People who don't know what social anxiety really is, put it in the same category as extreme shyness, but we are talking about a quite different issue.  It's hard to understand for people without this disorder that the patients' lives can be completely destroyed because of the pain the anxiety can cause even when doing ordinary things like going on a bus, sitting in a classroom or attending a party, things most people take for granted.

Social anxiety is a diagnoses used when a person's anxiety in social situations is so is so severe that inability of functioning in everyday life is dominating.  Although many of these people are aware of the dysfunctions of their feelings and actions, they are incapable of doing anything to stop it.  The symptoms of this anxiety disorder can be divided into two groups; specialized anxiety and generalized anxiety.

The specialized anxiety is triggered in particular social situations where others are involved; for example a party, holding a speech or sitting in a room full of strangers. The symptoms of generalized anxiety are a persistent and intense fear of any situation where social interactions are involved.  

In the generalized version of anxiety the symptoms are an excessive and chronic fear of any situation where social interaction is taking place. In this group, fear of being judged by other is dominating in addition to fearing embarrassment and humiliation because of what the patient is doing.  These unhappy persons don't trust themselves to handle social interactions either by fearing to do something to embarrass themselves or that other people will judge them too hard.  

Severe anxiety and fear are not the only symptoms involved; the psychological symptoms are mixed with a number of physical symptoms as well.  Symptoms like heart palpitations, nausea, excessive trembling, blushing, stammering and sweating are common. Panic Attacks are also a part of the disorder and can occur in situations that make the patient severely upset. Duration and severity of the symptoms varies from one individual to another.

To compensate for the pain anxiety in social situations, some people medicate themselves with alcohol or drugs, sometimes to an incapacitating point. Instead of solving their problems the substance abuse creates addiction problems on top of their anxiety. Some patients claim they are unable to function in social settings without taking drugs or alcohol to boost their self esteem.

Such a severe disorder in terms of limiting the patient's life results in a huge demand of solutions.  The supply of treatment solutions reflects the demand.  The good news is that there are good treatments for social anxiety available, for example natural remedies, acupuncture and psychological treatments.

If you are one of the those suffering from social anxiety or panic attacks you are probably sick and tiered of not being able to handle everyday social situations other people take for granted. Stop ruin your life and give yourself this great chance to get rid of your panic attacks or social anxiety problems for good. Click Here for more information.

by Gary Gui