Many people suffer from social anxiety during a pandemic. They fear being affected economically, socially, and certainly fear exposure corona virus and fall helplessly ill. So what to do? Should you take a social anxiety therapy?
Social anxiety disorder is a symptom that can be experienced by any person in the form of feeling afraid of people’s judgments, being humiliated, and being considered incompatible with social standards.
According to many sources, these thoughts and feelings of fear need to be addressed immediately. The signs of an anxiety disorder can be seen from a person’s emotional, physical and behavioral characteristics.
You may find some signs or symptoms in a person who suffered from social anxiety. This involve in their emotional, physic, and behaviours.
Emotional signs and symptoms of social anxiety include:
- Feeling aware that he/she is anxious about social situations.
- Worries that are experienced for days, weeks, months.
- Feeling afraid that someone will judge, besides being afraid of being watched by strangers.
- Fear of acting wrong which can actually treat yourself, but also fear of being embarrassed by others.
- Fear of looking nervous
Physical signs and symptoms of social anxiety disorder include:
- The face is red or flushed.
- Shortness of breath.
- Stomach nausea.
- Shaking or including voice shaking.
- Heart racing or tightness in the chest.
- Sweating.
- Feel dizzy or want to pass out.
The behaviors seen in people with social anxiety disorder include:
- Avoiding social activities that involve many people.
- Tend to be silent and hide out of shame.
- Do not dare to go out alone, always depend on friends and always want to be accompanied wherever you go.
- Always drink before facing social situations to calm nerves.
Treatment or therapy for social anxiety disorder depends on the severity of emotional and physical symptoms, as well as how well a person functions each day. The length of treatment also varies. There are people who respond well to medication and therapy, and others who have difficulty and need lifelong support.
Social anxiety therapy can be done alone or in conjunction with medication. Various choices of psychological methods are directed to help someone change their behavior for the better than before.
To get the right therapy according to your condition, you need to first discuss it with a psychologist or psychiatrist near you or in the internet who you trust to. There are at least several types of therapy that can treat social anxiety disorder.
Cognitive Behavior Therapy
This is a first step psychotherapy treatment for your social anxiety disorder. This therapy is a form of psychotherapy designed to change a person’s thoughts and behavior in order to positively influence emotions.
There are three types of cognitive behavioral therapy, namely exposure, cognitive restructuring, and social skills training.
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
Buddhist philosophy has a lot influenced to this therapy. This should developed after cognitive behavioral therapy. Through this acceptance and commitment therapy, you will learn how to accept negative thoughts and anxieties rather than trying to eliminate them. By removing yourself from social anxiety, it is hoped that symptoms will naturally decrease.
Psychoanalysis Therapy
Psychoanalysis will involve a therapist to help you understand underlying problems since childhood that might contribute to the social anxiety you experience. This therapy is especially useful for people who have unresolved conflicts that are contributing more deeply to anxiety. Psychoanalysis is also useful in some cases to explore resistance to change.
What Next?
In many people, this social anxiety disorder does go away over time. But for some people, it does require serious handling from psychiatrists and psychologists.
Therefore, if you feel that there are signs that point to this disorder, don’t panic. Because panic will make things worse. Immediately consult the experts.
