How I Beat Claustrophobia

Email To a Friend 14 June 2009 Hello, my name is Andrea and I suffer from claustrophobia. I have been aware of my illness since I was ten when I was playing at my local childhood playground jungle gym. There was a little makeshift house that all the children were running in and out of and at that moment I couldn’t budge to join them. I have always been afraid of cramped and small spaces and for the most part, have refrained from putting myself in such predicaments.

When I took a job at a local department store as a visual merchandiser, I had no clue that I would have to work in environments that I fear the most. From Monday to Friday I dress mannequins on the sales floor, change signage, hang posters and various marketing posters and maintain widow displays.

After a month of working for this department store, I found myself having to squeeze into corners in the back room to get the price signs and when it came to changing the window mannequins as well as the window marketing, I found myself freaking out and hyperventilating to the point where the paramedics were called to bring me to the hospital.

No one at work knew that I was claustrophobic and I’m sure they were uncomfortable with the liability of me not being able to perform my job duties without having a medical related breakdown. I became extremely worried, as when I returned to work, I had to use one of my subordinates to go into all of the tight spaces that I couldn’t as there were many. Anytime I had to reference merchandise from the back room I couldn’t.

The turning point at work was during a holiday promotion, when thousands of customers flooded the sales floor with barely any room to move. The sales were incredible and with advertisements being run on television and in the papers, everybody stopped by to see what the entire buzz had been about. At that point I asked to speak to my manager in private as I was no longer able to cope with these occupational hazards. When I thought my concerns were about to be dismissed, my manager empathized with me and advised me of how much she valued my contributions to the business.

She let me go home early and promised to call me at home with some information that would help me with my dilemma. When she called, she gave me the internal employee website with tons of services that my health insurance covered. I decided to utilize acupuncture for my problem and although I still afraid of small spaces, I no longer have a physical reaction to being in them. I am happy to still have a job that I love and to also be one step closer to my healing.

Andrea, Great Yarmouth.

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