What is Agraphobia?
Agraphobia should not be confused with agoraphobia. Agoraphobia is the fear of open spaces and is an anxiety disorder that often keeps people housebound. They are afraid to leave the safety of their homes, because things outside the home are potentially terrifying, and panic attacks are likely to occur when encountering the unfamiliar. Agraphobia can also keep people relatively housebound but the fear of what might occur is far more specific. In general a person with agraphobia is afraid of sexual abuse and attack, rape, and abusive relationships.
From a logical perspective, it would seem easy to draw a straight line between previous abusive sexual relationships and agraphobia in the present. Actually there are many people with this fear who have never been abused. The fear might develop in children or young adults who witness sexual violence in movies or television. There is also some suggestion that overt and obvious fear in parents that children will be sexually abused might cause this condition in adults. Studies on teaching “stranger danger” for instance, show that some kids become too fearful of all the negative things that might occur to them, and there has been some effort to modify these teachings so that they help children self-protect without creating too much fear.
Obviously agraphobia can be created and is often, at the very least, a short-term effect of those who have suffered sexual violence. Part of recovery, for the agraphobic person is learning how to trust again, whether or not sexual violence has ever occurred. There are certainly more programs geared toward working with those who have been sexually assaulted than programs that help those that have this fear but have never suffered an assault.
Symptoms of this condition can be varied. Those with agraphobia might have difficulty leaving the home because fear of sexual attack may enhance once a person has exited the safety of home. Yet being at home is no guarantee of safety, and some people spend restless days and nights afraid that an attacker will enter the home. Relationships may be difficult to maintain, and even with wonderful people who have no ill intent, the agraphobic may be frightened of any form of sexual intimacy. As with most phobias, fear of danger is exaggerated, and can lead to a number of panic symptoms including panic attacks, rapid heartbeat and respiration, sweating, and trembling.
Therapy and sometimes medication may be the most helpful in treating this phobia, but there can be some inherent problems in conducting therapy. Establishing trust with a person with agraphobia may take some time, especially if that person believes the therapist poses a risk of being a sexual abuser. Sometimes group therapy, at first, can be more effective. Using a therapist of the same gender, in certain circumstances, may be easier too, though this is not always the case.
Written by Tricia Ellis-Christensen
