What is happening in an agoraphobia episode?

During an agoraphobia episode, sensing a threat, our bodies secrete hormones that tell our system to be on alert. Our hearts race, our lungs inflate to suck in more air, which causes us to hyperventilate; we sweat and feel anxious. For people with panic disorder, this sequence of events can happen often and with very little stimulation. Soon the fear of a panic attack becomes its own phobia that keeps people from living their lives as they normally would.
This content originally appeared on doctoroz.com