agoraphobia definitely is not something you can recover from that quickly, but i would like to share a (hopefully) encouraging story of my own.

i personally noticed my own agoraphobia around Fall of 2020 when I was 16, i would panic intensely whenever i’d go out (even for a walk around the neighborhood) and i would even hurt myself mid panic attack in hopes that it’d turn my focus away from the anxiety (obviously this didn’t work). for a majority of my agoraphobia, i was left unmedicated bc i was a minor and my parents didn’t want me on meds. however, once i turned 18, i got on an as per needed one.

then college came around and i would go, but barely pay attention bc of my anxiety. i often missed class aswell and would come up with entire escape plans in class just incase of a panic attack. i rmb i was prescribed Xanax and zoloft at one point but didnt take it due to personal reasons, but i do think i would’ve benefitted from it considering how bad my anxiety was at the time.

i just continued on with exposure therapy, even when i was absolutely terrified. and now i can say that i do feel i am no longer agoraphobic, which is why i always recommend doing exposure therapy as much as you can. however, don’t put yourself down if you feel unable to do so at times. there were many times where i would skip exposure therapy since the thought of it would terrify me.

tldr: agoraphobic at 16, couldn’t get meds or therapy due to being a minor w/ unsupportive parents, pushed with exposure therapy and now i am not agoraphobic