Some people with agoraphobia will use alcohol or other drugs to try to control the anxiety. People usually develop agoraphobia sometime between their teen years and their mid-thirties. Agoraphobia seems to run in families to some extent. Women are more likely than men to develop this disorder, which affects millions of people in the United States. It is a very distressing condition that can affect a person's life to the extent that the person may become homebound.
Treatments are available to help most agoraphobics.