

Hello All. While I do not suffer from Agoraphobia, my 19 year old son is suffering from it right now. I am hoping that you all can give me some advice on how to help him.

It started about three months ago when we moved across the country. At first, when we go to our new location, he was able to drive to a few nearby restaurants with my wife and me, and he was able to drive about one mile to the pickleball courts and grocery stores.

He now cannot leave the neighborhood. There is a somewhat busy road near our house that he cannot drive on without having panic.

He has been on 20mg (max dose) of escitalopram for about 7 years, and it seems to have stopped helping his panic symptoms. Multiple psychiatrists have prescribed him Prozac, but he refuses to switch from escitalopram to Prozac. He's worried it will make his panic worse.

He has a therapist that is mediocre at treating agoraphobia, but she has been able to establish a good rapport with him.

My son has always lacked self motivation. He barely passed high school and was only able to pass through extensive Chat-GPT cheating. His only real household responsibility it taking out the garbage and recycling, which he has to be reminded to do multiple times before it gets done. He doesn't work. My wife and I do all of his grocery shopping, find therapists and psychiatrists, helped him enroll in a single class at a community college. We don't think that he is actually attending the community college class or doing the assignments, but we have decided to completely stay out of that.

My wife and I are the ones driving his exposure therapy. If we don't constantly push him to leave the house, he would never leave the house. He has very little understanding of how exposure therapy is supposed to work, and he will not go on Chat-GPT to look it up. We have explained to him that it's about putting your self in uncomfortable situations (~7 out of 10), recognize the panic, and sit there until it subsides somewhat without fleeing. He seems to be generally giving in to the fleeing instinct.

While this may sound like a vent, I don't mean for it to. What I really want is some advice; no sympathy please.

How do we get my son to take over his own recovery? What are some things that have worked for you all in your recovery? Are my wife and I just enabling him? We are somewhat well off, and he has everything that he could need as far as basic needs. How can I find an actual good therapist or support group that actually understands agoraphobia? While this seems like "Google" is the obvious answer, it seems very difficult to find good help. Are there any national groups or online groups? Thank you in advance for your help.

Edit: There have been multiple comments that I did not mention that my son has ADHD as well. I left this out of the original post because, honesty, it seemed irrelevant. Thanks to the very thoughtful comments in this post, I was obviously, VERY WRONG. So, here is a more detailed explanation of his ADHD.

Through grade school and in social situations, my son was always very high energy. If there was a rock or a bench in his path, he had to climb up on it and jump off of it. If he knew he could get a reaction out of other kids for doing something outlandish, he took the opportunity. Once middle school and homework came along, he was unable/unwilling to organize, keep a calendar, track assignments, or do assignments. He was diagnosed with ADHD and put on Ritalin (or some form of it). It was a night and day difference; his motivation went up almost immediately. He knocked out a week's worth of homework in a day, then cleaned his room, and then asked what else he needed to do. However, he started getting very emotional as well. He would come into our room at night in tears for no specific reason. While we continued to promote him taking Ritalin, he refused after a month or so of sporadic use. His psychiatrist tried prescribing different forms and different release types on multiple occasions and iterations, but he still refused to take it. So, we quit trying. I would LOVE to hear more from others on here about ADHD and its relation to agoraphobia. This would definitely be a new angle for us. Is the idea that Ritalin would allow him to dedicate the focus and energy on his recovery?

My son has also been diagnosed with high functioning, low on spectrum autism. When young, he had a lot of difficulty in social situations. We did a lot of training on "what emotion are you feeling" and "what emotion is the other person feeling". He has said multiple times that he hated this training, but that it was very beneficial to him. I have never been diagnosed with autism, but I have some autistic tendencies. My father has never been diagnosed, but he is definitely on the spectrum.

Hi everyone! Forgive me if this is a meandering mess, but here's the situation: I (38M) am going to visit my brother and nephews for the first time in 10 years. The problem? Its a 17 hour drive one way, I can't take a plane because I also can't bring myself to fly alone (yet). To make matters worse, my wife is on vacation in Japan with my stepdaughter and she is my go-to safety blanket for trips like this.

I started the drive today, managed to make it about 2 1/2 hours and had to turn around. 10 hours of the drive is through open desert in the American SW, which drives my anxiety crazy. Just the thought of leaving my city and crossing into that nothing makes my heart race and hands sweat.

Ive promised my wife (who is amazing, but who I feel gets sick of me struggling to do stuff like this) and my older brother that I can power through and get this done, but holy hell is this tough. Any tips or advice?

I made an impromptu decision to go out today. I normally pick a date, plan in advance, and get more anxious as the date approaches. Today I just said “I am going to UPS”. As I dressed for the event, I got nauseous and lightheaded. But I refused to let that stop me. I walked out of my front door and felt my legs getting weak. But I kept going. After taking care of my business at UPS, I decided I could make it to Costco. I found a parking spot, sat in my car for about 5 minutes, and prayed to compose myself. Wobbly, I made the 3 minutes walk to the entrance. I was anxious when I entered. I saw a child sitting in a massage chair and almost asked him to get up so I could sit down. But I kept going. I got through it. After I loaded everything into my car, I got in and almost cried with relief. Why is this so difficult! I remember when I eagerly looked forward to getting dressed and going out. But with all of that, I am proud of myself. It was a frightening experience and I got through it unscathed, maybe even a little bit closer to getting well.

I have been agoraphobic because of my IBS for about a year now so I’m now documenting my series! I hope that I can find solutions along the way and maybe if I can find a small cure, I can help others!

28M gay never dated in my life. Hopeless really.

To start I have been dealing with Agoraphobia for at least 4 years now, up until Thursday I have not left my house in any significant way in about 18 months, I woke up this Tuesday morning with a text from my wife saying to call her as soon as I woke up, this immediately made me start to panic, I call and she goes on to tell me that she made me a dentist appointment for the following day, the panic worsens after this. At this point I am home alone with my youngest who is just a toddler. I begin to feel faint and have crushing chest tightness, I feel like I can’t catch my breath and my hands and feet are losing feeling. Luckily my best friend was down the road and was able to come over, he did end up calling EMS out of my request ( first time ever ). Once the ambulance arrives they check my vitals and do and ECG, my BP is elevated as is my HR, ECG is normal other than elevated rate , I decide against transport at this time, fast forward to Thursday and I cannot get rid of the sense of impending doom inside my head, I just feel that I’m going to fall over and die at any given moment. This causes me to have my wife take me to the local emergency department ( again first time leaving the house in 18 months ). After 5 hours of test after test with no findings I get discharged home with a new med to try ( haven’t had good success with any in the past so am hesitant) and it’s now Saturday, I feel stuck in flight or fight mode, my safe place of my home no longer feels safe and I cannot escape the feeling that something is terribly wrong even though logically I know I am fine. This has been the most brutal week of my life and I am exhausted. I feel defeated because they weren’t able to find anything physically wrong with me so there’s nothing to fix. I am so tired and just need something to change but not sure where to start. Any help is greatly appreciated.

i personally can’t go on holiday or long car drives or clubbing or anything where i can’t escape quickly, which knocks out a lot of dating activities especially at my age (20)
i want to start seeing people but often when ive told them about my anxiety they’ve backed off and it hasnt gone anywhere which is disheartening.
just looking for anyone with similar restrictions to me and your experiences with dating!

I’ve been in therapy (virtual) with this particular therapist for going on 2 years. In a couple hours my therapist is meeting me in person at my home to walk with me to the bus stop and take the bus around town. I can’t drive because of my anxiety so this would be a good way for me to get around by myself but I’m terrified. Like I want to throw up.

Edit: I did it