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Complications
By Mayo Clinic staffAgoraphobia can greatly limit your life's activities. In severe cases, you may not even be able to leave your house. Without treatment, some people become housebound for years. You may not be able to visit with family and friends, go to school or work, walk your dog, run errands, or take part in other normal daily activities. You may become dependent on others for help, such as grocery shopping.
Agoraphobia can also lead to depression and anxiety. And people with agoraphobia may turn to alcohol or substance abuse to help cope with the fear, guilt, hopelessness, isolation and loneliness.
- Agoraphobia. In: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders DSM-IV-TR. 4th ed. Arlington, Va.: American Psychiatric Association; 2000. http://www.psychiatryonline.com. Accessed March 10, 2009.
- Hollander E, et al. Panic disorders. In: Hales RE, et al., eds. The American Psychiatric Publishing Textbook of Psychiatry. 5th ed. Arlington, Va.: American Psychiatric Association; 2008. http://www.psychiatryonline.com. Accessed March 10, 2009.
- Ciechanowski P. Overview of phobic disorders in adults. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed March 3, 2009.
- Shearer SL. Recent advances in the understanding and treatment of anxiety disorders. Primary Care: Clinics in Office Practice. 2007;34:475.
- Agoraphobia. In: Moore DP, et al. Handbook of Medical Psychiatry. Philadelphia, Pa.: Mosby; 2007. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/125211023-6/0/1243/85.html?tocnode=52436571&fromURL=85.html#4-u1.0-B0-323-02911-6..X5001-5--section6_797. Accessed March 10, 2009.
- Richardson WH, et al. Herbal drugs of abuse: An emerging problem. Emergency Medicine Clinics of North America. 2007;25:435.
- Hall-Flavin DK (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. March 12, 2009.
