Most people suffer from social anxiety, which can be a significant impediment to enjoying social contact.
Anxiety disorder is the most frequent mental health disorder in the United States, impacting over 40 million people each year.
What Is Social Anxiety?
These are common feelings that most people have at various points throughout their life. Yet, it is a quite distinct experience. It can be severe and interfere with normal daily tasks such as going to work, socializing, or even going to the grocery.
According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, social anxiety is “intense anxiety or fear of being judged, negatively evaluated, or rejected in a social or performance situation.” Fear of appearing awkward or dumb heightens anxious feelings and frequently leads to avoiding the social situation entirely.
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Symptoms
According to the Mayo Clinic, the following criteria are used to diagnose this disorder:
- Persistent, strong worry or anxiety about certain social settings because you fear being judged, ashamed, or degraded
- Avoiding anxiety-inducing social settings or tolerating them with great fear or distress
- Anxiety that is out of proportion to the situation
- Anxiety or distress that interferes with your day-to-day activities
A person suffering from social anxiety may also experience physical symptoms. These include “intense fear, racing heart, turning red or blushing, excessive sweating, dry throat, and mouth, trembling (fear of picking up a glass of water or using utensils to eat), swallowing with difficulty, and muscle twitches, particularly around the face and neck,” according to the Social Anxiety Institute.
How To Deal With Social Anxiety?
To begin, identify its triggers such as going to parties, being the center of attention, or making small chats. These circumstances can make people with social anxiety disorder anxious, so it’s crucial to understand why they make you worried and how to handle them.
- Practice your public speaking skills
- Get rid of negative ideas and feelings
- Attempt relaxing techniques
- Acts of kindness should be practiced
- Use alcohol in moderation
- Consult a therapist
Treatments
The good news is, this disorder is treatable. According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), communicating with a mental health professional who can provide you with a diagnosis and treatment plan is the first step toward seeking help.
Psychotherapy (or “talk therapy”) and, in rare cases, medicines are used as treatments. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), a type of psychotherapy, is an extremely effective way to manage social anxiety.
Dr. Stefan G. Hofmann, director of the Psychotherapy and Emotional Research Laboratory at Boston University, stated that CBT “generally consists of about 12 to 16 weekly sessions and includes exposure strategies to target cognitive factors that maintain the disorder.”
The National Institute of Mental Health categorizes medicine into three types.
- Antidepressants such as Paxil and Zoloft, as well as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) such as Effexor XR
- Beta-blockers are medications that are given and used on occasion to address physical signs, such as elevated heart rate, blood pressure, and shivering.
- Because anti-anxiety drugs, such as benzodiazepines, can be addictive, they may be administered and strictly monitored.
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