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Does Social Anxiety Hold You
Back?
By Dave Turo-Shields, ACSW, LCSW
In the "Anxiety
Disorders" section of the
manual entitled
"Diagnostic Criteria from
DSM IV," which is used
for the
diagnosis of mental health
conditions, there are 12
anxiety
diagnoses covered.
The fifth, and what may appear
to be a soft diagnosis, is
Social
Phobia (Social Anxiety
Disorder). In contrast to
"Posttraumatic
Stress Disorder,"
"Obsessive-Compulsive
Disorder" and "Panic
Disorder" this diagnosis
may seem to be lighter than
the rest.
Please don't be fooled by
names or the sound of names or
even
the fact that many of the
others have achieved more
press time.
Social phobia is a very real
threat to the quality of life
for
many individuals.
What is Social Anxiety
Disorder? Glad you asked.
Following is a
list of life areas impacted by
social anxiety --
1. Meeting new people 2.
Answering the door 3.
Interacting with
merchant clerks at banks,
grocery stores etc. 3. Setting
appointments with doctor’s
offices etc. 4. Attending
church 5.
Buying or returning items at
retail outlets 6. Sick days
where
your anxiety has made you sick
7. Driving (fear other drivers
looking at or thinking of you)
8. Paying at the gas station
9.
Eating in front of other
people 10. Signing your name
in front
of others 11. Attending or
hosting social events 12.
Dating 13.
Talking in a small or large
group 14. Expressing your
opinion
15. Performance situations,
such as playing on an athletic
team,
singing in a choir etc. 16.
May or may not have panic
attacks
17. Fear of what others are
thinking of you 18. Fear of
being
embarrassed or humiliated
Next is a general physical
symptom list of the physical
signs of
social anxiety --
1. Blushing 2. Sweating 3.
Dizziness 4. Heart
palpitations 5.
Muscle tension 6. Dry mouth 7.
Shaking 8. Nausea 9. Diarrhea
10.
Headache
These are a few of the
symptoms of social anxiety as
experienced
in life areas and physically.
Many folks have social anxiety
but
do not realize that this is
what they struggle with.
Oftentimes
thinking about or engaging in
any of the activities listed
above
will induce anxiety.
The real danger with this
disorder is that it can subtly
grow
into a monster. Left
unattended, social anxiety can
reshape the
life that you should be living
into one that is centered
around
avoidance of anxiety. Some of
you are aware that you have
anxiety and fight with it
constantly. Many others are
not aware
of anxiety as the culprit,
even though it's impacting all
these
life areas. That's powerful!
Ongoing social anxiety can
result in developing a pattern
of
avoidance, whereby you begin
putting off many of life's
activities. Too often, you
have only the best of excuses,
but if
you suffer from social
anxiety, it's really anxiety
driving your
life's bus.
There are many keys in the
overcoming of anxiety. At the
top is
bolstering your
self-confidence. Ironically
enough, the more
withdrawn you become while
feeing anxious and avoiding
activities, the stronger the
social anxiety becomes.
A FEW KEY AREAS TO TARGET IN
OVERCOMING SOCIAL ANXIETY:
1. Participate in activities
which increase esteem and a
sense
of personal safety
2. Establish an area of
expertise or mastery and
allowing those
abilities to be present in
anxiety situations
3. Learn relaxation strategies
that become serenity-hygiene
habits
4. Challenge irrational
thought patterns that support
the anxiety
5. Keep an anxiety scale
journal to chart goals and
progress
6. Seek a caring individual to
hold you accountable to your
goals
7. Know that peace and anxiety
cannot exist at the same time.
Any ritual which brings peace
into your life is a great tool
to
use to eliminate anxiety
8. Practice knowing that you
are loved and have a right to
live
a joy-filled life!
This is your life! If you find
yourself angry over being
anxious, that's GOOD -- but
only if you direct your anger
at
anxiety and allow it to become
an energizer in your efforts
to
reclaim your life.
About the author:
~~ @@ ~~ Dave Turo-Shields,
ACSW, LCSW is an author,
university
faculty member, success coach
and veteran psychotherapist
whose
passion is guiding others to
their own success in life. For
weekly doses of the webs
HOTTEST success tips, sign up
for
Dave’s powerful “Feeling
Great!” ezine at
http://www.Overcoming-Depression.com
~~ @@ ~~
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