SOCIAL ANXIETY DISORDER

WHAT IS SOCIAL PHOBIA?

The essential feature of Social Anxiety Disorder is a marked and persistent fear in one or more social situations. Another way to think about Social Phobia is that it is the extreme fear of negative evaluation. This means that when individuals with social phobia are exposed to an anxiety provoking situation, like giving a speech, they are intensely worried that they will do or say something that will make others think poorly of them.

People with Social Anxiety Disorder will avoid social settings (i.e., parties, speaking, meetings, and dating), or endure them with great difficulty and distress. Social Phobia can be specific or generalized. That is, a person can have anxiety regarding specific situations, such as giving a speech, but have little or no anxiety in other social situations. People with generalized Social Anxiety Disorder fear most social interactions. A person with this type of Social Phobia may become fearful in small, informal groups or when simply walking down the street. Often, these individuals avoid engaging in any social activities.

SOCIAL ANXIETY INTERFERES WITH YOUR LIFE

Social Phobia is not mere shyness. Although people with social phobia are shy, not everyone who is shy would be given a Social Anxiety Disorder diagnosis. A shy person may be uncomfortable in social situations, but their symptoms are not disabling. However, with Social Phobia, anxiety starts getting in the way and a person's life begins to be restricted.

Individuals with Social Anxiety Disorder often tend to greatly exaggerate the severity of the negative judgments others may make about them. People with Social Phobia tend to think they are less socially competent than others. Most of the time individuals with Social Phobia are conscious that their social concerns are excessive and are aware that they do not judge or notice others in the same harsh way they judge themselves. Individuals with Social Phobia may avoid contact with others or decline promotions because it would involve public speaking. Individuals with generalized Social Phobia may become so constrained by their social anxiety that they end up removing themselves from the work force and friendship/peer groups.

Since the general public knows very little about Social Phobia, people who are socially anxious often think that they are the only ones who feel this way; hence they do not receive proper treatment. Without treatment Social Phobia typically does not go away and may worsen with time, resulting in a restrictive and unfulfilling lifestyle. Individuals with Social Anxiety Disorder are also at an increased risk for depression, alcohol and drug abuse, and suicide. It is estimated that 7% of the population will meet criteria for Social Phobia. This means that almost 20 million people in the United States alone are afflicted with this debilitating disease!

DO YOU HAVE SOCIAL PHOBIA?

COMMON FEARS

• Public Speaking
• Informal conversations in small or large groups
• Eating, writing, or other public performances
• Dating
• Interactions with authority figures

Please call our clinic for an evaluation with one of our mental health professionals to determine whether you meet criteria for this diagnosis.

CAUSES OF SOCIAL PHOBIA

Currently the cause of Social Anxiety Disorder appears to be a combination of genetics and environment. Heredity may predispose a person to develop Social Anxiety, but in most cases it requires a trigger from the environment for full blown development of the disorder. This is what is commonly referred to as a "diathesis-stress" model. The diathesis, or weakness, would be seen as a genetic predisposition toward shyness, behavioral inhibition and anxiety. The stress, or external force that taxes the individual's coping resources could be any one of a number of events. It could be a difficult school experience (such as giving a speech in class), or any number of pivotal issues. Stress on the system causes it to "break down" and develop new coping mechanisms. In Social Phobia this could be seen as a social stressor leading an individual to avoid social situations due to fear of embarrassment. Although avoiding social situations does decrease the anxiety (at least temporarily), it is debilitating and harmful long-term.

It is important to note that the cause of a disorder need not be known in order to effectively treat it.

TREATMENT

The good news is that Social Anxiety Disorder is very amenable to treatment! The two most common ways to treat Social Phobia are with medication and cognitive behavioral therapy. The two can be used together or separately. There are a variety of medications that are prescribed, including some antidepressants. Although the drugs help with the symptoms of anxiety, they have a relatively high relapse rate and many individuals would prefer not to take any medications. Cognitive behavioral therapy, on the other hand, has a much lower relapse rate with approximately 80% of the patients having few or no symptoms of Social Phobia by the end of a 10 week treatment program. For more information on treatments available at our clinic, please see the Treatment web page.

Please, email us or call at 850 / 645-1766 to find out more about our treatment programs! Also, please see the Research Programs page to find out about some exciting studies currently being conducted.