Agoraphobia and monophobia are two common anxiety responses that can occur during benzodiazepine withdrawal. These conditions can be highly distressing and significantly impact an individual’s quality of life. In this blog post, we will discuss what agoraphobia and monophobia are, their symptoms, and some ways to cope with them.
Agoraphobia
Agoraphobia, otherwise known as ‘fear of the marketplace,’ is an anxiety response to busy public places such as supermarkets, shopping centers, buses, trains, planes, and airports. However, any public place – a quiet church or an empty park – may seem threatening. Any situation or place where escape may be difficult or embarrassing or where help may not be readily available in case of a panic attack can be triggering to someone in benzodiazepine withdrawal/BIND.
Monophobia
Monophobia, on the other hand, is an intense fear of being alone. People with monophobia may feel anxious and panicky when they are by themselves. This fear can lead to various physical symptoms, such as trembling, sweating, rapid heartbeat, and intrusive thoughts.
During benzodiazepine withdrawal
During benzodiazepine withdrawal/BIND, agoraphobia and monophobia can occur and range from tolerable to severe. Here are some strategies that may help if you suffer from either or both of these symptoms.
- Seek support from others
A strong support system is crucial when coping with benzodiazepine withdrawal/BIND. Talk to your friends and family about how you’re feeling, and let them know what they can do to support you. Consider joining a positive support group for benzo withdrawal/BIND. Don’t suffer in silence.
- Practice relaxation techniques
Relaxation techniques like deep breathing, meditation, and yoga can help reduce anxiety and calm your mind. Try to set aside some time each day to practice these techniques. You may also find listening to calming music or nature sounds helpful. Spotify has a channel called Peaceful Retreat that is very relaxing. Avoid listening to binaural beats, as they can be triggering.
- Observe your thoughts/feelings
Negative thoughts/feelings can fuel benzo withdrawal/BIND symptoms, so it’s important to simply observe them. Don’t believe them. Negative thoughts/feelings arise because the nervous system is in the protect state of fight, flight, or freeze due to the lack of GAB receptors to keep things calm. When you notice yourself having negative thoughts/feelings, observe them and remind yourself that “state drives story.” The state of your nervous system is fueling them, not the truth about you or the world around you. Remind yourself that you are safe, even in a situation or place that triggers your symptoms. Remind yourself you’ve gotten through similar experiences and will get through this one.
- Take small steps
If you’re struggling with agoraphobia or monophobia, it’s important to take small steps. For example, you could start by taking a short walk and gradually increasing the distance. You could spend a few minutes alone, reminding yourself you are safe. Celebrate your successes, no matter how small they may seem. Don’t judge yourself if you cannot face your fears at times. Try again when you feel more able.
- Practice self-care
Taking care of yourself is important in benzodiazepine withdrawal/BIND. Do your best to embrace the four cornerstones of well-being, eat right (WFPB), move enough, stress less, and love well. Learning something new and distracting yourself from your symptoms are wonderful ways to practice self-care.
In conclusion
Agoraphobia and monophobia can be difficult withdrawal/BIND symptoms. Thankfully, they do fade away in time. With good support and coping strategies, you can reduce your suffering.
Join the conversation
Feel free to leave a comment and tell us about your experience with agoraphobia or monophobia. What did you do to cope?
I have had both of these plus claustrophobia. The claustrophobia is the worse. I am home for most of the except when my husband gets me out for a couple of hours which appears to be easier than being at home. Why is this. I wonder if the fact that I have to spend most of my time laying in bed as sitting up is very difficult for me. Have been laying down for around 3 years except for 2-3 hours a day.
I am so sorry you have these symptoms. It can take some of us a long time to recover. But always seek medical attention to rule out other causes of symptoms to set your mind at ease. Gentle exercise can be helpful for so many reasons, so I hope you will continue to get out and try to add more time to your outings when you can. Keep healing! Sending you lots of positive energy.
Hi Dr.Leigh, Do you recommend any professional psychiatrist that specialize in overcoming the two of these? I would like to work with someone weekly to get through this. Someone who accepts insurance? Really wanting to find someone I can afford on a weekly basis to push me and to walk with me through this tough season. I have been reading a lot of self help books but they do not do much for me and I can’t afford 150 weekly. ( 600 a month) I feel that if I only see you once a month that it’s not going to hold me accountable to push on a daily basis. Any suggestions or recommendations I would be so grateful for.
Thank you,
Christy
I have both of these and also have a fear of having people visit me. I never had any of these issues before taking/tapering psych meds. I even get anxious about having friends or relatives visit because I feel like I can’t cope with the stimulation. It’s a very lonely time because I don’t like being alone but having people over stresses me. It’s like I’m just living in my head all the time, if that makes any sense. 😪
How do you feel about exposure therapy during tapering or is it best to wait until taper is complete and some healing time has passed? And why is it one day I can drive to the pharmacy drive through with manageable anxiety and the next day going to the mailbox puts me in a panic? Thank you!
I had really severe monophobia during my benzo withdrawal.As soon as I got up in the morning I had to get out of the house and go anywhere there were people otherwise I would get real panicky. I spent most of my days at the bookstore,library,park, stores and restaurants(I ate out alot;couldnt tolerate being home to prepare a meal) I also joined some meetup groups so I could be around lots of people.All of this happened before the pandemic thanks goodness. This lasted about two years and then finally little by little I became more comfortable being alone in my home! Now I have become a homebody and actually enjoy being alone so it does get better!
Thanks for sharing your experience. These fears do go away as we heal!
We don’t know why one day we are able to do things, but another day, it feels impossible. Windows and waves may be at play. I am not big on exposure therapy during benzo withdrawal. I’ve had clients try it with no success. We don’t have a fully functioning nervous system, so it causes more anxiety than it does to help us rewire and learn. Most people don’t need therapy for these fears once they are healed as these fears ar symptoms of benzo withdrawal and go away on their own as we heal.
It makes total sense to me. Most of us can relate to “living in our heads.” It goes away in time. Keep healing.
I don’t know of anyone who is fully trained in benzo withdrawal who can help. But please keep in mind that these fears go away on their own as we recover. They are present due to a hyperexcited nervous system, not due to any psychological issues of our own. Put into practice the four cornerstones of well-being and practice acceptance, patience, gratitude and distraction. Learning something new is very helpful as well, as it takes the spotlight off ourselves and our suffering plus gives us a nice dose of dopamine, the reward neurotransmitter that feels yummy!