Social Anxiety

[samack]

Does anyone here deal with social anxiety? What if anything has helped you? I cannot find a social support group which would be ideal. I'm at a loss.

[Lazy_dog_lover]

I don’t know if social anxiety needs different support than other anxiety. It is worth a study, though. This is a great place to hear about strategies since so many overlap, but none are the same.

[Roxylox]

I do suffer a little Samack, never diagnosed, but feel l have a touch of it

Fear going out for a walk in case of meeting people, so often go to beach with dog.

Less people and easier to avoid them

Rather shop in strange townwhere I'm not known

I'm awkward in shops, staff think l'm weird. Have heard them say so, making me worse of course - vicious circle.

I do better where I don't know people.

I often get misjudged, which doesn't help.

Wear my earphones when walking

I see them as another shield.

[samack in reply to Roxylox]

Thank you Roxylox. I've mentioned previously that I've been isolated and trying to "reenter" the world and find myself at a loss for words. What do I say about me and my life? I tried a couple of years back and it was awful. Its a myth that you should just listen and keep the questions on them. You are perceived as very boring and I personally find listening to their everyday "normal" lives as painful. Big time trigger. So I'm stuck.

[avuncular]

20 mg Citalopram an SSRI from my GP has helped where other things failed

[axemadi21]

I struggle with social anxiety too. I get nervous and in my head around people i know and I don't know. I constantly worry about what people think of me, if I did something wrong, said the wrong thing? I never know what to say to other people either.I have one friend, but they have a life outside of me. I want to do so many things, and I'm trying to go do stuff on my own, but it's nice to enjoy activities and adventures with friends. I also know that social anxiety has caused a halt on close relationships. I have a hard time letting people in, showing the real me, partly because I don't know who I am and I've lost too many people along the way. It's made me think something is wrong with me, 'I'm the issue'. Not advice, just reaching out to say I'm stuck too.

[samack]

You hit the spot when you said you don't reveal much about yourself partly because you don't know who you are anymore. I struggle with that mightily. I am neither fish nor fowl at this stage I'm going through. Thank so much for your share.

[BluTigre]

So glad I found this board. I have social anxiety and can’t look people in the eye sometimes when talking, feel like others are judging me often even though I’m not doing anything wrong/dangerous/offensive. Im awake now in the middle of the night because I’m having anxiety over seeing people I haven’t seen in years for an event I’m going to in a month.

I feel like my social anxiety has inhibited me from making close friendships even though I desperately want to. Im not even sure where to start to fix it.

[samack in reply to BluTigre]

Are you on anti anxiety meds? Of course that isn't the solution, but it sounds like it might benefit with some of it. The rest is a challenge we need to work on behaviorally/cognitively, but my problem is I do not know where to start going out there again.

[BluTigre]

I was, and it was a super low dose but it made me nauseous daily 45 minutes after taking it and sometimes depressed. I don’t know if that’s common but i stopped taking them and told my GP. I wouldn’t mind meds if I could find one that made me feel better or anything else alternatively that will help. I feel as though it’s a wave and right now my anxiety is at an all time high.

[samack]

God,that's tough. I know it took me a long time to find meds that somewhat work. The rest is our own choices of adjunct activities. I don't know a way around the anxiety, and its frustrating .