Social anxiety is a disorder in which a person suffering from it has an excessive fear of social situations. They feel nervous and self-conscious, and this arises from feeling like you’re being close-watched and judged critically. This can be detrimental in making friends, important contacts and can even undermine your self-confidence. If you empathize with this situation, then read on to find out how to handle this in a more effective way:
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- Relax: Over time, intense worry about social interactions links anxiety to these events in your brain. As a result, when you actually enter a social situation you feel anxious because you’ve programmed yourself to feel this way. So, reverse this trend by thinking about future events in a relaxed environment. Imagine yourself being relaxed and confident.
- Increase Social Interaction: If you feel anxious in social situations, then chances are that you do everything you can to avoid them. Its common nature to avoid what frightens us, but you need to understand that we are frightened by what we avoid. It’s a vicious circle. So break it. Start being more active socially. Put yourself in situations where you have to interact with people. Doing this will help your subconscious understand that it’s normal and there’s nothing to be afraid of.
- Focus outwards: Being socially anxious stems from focusing inwards and worrying about how people will judge you. So, one of the best ways to deal with this is to shift your focus away from yourself. When in social situations, observe others and take mental notes about your surroundings. It will get you used to focusing away from yourself which is the aim behind social gatherings.
- Ask Questions: Instead of worrying what people will think of you, focus on others. Cultivate curiosity about the people around you. Ask them questions that require more than a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answer. Try and remember what you learn. This will help you shift your focus from inwards to outwards. You will also make some new friends as a by-product of this strategy!
- Control Your Imagination: An active imagination is a wonderful thing when used properly but if you use it to scare yourself, then it’s only detrimental. Imagining what people are thinking of you in a social situation is a big no-no. You’re not a mind reader, so whenever you catch yourself imagining what others may be thinking of you, stop yourself.
- Be Yourself: Fear of being judged is directly related to presenting an image of yourself to others that you deem perfect. But that’s impossible. You can’t keep up with projecting a perfect image for long, and pretending for a long time has its own demerits. So, instead learn to accept your faults and to be comfortable with them. If you learn to live with them then more than half the battle is won.
- Therapy: If social anxiety is stopping you from doing the things you want or need to do, and you haven’t had much success with self-help then you should seek professional help. Visit a therapist who specializes in anxiety disorders.
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About the Author
Arshi Gupta is a young blogger who loves to travel to unexplored places to get a feel of different cultures. She is interested in reading, photography and binge-watching TV shows & movies. Though Your D.O.S.T she would like to share her thoughts to youth of the Nation.
