blushing is cause of sa

i think that my social anxiety was actually caused by my blushing. when i was very young (up to 2nd grade) i had no social problems and had many friends. but then i switched schools at the beginning of 3rd grade. most of my memories from 3rd grade involve me having to be the center of attention, blushing because of it, and having everyone laugh at me because of the blushing. does anyone else feel like blushing was the cause? oh and i have found that if you try to laugh at yourself you can blame the blushing on the laughter. it works for me.

Hi Magster,

Your experience sounds very like mine. I too remember being very socially active when I was younger and I certainly did attribute the sa to the blushing that began when I was about 13 and persists today (I'm 27).

However, the more I read about these things, the less inclined I am to do so. It's kind of nicer to blame the sa on something physical (I've used both my blushing and early hair loss in the past) because it removes our obligation to do something about it. I think blushing perpetuates our social anxiety but it is really caused by it. There's something in the act of socialising that makes us push a mental panic button and that has effects on us - an adrenaline rush which makes us sweat, shake, shut down higher brain functions so the more basic 'fight or flight' systems can take over and I believe blushing is just one of these physiological responses.

To find the real roots of my SA I've had to look further back to my childhood environments and make some pretty major re-evaluations of those times. Uncomfortable stuff, but I feel like its the right path to take.

What I'm trying to say is if the blushing caused your SA, then what causes the blushing? Do you see what I mean? If it wasn't your SA causing it, then you'd blush totally randomly. I don't blush when I'm on my own (unless I'm dwelling on something embarrasing), I only blush when I have to deal with people. That's how I know its the SA that causes the blushing.

BennyFingers said:

Hi Magster,

Your experience sounds very like mine. I too remember being very socially active when I was younger and I certainly did attribute the sa to the blushing that began when I was about 13 and persists today (I'm 27).

However, the more I read about these things, the less inclined I am to do so. It's kind of nicer to blame the sa on something physical (I've used both my blushing and early hair loss in the past) because it removes our obligation to do something about it. I think blushing perpetuates our social anxiety but it is really caused by it. There's something in the act of socialising that makes us push a mental panic button and that has effects on us - an adrenaline rush which makes us sweat, shake, shut down higher brain functions so the more basic 'fight or flight' systems can take over and I believe blushing is just one of these physiological responses.

To find the real roots of my SA I've had to look further back to my childhood environments and make some pretty major re-evaluations of those times. Uncomfortable stuff, but I feel like its the right path to take.

What I'm trying to say is if the blushing caused your SA, then what causes the blushing? Do you see what I mean? If it wasn't your SA causing it, then you'd blush totally randomly. I don't blush when I'm on my own (unless I'm dwelling on something embarrasing), I only blush when I have to deal with people. That's how I know its the SA that causes the blushing.

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Yep i agree. The blushing and the SA feeds off eachother. Things are linked by associations. If i think i am being judged or i feel way too self conscious then it triggers blushing. Because the more it happens the more you dread it and try not let it happen by thinking about it. the more you think about the more you associate stressful situations with blushing and then it becomes a secondary nature. If can become such a hyper sensitive response in your body. I don't know if that means some people are more prone to blushing and that with teh right triggers it becomes a blushing disorder.

I think I started blushing first and then would completely avoid social situations. So in a way blushing cause my SP or atleast made it a lot worse.

Yes, I can definetily say that blushing has caused a great deal of my social phobia.

I agree... i remember when it first happened i was in front of the class helping my friend with her presentation and i started to turn red i could feel my face burning...ever since then ive had social problems.

As a kid I had a great life, up untill the age of 15 when I went into a camera shop to buy a camera. I felt myself go warm, then my little bro said to me "Chris why is your face red". Once you know about it, there's no going back.

I never noticed i would blush so much until later on when everyone would mention it! Nothing is worse than somebody saying " hey man why is your face so red" Now i know the feeling that once i feel all hot my face is turning purple and that in turn makes me even more anxious. lol i can't stand it.

yeah same, if anyone is reading this and has a blushing phobia get help soon or it will get worse and develop into SP, its not good

yeah, same here. I was a shy kid when it came to meeting people, but nothing serious, had plenty friends and plenty confidence around them. My shyness dwindled as I got older, and by the age of about 33 I was loving the new sociable me. one of my favourite things was meeting new people, I found it interesting. Ive always had tendency to blush, then suddenly at age of 35 I caught myself in the mirror at work one day and was horrified ! you'd think someone had poured boiling water on me! ever since then Ive feared the blushing and now developed SA. The blushing certainly started it for me. I suppose I should be grateful Ive had a full 35years without SA, but Im not, it makes it harder to get used to !!!

I am 18 and have been a long time victim of facial blushing. It has literally hindered my social life and my own self image. I just don't understand how I could possibly turn so red over the silliest situations. For example, my friend and I were at a cellular phone store waiting to been seen by a representative and she whispered to me that the guy waiting on another customer had a hickey on his neck. My face started to go red and I could feel the warmth and she said why is your face soo red?? I said I didn't know and she replyed by saying It's getting even redder now! Why I blushed in that situation is beyond me. It's almost like I can't control it and when It happens I will try to hide my face as much as possible. I'll look down at the ground or pick up a book or magazine and pretend im reading it. This is getting ridiculous. It happens at least 5 or more times a day for the most insignificant reasons. When I try to understand this problem I think about what exactly is behind the feelings of needing to blush. When we voice our opinion on something people are always going to judge what we have to say. That is natural. However, this should not be so detrimental that we blush. Low self esteem and the rush of adrenalin are major causes. We feel people are going to point out our red faces or think to themselves that we are weird or not normal. And that fact is terrifying. All that focus on actual blushing only makes it worse. If i am somewhere where it's really dim or dark and Im with a bunch of people, I am not as shy or timid because I know, no matter what I say, people can't see my red face and knowing that they can't see it, makes it not happen at all. So I guess what Im trying to say is that we fear what we can prevent. This is preventable, we just have to train our thoughts to the positive instead of worrying constantly that we will blush in certain situations. Next time someone comes up to you and asks you an embarassing question, pretend your in the dark and they can't see your face, look them straight in the eye the whole time (even if you go red) because hiding from it makes it worse. Just basically act like it's not even happening at all, like it's a natural thing. Also if you feel your blushing may be caused by other reasons talk to your doctor and they can test you for certain health problems. I have hyperthyroidism and I have read that blushing is also a symptom of this problem.