What Is Social Phobia (also called Social Anxiety Disorder)?

Social phobia is great fear of social situations. Commonly feared situations include public speaking, meeting new people, being at parties, asking for dates, eating in public, using public toilets, speaking to people in authority, and disagreeing with others.

People with social phobia are afraid they will act in ways that will make other people will judge them negatively. They often fear that others will see some sign of anxiety, such as blushing, trembling, or sweating. People with social phobia usually try to aviod the situations that make them anxious.

Sometimes the problems are minor, such as not being able to speak in front of really big groups. Sometimes, however, the problems can be very serious. People with severe social phobia have trouble reaching their goals in school or at work depite many skills and talents. Due to the nature of their fears they often feel alone as they find it too frightening to meet new people. Consequently, their circle of friends may be quite small.

Social phobia is very common. More than one out of eight people will suffer from social phobia at some point in their lives. Social phobia usually starts when people are in their early teens, but it can begin much earlier. If people do not get help, the problem can last for years.

Several factors things believed to contribute to social phobia:

• Genetics and upbringing: People with social phobia often have relatives who are shy or have social phobia.

• Prior experiences: Many people with social phobia remember having been embarrassed or humiliated in the past Often in teenage years when we all feel more self-conscious). This leads them to be afraid that the same thing will happen again.

• Negative thinking: People with social phobia often have negative automatic thoughts about what will happen in social situations. Common thoughts are “I won’t be able to think of anything to say,” “I’ll make a fool of myself,” and “People will see I’m anxious.”

Treatment

There are many reasearch studies that show that cognitive behavioura therapy is successful in helping to overcome social phobia.