Agoraphobia Treatment Options

Agoraphobia Treatment – Part 2: Cognitive Therapy

Cognitive therapy for agoraphobia focuses on identifying and correcting habitual, irrational thought patterns that are at the root of anxiety, panic and fear.

Common forms of cognitive therapy used to treat agoraphobia include:

1) Thought replacing: also called "cognitive restructuring," is the most common form of cognitive therapy used for agoraphobia by psychologists. To practice thought replacing, a person learns techniques to become aware of his or her own thoughts, to identify the specific types of irrational thinking that contribute to agoraphobia, and to go through a step-by-step procedure for replacing irrational thoughts with more constructive ones.

2) Thought Stopping: The technique of thought stopping is just what it sounds like. Once a person learns to identify irrational thinking, he or she may think or say the word, "stop" or do some distracting activity like snapping a rubber band on his or her wrist each time an irrational thought arises. The main goal is to distract oneself from the irrational thought in the moment, before it leads to anxiety or panic or other agoraphobia symptoms.

3) Focusing: is another method to stop irrational thinking before it leads to agoraphobia symptoms. In focusing, the person learns techniques to willfully focus his or her attention on something in the immediate environment when an irrational thought arises.

Both behavioral and cognitive forms of therapy for agoraphobia can be successfully practiced under the guidance of a trained therapist or on your own as a self-help program.