Social Phobia – Types, Causes & Treatments

What is Social Phobia?

People with social phobia are anxious in social situations and avoid these situations. They are afraid of being rejected and often feel insecure. Sometimes fear can take the form of a panic attack. Then these fears become annoying and people start to avoid these situations. Daily life can suffer greatly from that. A recurring pattern of these fears is called a social phobia.

Spiritual and Physical Phenomena

Physical symptoms associated with social phobia (social anxiety disorder) may include blushing, trembling hands, dry throat, sweating, twitching, palpitations. The complaints are often so bad that the daily liver is affected.
People are anxious in social situations and are going to avoid these situations. They often realize that this fear is not necessary, but they still remain afraid.

Examples:

• Afraid to have a chat with someone.
• Being afraid of the critical judgment of others or being fooled.

Effects:
The complaints hamper the development of the person; at school and during training, in work, in social situations, etc.

Loneliness:

• Because it takes a lot of energy to function with these complaints, stress or exhaustion can arise.
• Sometimes people use more alcohol to relax.
• Greater chance of developing alcohol dependence, depression or other anxiety disorder.

Types of Social Phobia

• Specific social phobia: The fear occurs in one specific situation, such as public speaking.
• Generalized social phobia: people are afraid in several situations.

How often does it occur?

About 5 to 15 percent of people suffer from social phobia throughout life. It is more common in women. It is a chronic condition. The severity of the complaints can vary. Someone may have more complaints in one period than in another.

Causes

There is not one clear cause for the emergence of a social phobia. Probably different factors play a role in its occurrence.

Hereditary factors
Family members of someone with a social phobia are three times more likely to develop a social phobia.

Environmental
Some people experience social phobia after experiencing a major event, such as the death of a loved one.
Education plays an important role in the emergence of a social phobia. The use of a lot of coffee and other caffeinated drinks can provoke or strengthen fear. Different types of drugs and alcohol can also have this effect.

Treatments

A social phobia does not automatically pass, but is easy to treat. Treatment of social phobia often has a beneficial effect, that is, reduce anxiety and avoidance behavior. Below are some possible anxiety disorder treatments for social phobia.

Task concentration training
Task Concentration means that you try to focus your attention on a certain task. Moving the attention to the outside world and to certain activities can help to reduce the tension.

Cognitive behavioral therapy
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a combination of two forms of psychotherapy: cognitive therapy and behavioral therapy. Cognitive behavioral therapy tackles the behavior and the negative thoughts that maintain the problems. CBT is effective for anxiety, depression, addiction and eating disorders.

Social skills training
If someone does not know how to deal with social situations, he can follow a social skills training. Situations are practiced in role plays with tasks such as: asking someone something, listening, giving compliments, etc.

Medicines
Antidepressants are most commonly used to reduce anxiety. These agents, unlike tranquilizers, are not addictive. It will take a few weeks before the anxiety actually starts to diminish. Most side effects may disappear over time, but some patients may continue to suffer from certain side effects such as decreased libido or weight gain.