10 Important Signs of Social Anxiety

It’s quite common to feel a little nervous or self-conscious when you’re in social situations like at a party, when you’re interviewing for a new job, going on a date, or when you have to give a big speech. This is not the same as social anxiety, however.

The pressure to perform well or to not make a mistake in a public setting can put anyone’s nerves on edge. However, this occasional nervousness is significantly different from what is sometimes called social phobia, social anxiety, or social anxiety disorder.

What is social anxiety?

Social anxiety is an overwhelming and long-term fear of certain social situations. It’s more than just a case of nerves or feeling shy about being with or in front of other people. Unfamiliar situations, or ones in which you feel you may be evaluated by others may feel so frightening and overwhelming that you tend to avoid them, or you get unduly anxious even thinking about them.

If you have social anxiety disorder, even everyday interactions with people such as ordering your coffee, calling a waiter, or responding to or asking a question during a lecture can cause significant anxiety, as well as deep self-consciousness and feelings of embarrassment because you feel like people are evaluating and/or scrutinizing you.

While walking into a room full of strangers is not necessarily exciting, social anxiety makes such situations extra difficult to enter and negotiate.

Signs of social anxiety.

Social anxiety disorder begins during the teenage years, and around 5.3 million people in the United States are affected by it. There is no one cause of social anxiety, but it has a genetic, physiological, and environmental component to it. Socially anxious people may feel a certain fear of being in public, but that fear may stem from different reasons, including:

• Potentially and quite accidentally offending someone.
• Being judged by or watched by others.
• Being embarrassed or humiliated in public, and showing that embarrassment by blushing, sweating, trembling, or having a shaky voice.
• Being the focus or center of attention.

As with most things, the experience is often different for everyone, but some of the signs of social anxiety include the following physical, emotional, and mental symptoms:

• A fear that other people will notice that you look
• Feeling overly self-conscious in social situations.
• Worry and avoidance of everyday situations where you have to do things or speak to people because of fear of embarrassment, or because you might be the center of attention.
• An intense and persistent fear of being judged by others.
• Feeling anxious when you’re anticipating an activity or event that you’re afraid of.
• Feeling shy and uncomfortable when you’re being watched by other people.
• Analyzing your performance and identifying your flaws after a social interaction.
• Avoiding eye contact and fear of being criticized.
• Expecting the worst outcome from a negative experience in social situations.
• Physical symptoms such as heart palpitations, muscle tension, feeling dizzy and lightheaded, blushing, trembling, crying, sweating, upset stomach, struggling to catch your breath, feeling like you’re standing outside your own body, and feeling like your mind has gone blank.

Treatment options.

Social phobia or social anxiety disorder can prevent you from living your life to the full, and it can affect your relationships with others. One way it can do this is by inclining you to avoid situations that most people would consider normal, and it can be hard for you to understand how other people seem to manage those situations so effortlessly.

Millions of Americans and people across the world have social anxiety; you are not alone in this, and there are effective ways to deal with it. It’s important that you understand your anxiety, which includes understanding your triggers as well as how your body typically responds to situations you find stressful or anxiety-inducing. Arming yourself with this knowledge helps you mount a first line of defense as you deal with your anxiety.

Social anxiety may prevent you from doing things you want or need to do, or from making or keeping friends. It can lead to low self-esteem, depression, negative thoughts, a deep sensitivity to criticism, or underdeveloped social skills that make relationships challenging. You can begin addressing social anxiety by talking about your worries and fears with your doctor or with a Christian counselor.

A counselor with experience treating social anxiety disorder will be able to tell if your social anxiety is typical or if you need treatment. Talk therapy may help you better understand your anxiety and equip you to cope with and better handle stressful situations.

In some situations, medication such as beta blockers can help reduce the symptoms of anxiety. Apart from beta blockers, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved medications such as Zoloft, Paxil, Luvox, and Effexor specifically for treatment.