Social anxiety disorder, also known as social phobia, is an intense, persistent fear of being watched and judged by others. It can affect your work, school, and day-to-day activities.
If you feel any of these descriptions below, the emotions may be keeping you from living your life. Seek advise from a professional doctor or therapist. There are ways to treat social anxiety, it just takes a few steps to help you cope and lessen symptoms.
Do you ever feel this way? This is what social anxiety feels like:
- Feeling extreme stress and fear in social situations
- Rehearsing what you will say in your head
- Being extremely aware of how you behave
- Not showing your true self
- Making excuses to skip meetings and gatherings
- Avoiding spaces where you can't easily hide
- Reliving social experiences you feel shame about
- Assuming people think poorly about you
- Avoiding asking people for help when needed
- Reading into too many non-verbal cues