Social Phobia

Social phobia is also called social anxiety. It indicates severe feelings of self-consciousness and shyness which later builds into strong fear. As a result, the person feels uneasy to participate in everyday social activities with new people. This may also sometimes include some close people, such as friends, relatives and colleagues.

Unfortunately, social phobia is one of the fastest growing psychological issues in the world today. Below are some examples that discuss the situation of people who are suffering from social phobia.

1. A man hating to stand at a grocery store thinking everyone else is watching him!

The man knows that what he thinks is not really happening, but he is unable to get over the feeling. He thinks that while he is shopping, people all around are watching him and by the time he reaches the counter to check out, his voice is fragile. He tries smiling but he knows that he is fooling himself. The social phobia reaches the climax here.

2. A girl sitting in front of a telephone, but is afraid to make a call!

The girl is afraid to make a phone call to an unknown person at the electricity office because she thinks she might upset the person. She feels it is wrong to call because the person might be busy, it might not be an appropriate time or either they would not want to talk to her.

3. A woman hating to go to work the next day because there’s a meeting scheduled!

Such a woman hates office meetings because she knows there has to be some discussion about the current projects. Every co-worker will be discussing it and she has to do that too. The thought of speaking in front of so many people raises the level of social phobia in her. She is unable to concentrate on whatever she does until the next morning. Finally, the next day, when the meeting is over, her palms are sweating while she takes a deep breath in relief.

4.  A student hesitating to attend the first day at university because he will have to go around the room to introduce himself!

This guy keeps on thinking about having to introduce himself to new and strange people. He thinks everybody in the hall will be staring at him which makes him feel nauseous. He knows that he will be unable to concentrate in class and will definitely miss out on important things. So, in order to avoid introducing himself to the class, he skips the first day of university.

The worst fact about people suffering from social anxiety is that it is not something that would come and go as other physical ailments. It is often believed by health experts that if social phobia overcomes you even for a day, you are sure to have it for the rest of your life until it is cured.