There are many different types of anxiety, but one of the most common is social anxiety. Social anxiety disorder is a mental health condition where social situations can cause a person intense and extreme fear. People who suffer from social anxiety live in near constant fear of being judged or scrutinized by others. The anxiety can even lead up to a panic attack, where a person will experience shortness of breath, rapid heart beat, trembling, and other symptoms. These panic attacks can last from 10 to 30 minutes and are very excruciating. There is no one specific cause for social anxiety. Any type of situation can cause a person to feel anxious and it affects everyone differently.
There are many misconceptions made about social anxiety disorder by people who are not educated on the topic. For example, some perceive social anxiety disorder as a phase or something that is easy to overcome. I have heard many times in my life that my social anxiety will go away if I just “go outside and talk to people”. This is untrue. Social anxiety is not magically cured by being forced into talking to people. This will only cause more fear for social interactions and worsen your anxiety. Another thing I have been told about my social anxiety is that I am just “over-dramatic” or am “overreacting”. Saying this to a person who is suffering from anxiety or is on the verge of a panic attack can make them feel terrible about something they have no control over. You should never invalidate a mental disorder or someones feelings.
Social anxiety is not always taken seriously and I believe one of the reasons why is because recent young adult books and films make it seem like a “cute quirk”. Anxiety is not a cute quirk or something to joke about. There is nothing funny about being in a constant state of fear or anxiousness. Another reason I believe it is not taken seriously is because people who have no knowledge of the mental disorder just see it as shyness. Social anxiety is more than just being shy or introverted. It is a complex mental disorder that can have severe effects on people.
Some of the effects social anxiety has is it can cause people to isolate themselves, have low self esteem, be hypersensitive to criticism, and have poor social skills. Social anxiety can and usually does lead a person to acquire another mental disorder such as depression or obsessive compulsion disorder. It can even lead to a person developing something as serious as an eating disorder.
All mental disorders deserve to be validated and to be taken more seriously by society, including social anxiety.
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