Social Anxiety Disorder - How To Combat It?

Are you suffering from social anxiety phobia and are looking for ways to get over it? Social anxiety refers to the anxiety in anticipating any kind of social situation or after a certain situation. The fear of evaluation accounts for being the primary factor of social anxiety phobia.

Here are the various ways by which you can deal with social anxiety phobia:

1. Self-help Manual: Self-help manuals are a supplement for this therapy. They act as an effective tool, which helps you to work on your own.

2. Visit a Therapist: In case your social anxiety phobia is hampering things you need to do along with your social activities, and your self-help measures have failed, you need a therapist. Choose a therapist who specializes in anxiety disorders.

3. Practice Deep Breathing Regularly: Engaging yourself in deep breathing, before a situation which provokes or triggers your social anxiety, is effective. You need to undertake deep breathing for several minutes every day. This will make it a habit for you so that you do not focus too much on deep breathing during a situation, thereby missing out on the conversation.

4. Create an Exposure Hierarchy: An exposure hierarchy refers to a list. In this list, you have to write down about all the various types of situations when your social anxiety phobia gets triggered. The list has to be made in a ladder format, and by performing the easiest behaviors first, you should move up the list. For creating an exposure hierarchy, you should note down 10 anxiety triggering social situations you experience, and rate them on a scale of 100. You can also join Toastmasters, which is a website where links to several worksheets based on coping with social anxiety are provided.

5. Create your Goals: When you feel anxious, it is likely for you to eliminate anything positive during that situation. You might be doing great, but yet face distress in everyday activities because of feelings of anxiety. For this purpose, it is recommended for you to create objective behavioural goals.

6. Maintain a Rational Outlook: Try to get rid of any bleak thoughts, which hamper your performance and trigger your social anxiety phobia. Also stay away from any kind of unrealistic thoughts, which are positive in an irrational way. Before any situation which enhances your anxiety, you should convince yourself about how it is a familiar situation to you, which you have dealt with smoothly in the past.

If your social anxiety phobia is getting in the way of achieving your goals and is disabling you from living the kind of life you seek, it is important for you to consult a therapist and go for regular therapy sessions.