How can you tell? Does anyone here have experience with agoraphobia?
At some point early in my pregnancy with DS, I found that I did not want to leave the house.
It was probably strongly tied to the fact that my back pain was so severe, I risked passing out if I overexerted myself, so my movement was very limited.
My sweet DS is about to turn one now, though, and I don't feel much differently about leaving the house! My back has healed dramatically, to the point where I'm back to playing volleyball each weekend. Our DD is very energetic and social, and now that our homeschool group has stopped for the summer, she's needing a lot of activity and stimulation, so my need to be home is taking a toll on me.
Another factor is that we're renovating our house, so there's always something I want/need to be doing! Right now I should be finishing re-routing some wiring, cleaning up our torn-apart kitchen to prep for new counters, and finding some 2x4s, not to mention the usual laundry and dishes.
I'm having trouble sorting out this question of: should I honor my feelings and not worry about forcing myself to go places, or should I be actively working on it?
We do go places an average of four days a week, two of them being weekly things we keep scheduled with friends. DD does have some neighborhood friends she can visit or have over here, and seems satisfied with our level of activity so far. DS is definitely a homebody, though- I can see him relax when we get home. (and I don't think it's just because of my vibe- I think I do okay when we do go out, but I am also relieved to get home)
I don't feel that I am an anxious person, and don't generally have panic attacks. (okay, a couple of times when my depression got past a certain point, I freaked out, then got help)
I am taking supplements I chose with the help of The Mood Cure and Depression-Free for Life, and feel that my almost-lifelong depression is well controlled. I am getting some exercise beyond housework and kid play, and see several of my friends weekly. I feel that I'm about as mentally/emotionally healthy as I've ever been, there's just this don't-want-to-leave-the-house thing I've never really experienced before. Oh, and I also hate to make phone calls more than I ever have before. Answering the phone, though, is fine.
Thoughts?
At some point early in my pregnancy with DS, I found that I did not want to leave the house.
It was probably strongly tied to the fact that my back pain was so severe, I risked passing out if I overexerted myself, so my movement was very limited.
My sweet DS is about to turn one now, though, and I don't feel much differently about leaving the house! My back has healed dramatically, to the point where I'm back to playing volleyball each weekend. Our DD is very energetic and social, and now that our homeschool group has stopped for the summer, she's needing a lot of activity and stimulation, so my need to be home is taking a toll on me.
Another factor is that we're renovating our house, so there's always something I want/need to be doing! Right now I should be finishing re-routing some wiring, cleaning up our torn-apart kitchen to prep for new counters, and finding some 2x4s, not to mention the usual laundry and dishes.
I'm having trouble sorting out this question of: should I honor my feelings and not worry about forcing myself to go places, or should I be actively working on it?
We do go places an average of four days a week, two of them being weekly things we keep scheduled with friends. DD does have some neighborhood friends she can visit or have over here, and seems satisfied with our level of activity so far. DS is definitely a homebody, though- I can see him relax when we get home. (and I don't think it's just because of my vibe- I think I do okay when we do go out, but I am also relieved to get home)
I don't feel that I am an anxious person, and don't generally have panic attacks. (okay, a couple of times when my depression got past a certain point, I freaked out, then got help)
I am taking supplements I chose with the help of The Mood Cure and Depression-Free for Life, and feel that my almost-lifelong depression is well controlled. I am getting some exercise beyond housework and kid play, and see several of my friends weekly. I feel that I'm about as mentally/emotionally healthy as I've ever been, there's just this don't-want-to-leave-the-house thing I've never really experienced before. Oh, and I also hate to make phone calls more than I ever have before. Answering the phone, though, is fine.
Thoughts?
