How to Get Support for Social Anxiety

Social anxiety can impact different people in different ways. Although lower level social anxiety is very common, for some people it can very debilitating and can have a significant impact on their lives. To deal with social anxiety, it’s important to get some support to address your concerns and begin to feel less anxious. Start with self-help, and talking to people close to you. If you are having a really tough time, talk to your doctor and speak to a therapist for professional support.

Method 1
Method 1 of 3:

Trying Self-Help and Talking to Friends and Family

  1. Social anxiety comes in a range of forms and severities, but it is very common. If you are concerned about social anxiety, and think that it is having a serious impact on your life, you should seek some support to address it. Before you proceed, take some time to try and identify what triggers social anxiety for you, and how it tends to manifest.
    • Social anxiety can prompt a debilitating fear of being judged or humiliated in social situations.
    • It may cause you to severely limit your interactions with others and make it very difficult to build relationships, or make progress at school or work.
    • Certain situations, such as eating in public, speaking in public, or using a public bathroom can cause serious anxiety. [1]
    • To get a basic idea of your level of anxiety you can do an online self-test questionnaire. This can give you an indication, but is not equivalent to a medical diagnosis.
  2. Self-help manuals may not sound like a particularly rigorous way of addressing social anxiety, but there are a number of books that can help you to identify symptoms and situations that are connected to your anxiety. Often these books will contain advice about ways you can try to modify your behaviour and your thinking in order to challenge your anxiety.
    • Self-help manuals are generally thought of as a supplement to therapy.
    • You can start with a self-help book to introduce you to some of the ideas before talking to a therapist. [2]
    • Look for a book that is endorsed and written by therapist who has significant experience and expertise. [3]
    • A doctor or therapist will be able to recommend a good book for you.
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  3. It’s important to get support from those close to you, who know you best. Friends and family will understand your situation and will want to help you and support you to tackle your social anxiety. It can be very difficult to talk to someone about it, but getting that extra support can really make a difference.
    • For example, if you have a big family event coming up, such as a wedding or birthday party, talk to someone you are close to in advance. This could be a sister or brother maybe.
    • Just say that you’re feeling a bit nervous, and ask them if they can keep that in mind.
    • If you start to feel anxious and overwhelmed, get back to the person you are closest to and try not to worry about all the other people.
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Method 2
Method 2 of 3:

Seeking Professional Help

  1. As social anxiety is considered to be a spectrum, you should take some time to think about just how big an impact your social anxiety is having on your life. If you are just a little nervous about public speaking, but manage to get through it okay in the end, you probably don’t need any professional assistance, just some practice and confidence.
    • If, however, you feel that your social anxiety is actually preventing you from doing things that you want to, or need to do, then you should consider speaking to a therapist or counsellor.
    • If self-help and talking to friends and family hasn’t made an impact, look for a professional you can talk to. [4]
  2. If you have decided to seek professional support to deal with and overcome your social anxiety, you can start by making an appointment to see your normal doctor. You may benefit from talking it through with her, and asking about the different options available to you. Although your doctor may not have specialist knowledge of social anxiety, she will have some general knowledge and will be able to advise you on the next steps.
    • Ask for a referral to a therapist who has experience with social anxiety.
    • Your doctor will be able to make a personal recommendation to you.
    • A doctor’s recommendation may be more reliable than testimony on a website or some promotional material.
  3. To get specialist professional your best bet is to look for a therapist who specialises in social anxiety and social phobia. [5] There are a number of different ways you can find a therapist, ranging from direct referrals from your doctor to just searching online or looking through maintained databases on specialist websites. [6]
    • You can search by location and then look through for someone with the specialisms that are most relevant to you.
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Method 3
Method 3 of 3:

Attending a Support Group

  1. A further way to seek support for social anxiety is by participating in a support group or workshop. These groups can be a great way for you to meet other people who suffer from social anxiety. They will help you see that you are not alone and encourage you to build relationships with people as you help and support each other.
    • Research indicates that taking an active role and seeking to help others, can have a beneficial effect for people suffering from social anxiety.
    • A support group or some other group activity can give you a chance to step outside yourself and do things that benefits other people, which in turn may help you. [7]
  2. Social anxiety is a spectrum with a lot of variety within it. Some people may have specific problems with public speaking and others may have particular problems talking to people they are interested in romantically for fear of rejection. There are a range of support groups run across the country, and you can search online to find ones run near you. [8] Some examples of different groups are: [9]
    • Social anxiety and self-help.
    • Social anxiety and public speaking.
    • Social anxiety and panic attacks.
    • Teen social anxiety.
  3. Once you have decided what kind of support group you would like to attend, you can search through some useful online databases to find groups that meet near you. You can search by location and by the group name or support topic. [10] Keep in mind that there may not be an exact match and some groups will cover a broader range of topics.
    • If you are working with a therapist or counsellor you should ask them for recommendations or referrals for groups meeting locally.
    • Your therapist will have a good knowledge of what groups there are and how they are run, so she will be able to make a personalised recommendation to you.
    • You can also look through message boards and support group websites to get an idea of what particular groups are like. [11]
    • There are also databases for groups outside the USA, available to search through online. [12]
  4. When you have decided on a group to try out, contact whoever is running the group to let them know you would like to attend. You can normally just go along to one session to see what you think with no obligation to return if you didn’t like it. When you do go, try to go with an open mind and a positive approach.
    • You don’t have to say anything straightaway. It might be heartening just to hear other people describing their social anxiety and recognising your experiences in somebody else.
    • Bear in mind that social support groups are more about supporting you and helping you understand that you are not alone.
    • Support groups are not necessarily an effective treatment on their own. But they can be a helpful element of a larger treatment programme. [13]
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      References

      1. ↑ http://www.webmd.com/anxiety-panic/tc/social-anxiety-disorder-symptoms
      2. ↑ http://psychcentral.com/lib/6-ways-to-overcome-social-anxiety/
      3. ↑ https://adaa.org/understanding-anxiety/social-anxiety-disorder
      4. ↑ http://psychcentral.com/lib/6-ways-to-overcome-social-anxiety/
      5. ↑ http://psychcentral.com/lib/6-ways-to-overcome-social-anxiety/
      6. ↑ http://psychcentral.com/find-help/
      7. ↑ https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-new-resilience/201508/suffer-social-anxiety-doing-something-others-helps
      8. ↑ http://www.adaa.org/supportgroups?page=1&title=social%20anxiety&field_sg_state_value_many_to_one=All
      9. ↑ http://www.adaa.org/supportgroups?page=1&title=social%20anxiety&field_sg_state_value_many_to_one=All
      1. ↑ https://adaa.org/find-help/support
      2. ↑ http://www.socialanxietysupport.com/forum/f12/
      3. ↑ http://www.socialanxietysupport.com/groups/
      4. ↑ http://www.socialanxietysupport.com/groups/

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