Description: Private tutor Pooja shares advice on how to overcome social anxiety. This is something that many young students and even adults suffered from.
What is Social Anxiety?
Social anxiety is an excessive fear of being negatively judged by other people. Individuals with social anxiety often worry that they will embarrass or humiliate themselves. They also worry about being judged for exhibiting physical signs of anxiety, such as blushing, shaking, or sweating. There is not a definite root cause of social anxiety, it varies depending on the individual’s circumstances. Social anxiety often occurs early in childhood and usually goes unnoticed until the person is older. Bullying, family conflict, and abuse are just three of many experiences that could trigger social anxiety.
Symptoms of Social Anxiety
Individuals suffering from social anxiety may exhibit physical, emotional, and behavioral symptoms.
These are the most common physical symptoms:
- heart palpitations
- abdominal pain
- avoiding eye contact
- blushing
- excessive sweating
- Nausea
Emotional and behavioural symptoms:
- avoiding social situations
- how other perceive them
- fear of embarrassment and humiliation
- a fear of being anxious that makes the anxiety worse
- anxiety and panic attacks
- avoiding from certain activities
Coping with Social Anxiety
Many of us will have experienced some forms of social anxiety but for some individuals, it is a daily battle. There are several different ways to manage social anxiety, here are four top tips:
- Power of Positivity
When in an uncomfortable situation which requires you to step out of your comfort zone – such as a school presentation, challenge any negative thoughts using positivity. By driving any negative thoughts away, it will allow you to express yourself without fear. When presenting to a room full of people, focus on how they are learning something new because of you instead of any negative thoughts.
- Face your fears
It is very easy to avoid social situations out of fear, this manifests social anxiety into a long term problem. Never back out of opportunities as they can put you at a disadvantage. It is important to understand that making mistakes is not the end of the world, in fact making mistakes will help you grow as an individual. Always go for it!
- Reframe thoughts
When stressed out cancel any negative thoughts by coming up with three positive thoughts. For instance, “I feel anxious being in a room full of strangers, but I am an interesting, funny, and thoughtful individual who they would love to get to know.” This shows that not all stress is bad if it goes hand in hand with some positivity.
- Distractions
When feeling anxious try and distract yourself by focusing on something else. I find that spending time with friends and family and doing something nice for them is the best possible distraction. Positive distractions are reminders that any negative thoughts are temporary and do not need to stick around. Try new hobbies as this will create excitement and who knows you may discover new talents.
My Personal Experience
There are several different ways to cope with social anxiety however the four top tips listed above really helped me overcome feeling panicked in social situations. I started noticing signs of social anxiety at a very young age however at the time I did not understand what I was feeling. The root cause of my social anxiety is the fear of people noticing my physical display of anxiety, making it hard to break free from this cycle. I suffer from a condition called hyperhidrosis and the fear of people noticing made me incredibly anxious. It took me a very long time to come to terms with my condition. I have reached a point where I am now comfortable as I reframed my thoughts to think positively. Instead of obsessing over whether someone has noticed or not, I thought about the positives which are my case was that the condition is manageable, provides me with a fast metabolism, and helps maintain healthy body weight. This really helped me be comfortable with myself and around other people.
Communication is key
As humans, it is completely normal to not be perfect and have it all together at all times. When you are feeling down or anxious, communicating with friends, family, or a third party will help you better understand yourself and get to the root cause of why you feel anxious or panicked. Understanding why you feel a certain way will help reframe your thoughts which in turn will allow you to be more confident in social situations.
I hope this article has helped you better understand social anxiety and potential ways to cope with it. I would love to hear your thoughts!
“Today I escaped anxiety. Or no, I discarded it, because it was within me, in my own perceptions – not outside” – Marcus Aurelius.
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