Social Anxiety

Social anxiety, also known as social phobia, is a condition of feeling extremely nervous and self-conscious in an unfamiliar social context. There is the fear of being watched, judged, scrutinized, or embarrassed by others, which can interfere with daily life such as school, work, or social events.

Individuals may avoid social situations entirely, leading to isolation and loneliness. This can manifest as difficulty with job interviews, problems interacting with colleagues, struggles in academic settings, and challenges in forming and maintaining friendships and romantic relationships.

Simple daily activities like grocery shopping, eating in public, or using public restrooms can become sources of intense distress.

Persons with this condition are most likely aware that their fears and negative thoughts are unrealistic, but they can’t seem to control it.  They can find themselves constantly ruminating about an upcoming event, days or even weeks before it happens. Social Anxiety goes far beyond simple shyness.

Over time, if this continues, it can negatively affect their personal life as they may continue to avoid certain situations and people, which can contribute to low self-esteem and isolation.

In severe cases, social anxiety can co-occur with other mental health conditions like depression and substance use disorders, as individuals may turn to coping mechanisms that ultimately worsen their well-being.

Several factors can increase one’s risk of developing social anxiety:

Family History: A genetic predisposition plays a role, as anxiety disorders tend to run in families.

Negative Experiences: Childhood experiences like teasing, bullying, rejection, ridicule, or humiliation can contribute significantly to the development of social anxiety. Trauma or abuse can also be risk factors.

Temperament: Children who are naturally shy, timid, withdrawn, or restrained in new situations may be at greater risk.

Brain Structure: An overactive amygdala, the part of the brain involved in controlling fear responses, can lead to heightened anxiety in social situations.

Environment: Learned behaviours, often stemming from an unpleasant or embarrassing social situation, or observing anxious behaviour in parents, can contribute to social anxiety.

Social Media

In today’s world, it is natural to ask, how does social media and online education affects persons with social anxiety disorder?

The onset of Covid-19 forced us to stay at home and utilize social media to keep in touch with friends. At work, FaceTime or Zoom became the norm. These means of communication provided a false sense of refuge for persons with a social anxiety disorder.

Communicating online provides the ease for them to control the impression they make, since they can carefully choose their words without the pressure and stress of having to respond in the moment. However, the over-reliance on virtual interactions may also hinder the development of crucial real-world social skills.

It further eliminates their concerns of being judged on their appearance or mannerisms.  Additionally, the ability to pause before responding, helps them to take their time and think about their reply, as they may not be as skilled and comfortable in a face-to-face interaction.

Lastly, communication online provides a sense of safety as they can interact without revealing themselves fully, to avoid the embarrassment of making mistakes.

However, this prevents them from learning important coping skills and hinders their self-confidence and the opportunity to face and overcome their fears.

As a result, they may opt for online education, versus going to a school, to avoid interacting with classmates and educators. Or they may prefer to partake in online gaming versus joining an interactive sports activity. These efforts to hide impedes the opportunity of learning important team building skills and interpersonal communication.

The concern is that by depending on online communication and avoiding real-time interactions, over time, it could lead to a lack of connectiveness, loneliness, and possibly depression.

Visible Signs of Social Anxiety

When in social situations, persons with social anxiety worry about visible symptoms occurring, which increases the chances of them developing. This in turn draws further attention to them, thereby reinforcing their negative experience. As a result, they seek an escape by avoiding the situation altogether.

Visible symptoms as sweating, trembling, blushing, heavy breathing, or blanking out, can heighten the fear of attracting attention and disapproval from others, creating a vicious cycle.

Emotional Symptoms:

• Intense fear of social situations where you might be judged negatively.
• Worrying excessively about embarrassing or humiliating yourself.
• Fear of interacting with strangers.
• Feeling self-conscious and fearing others will notice your anxiety.
• Anticipatory anxiety lasting for weeks before a feared event.

Common Physical and Behavioural Symptoms:

• Blushing, sweating, or shaking.
• Rapid heartbeat.
• Catching your breath.
• Mind goes blank.
• Light headedness, dizzy, nausea.
• Muscle tension.
• Shaky or soft speech.
• Averting eye contact with others.
• Avoiding social events.

Can Social Anxiety be treated?

Yes! Indeed social anxiety can be treated. With the help of an experienced counsellor, persons with social anxiety can learn to live a life without fear in social situations.

Click here to read Overcoming Social Anxiety.

Counsellors who treat Social Anxiety