How to overcome social anxiety: Psychologists' advice

What is social anxiety

In essence, social anxiety is a persistent and intense fear of various social situations. People who suffer from social anxiety often avoid attending parties or performing any specific work duties due to the fear of being judged or humiliated by their surroundings.

Social anxiety can also lead to physically noticeable symptoms, such as blushing, sweating, dizziness, and stomach spasms.

Some may practically always feel anxious in the presence of other people, while others may only get nervous during public speaking or phone calls.

A diagnosis of social anxiety is made only in cases where this condition causes significant distress to the individual or significantly impacts their life.

Here are five things you can start doing to work on overcoming social anxiety and improve your social life:

1. Pay attention to your thoughts. When you're feeling nervous, pay attention to what you're thinking in those moments. Observe your thoughts until you identify the thinking patterns that affect you the most.

2. Challenge your expectations. Try to transform negative thinking patterns into neutral ones. Replace negative expectations with more rational thoughts. For example, some people will like you, some won't, and that's perfectly normal. By challenging your thinking, you can start to perceive social situations differently.

3. Schedule an appointment with a professional. Comprehensive cognitive-behavioral therapy can help you cope with social anxiety through specific lessons and practices. A specialist can help you work on your anxious behavior in a safe environment.

4. Take small steps. Start with a small fear, then move on to more significant actions. Any significant goal is just a set of actions that don't necessarily have to be accomplished in one step. Give yourself time for this.

5. Keep trying again and again. When it comes to overcoming anxiety, regular practice plays a crucial role in success. Practice participating in social situations until it becomes natural for you.

Earlier, we talked about why our phone makes us unhappy.

This material is for informational purposes only and should not be used for medical diagnosis or self-treatment. Our goal is to provide readers with accurate information about symptoms, causes, and methods of detecting diseases. RBС-Ukraine is not responsible for any diagnoses that readers may make based on materials from the resource. We do not recommend self-treatment and advise consulting a doctor in case of any health concerns.