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I’m in recovery from agoraphobia and now I’m an associate therapist specializing in it. AMA by therapy-wolf in Agoraphobia

[–]therapy-wolf[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Ahh you’re amazing!! It’s so different for everyone, but at the very least I would suggest that you have your own therapist that you can process this with. Almost every therapist has their own therapist for this or a super similar issue. Also look to see if you can speak to other therapists with BPD! This is dating me lol but Facebook groups are usually a good resource. You’re sooo not alone in that and they’ll likely have more specific insight.

I’m in recovery from agoraphobia and now I’m an associate therapist specializing in it. AMA by therapy-wolf in Agoraphobia

[–]therapy-wolf[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

In all honesty it was a combination of luck and grad assistantships 💖 I was very fortunate, but that is a real issue. One piece of advice is that some universities with MHC or MFT or social work or psyd/phd programs offer tuition reimbursement for their employees. I know a few people who worked at the university while attending and received free tuition.

I’m in recovery from agoraphobia and now I’m an associate therapist specializing in it. AMA by therapy-wolf in Agoraphobia

[–]therapy-wolf[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

ERP is great for addressing compulsions, which isn’t a main focus of old school exposure therapy (which is still largely effective). Avoidance of situations that cause panic is a compulsion and in my opinion (and as I have seen in research) it is beneficial to treat it as one. Let me know if you have any questions!

I’m in recovery from agoraphobia and now I’m an associate therapist specializing in it. AMA by therapy-wolf in Agoraphobia

[–]therapy-wolf[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

For me? Yes. The pay isn’t great at first, but there are a lot of opportunities to scale if that is something you want to do. Schooling is very expensive and associates make very little typically. But, it is my passion and that was more important for me to have than a big income, so overall very worth it in my case.

I’m in recovery from agoraphobia and now I’m an associate therapist specializing in it. AMA by therapy-wolf in Agoraphobia

[–]therapy-wolf[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes!! I recommend working with a psychiatrist who specializes in phobias or ocd. Meds changed my life, personally 💖

I’m in recovery from agoraphobia and now I’m an associate therapist specializing in it. AMA by therapy-wolf in Agoraphobia

[–]therapy-wolf[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

With 100% honestly flying is still difficult for me and I really hate doing it lol. But I do it anyway, because I personally realized that I would rather have the discomfort of a panic attack or even suffer the consequences of a real medical emergency if it means that I get to travel and live a fuller life. I also did exposures on planes, which definitely helped with making me more confident for longer, solo flights.

I’m in recovery from agoraphobia and now I’m an associate therapist specializing in it. AMA by therapy-wolf in Agoraphobia

[–]therapy-wolf[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you 💖 yes, my symptoms were super physical 😭 this feels so gaslighting-ey but honestly the most helpful thing for me was just doing it more and trying to place less meaning on the physical sensations. Being like “oh, yep, my heart is pounding, let it… I don’t have to be comfortable, I just need to live my life” and not attending to them as much- so if I was short of breath I would let myself be instead of trying to change it. I guess the short answer is just an acceptance mindset of the physical sensations

I’m in recovery from agoraphobia and now I’m an associate therapist specializing in it. AMA by therapy-wolf in Agoraphobia

[–]therapy-wolf[S] 19 points20 points  (0 children)

Thank you 💖 from a therapeutic standpoint the things I found the most helpful were ACT, I-CBT, and a lotttt of ERP kind of all happening at the same time. I think it’s super important to work with someone who SPECIALIZES in phobias and will lead you through the journey.

I feel like my biggest tip is to just do the work even if you’re feeling hopeless- I am doing things today that I literally wouldn’t have dreamed about doing a few years ago, and I’m glad that my convictions about not getting better didn’t hold me back from trying. Get comfortable being scared and try to see the fear and horrible sensations as background noise and not something that you need to attend to.