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Learn how to help a friend with anxiety
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Similar to social anxiety, friendship anxiety refers to an overwhelming sense of worry about friendships and interactions with friends. Those with friendship anxiety often worry that their friends secretly find them annoying or don’t want to be around them. In this article, we’ll teach you everything you need to know about friendship anxiety, including what it means, its signs and causes, how to overcome it, and how to help a friend who has anxiety.
Ways to Handle Friendship Anxiety
- Tell your friends how you’re feeling to build trust and communication.
- Set realistic expectations for your friendships.
- Learn to be comfortable doing things you enjoy by yourself.
- Self-reflect to determine if previous negative experiences led to your anxiety.
- Give yourself time to overcome your fears—all progress is progress.
Steps
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Tips
- Try not to take it personally if a friend turns down an invitation to hang out. It doesn’t mean they’re rejecting you; they’re likely just busy.Thanks
- If you’re worried you somehow embarrassed yourself in front of your friends, odds are, you didn’t do anything embarrassing, but even if you did, your friends won’t judge you for it. In fact, they probably don’t even remember it! Try to remember this the next time you feel yourself getting stuck in a loop.Thanks
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References
- ↑ https://www.glam.com/1418207/neuropsychologist-tips-handling-friendship-anxiety/
- ↑ https://psychcentral.com/blog/trust-issues-causes-signs
- ↑ https://www.health.harvard.edu/mind-and-mood/recognizing-and-easing-the-physical-symptoms-of-anxiety
- ↑ https://health.clevelandclinic.org/is-overthinking-a-mental-illness
- ↑ https://columbian.gwu.edu/fear-failing-secrets-behind-social-anxiety
- ↑ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5504131/
- ↑ https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-friendship-doctor/201010/when-anxiety-gets-in-the-way-friendship
- ↑ https://www.amherst.edu/campuslife/health-safety-wellness/counseling/self_care/healthy_relationships/10_tips_for_health_relationships
- ↑ https://nurturingmindscounseling.com/6-tips-to-work-on-yourself/
- ↑ https://www.amherst.edu/campuslife/health-safety-wellness/counseling/self_care/healthy_relationships/10_tips_for_health_relationships
- ↑ https://www.helpguide.org/articles/relationships-communication/making-good-friends.htm
- ↑ https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/anxiety-what-it-is-what-to-do-2018060113955
- ↑ https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/greater-self-acceptance-improves-emotional-well-201605169546
- ↑ https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/treatment-tests-and-therapies/how-to-help-someone-with-anxiety
- ↑ https://psychcentral.com/blog/trust-issues-causes-signs#causes-of-lack-of-trust
- ↑ https://red.msudenver.edu/2022/is-social-media-bad-for-your-health/
- ↑ https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/some-assembly-required/202208/the-mental-health-effects-of-ghosting
- ↑ https://uhs.umich.edu/anxietypanic
- ↑ https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems/anxiety-and-panic-attacks/for-friends-and-family/
- ↑ https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems/anxiety-and-panic-attacks/for-friends-and-family/
- ↑ https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/treatment-tests-and-therapies/how-to-help-someone-with-anxiety
- ↑ https://www.amherst.edu/campuslife/health-safety-wellness/counseling/self_care/healthy_relationships/10_tips_for_health_relationships
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