Dealing With Social Anxiety
Posted on: 08 Jun 2011 |
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Author: iMensies Editors
Social phobia or social anxiety disorder presents a mental disorder when a person experiences baseless and quite severe fear of social situations involving many people where there may be a possibility of being embarrassed. These anxieties come from the fears of being scrutinized over how one looks, dresses, acts or talks. Furthermore these fears can extend to job functions and situations where one has to give a presentation, finish a job interview or otherwise perform in front of the crowd. The fears or phobias result in a person feeling trapped or shut away from the world.
Social anxiety disorder is different from shyness. Even though a lot of people are naturally shy, social anxiety disorder is very disruptive to the normal socializing activities. When you notice that your shyness interferes with your activities and interrupts your daily life it is a good time to ask yourself whether you may have a social anxiety disorder and seek help.
Social phobia have two kinds of symptoms: physical and emotional. Emotional symptoms may include intense fear of interacting with people who you don't know, worrying about situations where you may be judged, fear of embarrassment, or others noticing your anxiety, avoiding situations where you are forced to talk or present in front of several people or may otherwise become a center of attention. Physical symptoms can manifest themselves in difficulty talking, trembling or shaking, blushing, upset stomach, confusion or others. People suffering from this phobia are overly anxious in public, often think that other people are more confident or better than they are, a lot of times are afraid to ask questions, join conversations or even eat or drink together.
There is the good news. Even though this condition may seem impossible to improve or get rid off, there has been a considerable progress made over the last 20 years on the treatment of this phobia. A combination of talk therapy and some medications can now help to limit the effects and even get rid off them all together. Anti-anxiety medications and certain anti-depressants (Venlafaxine, Paroxetine and Sertraline) have been shown to be effective by minimizing panic attacks during the periods of elevated anxiety. Talk therapy is used to show a person how to deal with the situation that triggers anxiety and how to react differently in those situations. Therapist uncovers the negative feelings that a person may have about social situations and help the person learn how his or hers own thinking patterns add to anxiety and how these patterns can be changed to achieve a less anxious mind state.
Being shy is normal and everyone has been through that stage in their life. However, getting past this stage may not be easy for everybody. It requires building your confidence, practice and right mind approach. If you are happen to have a social anxiety disorder there is nothing to be ashamed of. With a little bit of therapy and proper support from people around you, you will eventually be comfortable in many social situations and function perfectly without previous anxiety.
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