Social Anxiety
Social anxiety is an anxiety disorder that makes someone nervous about social situations. Social anxiety disorder is a mental health condition characterized by a fear of being watched or judged by others in social situations. Social anxiety disorder is also known as social phobia. Anxiety is a fear that arises in anticipation of an event, and a phobia is an irrational fear of certain objects or situations. People with a social anxiety disorder may feel worried about appearing anxious, such as blushing or trembling, or about others thinking that they are awkward or unintelligent. Many people also have strong physical symptoms, such as an increased heart rate, feeling sick, or sweating. Social anxiety disorder has many effects on the body and mind, causing physical, emotional, and behavioral symptoms. The symptoms tend to occur in certain social situations and may include: physical symptoms, such as blushing, sweating, trembling, nausea, and increased heart rate, and the mind “going blank”, feelings of panic or panic attacks, a fear of experiencing anxiety or of seeming anxious in front of others, an intense fear of judgment from others, feelings of fear or dread in situations with other people, especially strangers, feeling very self-conscious, embarrassed, or awkward in front of others, having difficulty speaking, avoiding situations that might trigger anxiety, a rigid body posture and a soft voice during social interactions, difficulty making or maintaining eye contact, sensitivity to criticism, low self-esteem, and negative self-talk. These symptoms can greatly disrupt daily life, such as school, work, and relationships. Without treatment, the person may not achieve their potential at school or work, as they may avoid participating in group tasks, speaking in front of groups, or receiving a promotion.
Personal Experience
As a person with Social Anxiety, Anxiety, Introverted, and experiencing mild panic attacks, I can say having these sucks because it’s not all about being shy, being diagnosed with these is really different from being shy. I wanted to get done with it that’s why I keep on trying new things that included talking to the public, talking out what things are running in your head, and many more that includes being the center of attraction but you can’t really fight nor endure it, sometimes you’ll end up doing all of it unconsciously because of adrenaline rush while almost lacking breath by just reading out loud, answering questions, ordering food, going outside alone, I sometimes even feel the dizzy, heart beating so fast unlike the normal, trembling and moreover a simple gesture that you need to do. It really has a big effect on my life, I wanted to be an active student who always raises her hand or voice to answer the question and share my thoughts but because of my anxiety, I cannot do it. I wanted to make a lot of friends, attend parties and such crowded places to get to know more friends but just by thinking of it a lot of thoughts enter my mind like they’re going to judge me or I’ll feel like I don’t belong there, just the things that’ll make myself down and not enough.