Social phobia: symptoms, causes and treatment

A type of anxiety disorder that affects personal relationships.

Being nervous in some social situations may be normal, as it is sometimes a natural response to public speaking, dating or similar situations. However, when everyday interactions cause a lot of anxiety, embarrassment, insecurity and intense fear for the opinion of others, the person may suffer from social phobia (social anxiety disorder).

In this article we will look at how to recognize social phobiaand what to do.

How to detect social phobia?

The social phobia affects us physically and mentally, being the fear and anxiety incapacitating for the person, since it affects him in the different areas of his life (labor, social, personal).

We talk about phobia when the intensity with which the person experiences the fear is unjustified, disproportionate, and reduces the person's capacity for action, causing emotional blockage. and reduces the capacity of action causing the emotional blockade of the person.

Marta Garrido González, specialist psychologist at Psicólogos Málaga Psicoabreu, points out that people suffering from social phobia are aware that their feelings are irrational but, in spite of this, they do their best to avoid facing the feared situation as a consequence of anticipatory anxiety.

Thus, long before the person has to face the feared situation, he or she already begins to suffer from anxiety because he/she cannot stop thinking about it.

Anticipation can cause the subject to act in an inadequate way, entering a vicious circle, since it will provoke greater fear for future situations. This fear has to interfere notably in his life to be able to establish this diagnosis.

Difference between social phobia and shyness

Social anxiety disorder is different from shyness in that shy people are able to participate in social situations. shy people are able to participate in social situations (even if they are embarrassed or nervous), and people who are socially phobic are unable (even if they are embarrassed or nervous), and people who are socially phobic are unable to do so, often isolating themselves from the people around them.

Thus, the characteristics of shyness are the following:

• Intensity and duration is proportional to the stimulus that has provoked it.
• Anxiety disappears gradually.
• Acceptance and learning.

Here is an example:

A student has to present a work she has done in front of all her classmates. This situation generates stress and nerves, since she is afraid that it will go badly, that she will forget what she had to expose, etc. It is a rational and expected fear, since it is a situation that the person does not normally perform, and has no practice (a cause that generates more nervousness).

The characteristics of social phobia, on the other hand, are as follows:

• Preoccupation with becoming the center of attention..
• Fear of eating and drinking in public.
• Fear of speaking to the public, talking to friends.
• Fear of embarrassing situations in front of an audience.
• Intensity and duration in time.
• Affects areas of your life.

An example of social phobia can be the following:

In the previous case; let's imagine that the person keeps his negative thoughts for a longer time, leading him to lose self-confidence, have the feeling of failure and constant discomfort.

The fear is excessive and irrational and the person tends to avoid social interactions (anxious anticipation interferes with the individual's normal functioning). The anxiety response of the persoba may lead to a crisis of distress, so that he/she avoids the feared situation or even blocks himself/herself (not being able to develop the exposure).

Symptoms

People suffering from social phobia show extreme anxiety in social situations. It is a persistent and chronic fear that causes physical, cognitive and behavioral symptoms. This phobia can be triggered by a specific situation or it can arise in can arise in the interaction with all those people who are not known to the patient..

Physical symptoms of anxiety

These are a common feature in people suffering from social phobia. A high percentage of patients present palpitations, dizziness, fainting, heart attacks, trembling of the hands, feet or voice, dry mouth, stuttering, trembling of the hands, feet or voice.dry mouth, stuttering, sweating hands and body, and blushing (anguish and embarrassment). Very high levels of anxiety can lead patients to suffer panic attacks.

The psychologists of the Psicoabreu team affirm that the physical symptoms are the ones that lead people to seek psychological therapy..

Cognitive symptoms

Recurrent thoughts that one will not be able to speak, of inferiority, shame, lack of concentration (forgetting what we wanted to say). Anticipation (imagining what is going to happen), self-critical thoughts (I look stupid, I am making a fool of myself, etc.).

Emotional and behavioral symptoms

The most prominent are loss of self-confidencesocial isolation, inability to participate in social situations, and avoidance of feared situations.

Causes

People with social phobia have an irrational fear of situations in which they may be judged. situations in which they can be judged by others, so they avoid them.so they avoid them. This anxiety disorder may begin in adolescence and usually affects males and females in equal proportions.

As with many mental disorders, social phobia arises from the interaction of Biological and environmental factors.

Heredity

Anxiety disorders are usually inherited, at least in part (both genetic and acquired behaviors).

Brain structure

The amygdaloid nucleus may influence the fear response.. Thus, people who have this overactive nucleus may have an exaggerated fear response (causing increased anxiety in social situations).

Environment

Social phobia may be an acquired behavior. There may be a learning relationship of children copying episodes of anxiety suffered by parents. In addition, some people have anxiety after going through unpleasant and uncomfortable social situations.

Risk factors

Several factors may increase the risk of social anxiety disorder:

1. family history 2.

If your parents or biological siblings have social anxiety disorder, you are more likely to have social anxiety disorder.If you have a family history of social anxiety disorder, you are more likely to have it.

2. Negative experiences

Children who experience rejection, ridicule or humiliation may be more likely to develop social anxiety disorder.

3. Character

People who are shy, introverted when facing situations may be at greater risk.

4. Having an appearance that attracts attention

For example, stuttering or facial disfigurement may increase shyness and cause social anxiety disorder in some people.

Types of social phobia

There are two types of this anxiety disorder.

Generalized social phobia

It is suffered by people who experience high levels of anxiety in most social situations. in the vast majority of social situations and in interaction with people.

Specific social phobia

It develops when the situations of anxiety only appear at certain times (fear of being observed while eating or drinking, speaking in public, writing in front of others,...).

Psychological treatment

The team of psychologists at PsicoAbreu psychology offices in Malaga is specialized in the psychological treatment of social anxiety disorders and social phobia. The psychological therapy is directed to the patient to lose the fear of certain situations and regain their social life..

Cognitive behavioral therapy helps to identify, understand and change the thoughts that cause the phobia. In some situations pharmacological treatment (anxiolytics or antidepressants) is necessary to alleviate anxiety symptoms together with psychological treatment.

Bibliographic references:

• Chambless, D. L.; Fydrich, T.; Rodebaugh, T. L. (2008). "Generalized social phobia and avoidant personality disorder: Meaningful distinction or useless duplication?". Depression and Anxiety. 25 (1): 8 - 19.