Health Article Social Anxiety Disorder

Social situations, whether they are large social events or a small study group can make someone with social anxiety very uncomfortable and often times, even physically sick. Social situations for people who have social anxiety disorder, is one of the most difficult obstacles these people will ever overcome and many people with social anxiety will never overcome the problems associated with the disorder.

For years, little was known about social anxiety disorder and patients who suffered from the anxiety disorder were left to somewhat deal with it alone. No one wants to think that social anxiety can ruin one’s life but it can and it does.

Symptoms of social anxiety include but are not limited to, palpitations, tremors, sweating, confusion and blushing. Those who have social anxiety will often become so embarrassed by the physical symptoms of the disorder that they will often find themselves in a worsened state. Usually if someone with social anxiety notices their symptoms are obvious, a panic attack will take over. The person with social anxiety will feel their heart pounding, their legs will become like rubber, they’ll find it hard to breathe and often feel as if they are going to choke to death.

Social anxiety is something that can be overcome with proper treatment. Sufferers can find solace in the fact that medications are being discovered to help tremendously with social anxiety as well as behavior therapy. Two medications have proven to be successful in treating individuals with social anxiety. The first medication is Paxil and the other is Zoloft. The FDA has approved both medications for effective treatment in managing social anxiety.

Doctors will often prescribe benzodiazepines to accompany the person who is in treatment for social anxiety. These benzodiazepines often carry with them the added worry that the medication will become highly addictive therefore, people who stick with Paxil and Zoloft as their primary medication stand to realize a more productive road to recovery without adding the problem of physical dependency. The benzodiazepines which are often recommended to someone who has been diagnosed with social anxiety include the following drugs: Xanax, Librium, Klonopin, Tranxene, Ativan, Serax and Valium. These drugs are prescribed for people who can not at all face social situations without something to take the edge off of their apprehension of the social situation.

Most people with social anxiety will find the best approach for a full recovery will often be a treatment plan which entails medication as well as behavior therapy. Patients who recognize that they will need not only the medication but they will also need to learn to cope within social situations and may need help doing this, often find recovery within their reach much quicker.

One thing that will be highly recommended to the person who is experiencing problems with social situations will be to quit avoiding social situations immediately. Once individuals completely accept that they have a problem with avoidance as much as the social anxiety itself, then they should be able to get to the place where they can become socially involved once again. It is important for someone with social anxiety to become social again, meaning they need to be put in social situations as quickly as possible.

Many people who go to behavior therapy will receive a list of tasks to enable them to jump back into social situations either by plunging right into the social situation or by taking baby steps toward the situation. Since social anxiety is a social phobia, many people like to approach the therapy in such a way that they can cope with the social anxiety one step at a time. For instance, if the person ridden with social anxiety is a doctor’s wife in a large city where social events are the order of the weekends, the woman with the social anxiety may have to learn to re-enter the social scene gradually. This may entail getting dressed up in formal gown, driving over to the party at hand, then going home. The next attempt may be to go to the party and get out of the car and standing there for a moment and then going home. Eventually, the person will go inside the party and stay for a few minutes and then begin to stay longer at each event.

While a baby step toward recovery sounds a bit juvenile, the fact is that someone with social anxiety is very much traumatized by this disorder and they must be able to re-enter social situations at their own pace. Some people will start their medication as well as their therapy and decide they want to put this social anxiety behind them by taking the plunge right into a social situation. It may be successful and it may take a long while to realize any measure of success.

Social anxiety is something that should not go undiagnosed. The anxiety which one feels from social situations can eventually lead to a deep-seeded depression which couples two very difficult mental problems together postponing a full recovery from each because each difficulty will need to be dealt with together as well as separately. If social anxiety is left untreated, it can ruin lives and it will ruin families. Moms will not attend basketball games of their own children. Dads will avoid Sunday dining out with the family and overall, the entire family circle will suffer if one family member has social anxiety and can not function in what is perceived as a normal social capacity. While the strain is enormous for the entire family, the person with social anxiety is suffering most of all.

Social anxiety is not a death sentence but sadly, it can become one without the intervention of someone encouraging the person with social anxiety to take a move toward getting help. Sometimes people will seek out help on their own which is certainly a step in the right direction because it shows the person is interested in re-entering their own social lives. However, if social anxiety is left untreated, it often leads to depression and can lead to suicide.