I was reading some of the posts on this discussion forum and was wondering how people are managing getting through this. I am glad to hear that I am not the only one that has this problem because I thought I might be! I have never met anyone with it before and everyone tells me that I am crazy and that I shouldn't be scared.
I have always been quite anxious my entire life but the past few years have been especially bad. I have developed IBS which I believe is caused by my anxiety and this has led to agoraphobia. I am unable to travel more than 15 -20 mins from home, I prefer to go places by myself (this way if I have to leave I can without giving anyone an explanation). I really hate travelling any place where there might not be a washroom and I am terrified of having an accident, even though I have never had one.
I am wondering how others are dealing with this and if anyone has ever found a cure for IBS or something that you can take to make it better.
I am desperate and it seems like a vicious circle that never stops. I am also currently working on week 3 of the anxiety and depression program so I am hoping that this may help improve things.
Any suggestions are greatly appreciated.

I have this issue, it is true that if you get control of the anxiety the ibs greatly reduces. I try to be careful with what I eat or drink if I know I'm going to be confined for a couple of hours. Next month I'm stuck with jury duty, I'm going to just have to use the techniques I've learned, plus either fast or eat very little, I'll probably take some Imodium ad and maybe take some homeopathics, also some fiber the night before. This is actually good practice for me, even though it is causing me to have a great deal of anxiety. I postponed it and just can't get out of it, especially since I don't see doctors so no doctor's note.

Greetings,

I am new on this forum. I have order the program, and can't wait to start. I suffer from IBS, and I have a horrible phobia to subway trains. But I have to push through the anxiety and get on it twice a day to go to work. If I eat at work, I can't stay out of the bathroom. I had to resort to the crazy of idea of not eating anything until I get home; and if I eat something at work, I need to call my husband to pick me up when I get out from work, because I refused to take the train. I get heart palpitations, sweats, and my throat closes to the point I feel I can't breathe. I can't even stand a minute on the train. One time he didn't pick me up and I walked 4 miles and then took a cab home (I am about 7 miles from work). I feel that one day I will go insane.

To All,
Shifrah posted a thread on "toilet phobia"...Try practicing what the post contains in it, and I am sure you will be feeling better very soon!!!

Have a Great Day!!!

I have the exact same problem! I don't like to go anywhere if I don't know where the bathroom is. When I go somewhere, the first thing I do is locate the bathroom. I then sit closest to the door so I can escape easily is something were to happen. I also have a fear of controlling my bladder and bowels when I am confined to a place with alot of people (even though I've never used the bathroom on myself). The hardest thing I've ever had to overcome is doing my Valedictorian speech last month. There were over 500 people there and we had our graduation on the football field, so my anxiety was at an all time high because I knew if I got sick, I couldn't run anywhere to hide. Thanks to prayers and a couple Xanax , I was able to pull through it and I didn't stumble over one word. But my anxiety still exists, but I learn to cope with it as much as I can