Social Anxiety Disorder

Do you have intense feelings of discomfort and fear when in social situations? You may have social anxiety disorder. Social anxiety disorder affects millions of people around the world and varies greatly from person to person. However, it is important to know that if you find social settings unbearable, you can get help. A doctor will be able to help you treat your social anxiety disorder so that you can live a normal life instead of being paralyzed by fear.

It’s hard to pin down the exact symptoms of social anxiety disorder, which is why seeing your doctor is so important. However, some common signs that you may have this disorder include a number of fears. Do you commonly fear social situations? You should see your doctor if your fears reflect the following: fear that all attention is on you, fear of making mistakes, fear of judgment, fear that everyone is better than you, fear of humiliating yourself, or fear that everyone sees your flaws. These fears may or may not cause panic attacks, but always cause intense anxiety. Anxiety may lead to shaking, a pounding heart, blushing, sweating, stammering, nausea, and dizziness.

Shyness is not the same as social anxiety disorder. While you may feel shy in certain situations, social anxiety disorder is physically debilitating to a person experiencing it. In fact, social anxiety disorder may take over a person’s life if left untreated. This disorder usually starts from childhood or early adulthood and can affect everyone, regardless of race, religion, or gender, although women are more likely to develop this disorder than men.

Social anxiety disorder is often found in conjunction with other anxiety disorders. It is also common for a person with social anxiety disorder to try to treat it using drugs or alcohol, which will in turn lead to substance abuse. The best and only way to treat social anxiety disorder is to see your doctor. Therapy and medication can help you work through this disorder so that you can live a healthy and socially active life. Cognitive-behavioral therapy will help you grip your disorder so that you can learn how to make yourself calm down and have less fear in social situations. Medications can be short or long term are can work to block certain inhibitors. Together, you can your doctor can find the perfect treatment for you so that you can take back control of your life. You may have to live with social anxiety disorder for the rest of your life, but it does not have to stop you from being happy.