Scared to go out to a meeting to speak to
a client? Need to deliver a speech but
feel like fainting at the thought of going in front of the class to
present? Scared to attend a social
gathering for no apparent reason? You
might be suffering from social anxiety disorder.
Social anxiety disorder, also known as
social phobia, is a kind of mental disorder where the sufferer experiences a
severe or unreasonable fear of social gatherings where there is a possibility
that one may get embarrassed or ridiculed.
Most of the time, these anxieties arise from an intense fear of being
closely watched or scrutinized - from the simple things like the way they
dress, talk or act; to important job functions like performing in front of a
crowd, giving a presentation, or finishing an interview for a job
application. This kind of phobia gives
sufferers a feeling of being trapped or shut away from the world.
They say social anxiety disorder is
closely related to shyness. However
social phobia differs in the sense that this disrupts normal socializing
functions. It is true that everyone goes
through a stage of shyness in their life, overcoming it is a different
thing. When it becomes too much that it
interrupts your daily life and relationships to the point where you are sick
with worry, it is time to seek counsel.
It is good to know the signs and symptoms of social anxiety disorder to
be able to determine and treat this said condition before it worsens.
People with social phobia manifest 2
basic kinds of symptoms: emotional and physical. The emotional symptoms include: an intense
fear of being in situations in which you don't know people, fear of situations
in which you may be judged, worrying about embarrassing or humiliating
yourself, fear that others will notice that you look anxious, anxiety that
disrupts your daily routine, work, school or other activities, avoiding doing
things or speaking to people out of fear of embarrassment, avoiding situations
where you might be the center of attention.
The physical symptoms include: Blushing, profuse sweating, trembling or
shaking, nausea, stomach upset, difficulty talking, shaky voice, muscle
tension, confusion, palpitations, diarrhea, cold and clammy hands, and
difficulty making eye contact.
Basically, this phobia manifests a
symptom of being overly anxious around other people. Sufferers think that other people are more
confident that they are, that other people are better them. They feel uncomfortable being around people
that it makes it difficult for them to eat, drink, work, asking questions,
asking for dates, even going to the toilet, when other people are around.
The good news is that there is a cure for
this condition. For the past 20 years, a combination of talk therapy and
medications has proven most helpful to limit the effects, if not cure, this
mental condition. Certain
anti-depressants (Paroxetine, Sertraline and Venlafaxine), anti-anxiety
medications, and beta blockers are used to help Socio-phobic people to balance
certain chemicals in the brain and minimize panic attacks during periods of
heightened anxiety. Talk therapy teaches
people with social anxiety disorder to react differently to situations that
trigger their anxiety. The therapist
helps the patient confront the negative feelings about social situations and
the fear about being judged by others. Patients learn how their thinking patterns
add to the symptoms of social anxiety disorder and how to change their thinking
so the symptoms begin to lessen. To be shy is quite normal, everybody has gone
through a similar phase. Getting past
that stage is the difficult part.
Ultimately, it ends up to building your confidence to a certain level
for you to be comfortable enough to move normally. In case you’ve been diagnosed as a
socio-phobic, it is nothing to be ashamed of.
With a little bit of therapy, proper medication, and enough support from
people who believe in you, you’ll slowly be able to do socialize and function
normally within a group without being too anxious.
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