Cue-controlled Relaxation for Agoraphobia

Learning to relax on cue will help you stop the panic attacks that come with agoraphobia.

Two skills are fundamental to learning to relax on cue; deep breathing and deep muscle relaxation. To develop a relaxation cue, you will use both of these skills to put your body in a state of complete calm while in a safe, non-threatening environment. As you are reaching a complete state of calm in your body, you will slowly repeat any word you choose to be your key word. For example, your cue word might simply be “relax.”

After practicing deep breathing and deep muscle relaxation on a regular basis while repeating a cue word, your mind will learn to associate the cue word with a profound state of calm and relaxation. Then, when you feel anxiety or panic coming on, you can just speak your cue word and your body will start to relax.