*ANOTHER* question for agoraphobics.

[belle]

Hi all,
I'm nosey, forgive me!!!!
Just wondered and if you don't mind telling me...
(In either distance or time)

1) What are your limits walking alone?
2) What are your limits walking with someone?
3) What are your limits driving alone?
4) What are your limits driving with someone?
5) Do you panic at home?

Curious

x

[trac67]

Hiya,

1 - I can't walk anywhere on my own
2- At the minute I can just make it around the block with someone
3- I can do short trips alone in the car, say 10/15 minute journeys
4- I am comfortable driving around town when I have someone with me, can't drive out of the comfort zone of that at the moment though
5- I sometimes get all the panic feelings whilst being indoors but I can push them away, as being in my house is where I feel safe, so they never turn into full blown attacks

Hope this helps

Love

Trac xxx

[shoegal]

Hi there,

1) I have no limits when walking alone apart from my fibromyalgia (a totally seperate muscle condition) which means I can't walk for miles and miles!
2) Although I can walk alone, I am much happier if I have someone with me and I don't think I would have any limits (apart from distance to the car because of my fibromyalgia).
3) I cannot drive so I don't have the option of driving alone.
4) I'm not really comfortable being a passenger in a car unless it is a family member or a trusted person. I could go on a long journey with my parents or my sister or my boyfriend, but not with a stranger.
5) Unfortunately yes, I panic at home sometimes.

Hope this helps answer your questions.

Love and hugs from shoegal xxx

[Alabasterlyn]

I would say 99% of the time I don't go walking alone. On the odd occasion that I feel confident enough to do something alone I will walk around to the local shops which takes about 3mins each way.

Walking with someone is easier. With my partner I can walk to the local shops fairly easily. Even if I feel anxious I will try as I know he is with me and if something did happen he'd be there to help. I find I can walk further when it's dark or raining as that kind of distracts me.

I haven't driven alone for about 9yrs now

I can drive with my partner in the car but only a few miles and I don't do motorways or busy dual carriageways.

I tend to have more extremely anxious moments than actual panic attacks and yes I do get them at home.

[HazyMind]

1, I can now manage cycling to the shops 20 mins away when it's dark, I need to cycle because if I walk on my own I feel very dizzy and off balance with anxiety, cycling gets me there faster and takes my mind off trying to walk in a straight line I do still feel very anxious and dizzy which scares me.

2, If I'm with a safe person there are no limits but I am still very anxious and feel exhausted with anxiety.

3, Cant drive- am too scared to learn.

4, There are no limits if someone is driving.

5, I don't really panic at home, but I feel constantly on edge and anxious.

[PUGLETMUM]

hi bluebell,heres mine:

1) prob about 2/3miles
2) prob about 10miles, id be more likely to bikeride than walk though as tha tis a long way to walk!!!
3) driving alone again is about 2 miles, although i could now go aboput 5 miles in another direction because it isnt into a town. my husband worked 10miles away and i have driven there a few times, before the agoro took hold, but i could do it now if i had to.(except now he doesnt work there!)
4)this is my big problem - because of traffic if it was an open road i could go up and down the country(which i want to do!!!),but because of jams i wont go so currently about 80 miles but only if that is going somewhere quiet and early in the morning before the traffic starts
5) yes i panic at home all of the time,i dont feelsafe from panic in the house,which is why i think i havent become housbound,sometimes i just have to get OUT

hope this helps? emmaxxxxxxxx

[BeckyC]

Hi Bluebell,

1. Until last week, couldn't go anywhere on my own, at the mo I've been a few houses away, 1-2 mins
2. Only trust my husband to go out with, again, only 1-2 mins
3. Not driven on my own yet
4. only go out with my husband locally
5. unfortunately i panic at home sometimes, especially if my husband goes away for work

[Piglet]

1) What are your limits walking alone?
2) What are your limits walking with someone?
3) What are your limits driving alone?
4) What are your limits driving with someone?
5) Do you panic at home?

1. By day only a few houses away, by dark I can get to the top/bottom of the road.

2. Walking with someone I can get into the local town reasonably alright even by day now which is about a 10 minute walk away - I could do this happily in other towns as long as we went by car not bus.

3. Don't drive anymore - not just cos of the panic but I can't afford to run a car these days.

4. Distance isn't really the total problem with me its more who with and where. Think I could happily go to the other end of the country with my family in the car but I can't get round to the corner shop on my own lol!

5. Yes I do panic at home but just the same as Trac I can push these off much quicker cos I'm in my safety zone, also I don't ever seem to dwell on these ones, or allow them to discourage me either in quite the same way we do on the ones when we're out.

Love Piglet

[lorac]

Hi Bluebell in answer to your questions

My limit on walking alone is about 20 mins
My limit on walking with others about 30 mins
Cant drive alone or with anyone at moment lost my confidence totally
Can go anywhere in the car if someone else is driving
Yes I do have panics at home especially when Im left alone

Carol

[belle]

Thank you all for your replies.

Just goes to show how we suffer with agoraphobia to different degrees.

I am pretty much all round housebound at the moment...

Walking alone...1 minute
Walking with someone...1 minute
Driving alone...Nope
With my mum, i can get to hers which is 10 minutes away (sometimes!!!).

However, i am hoping it WILL change soon.
I can't bare another year of this.