posting this here as well...

hi, i'm new here. i have had social anxiety since i was a young teenager, and i have joined this forum tonight because things feel as though they have recently taken a turn for the worse.

i believe that this whole pattern began when i was in jr. high and came from somewhat normal levels of low self esteem and low self confidence, but at some point shifted into a more painful and serious condition. i started to experience chronic sweating, which made visible stains under my arms. later i began to experience blushing, which when its at its worst will creep down to my neck and chest creating a hot blotchy rash.

over the years i have tried a host of different medications the most recent being a 3 yr stint on klonopin and effexor. after graduating from college in the spring i made the decision to slowly and carefully ween off of these drugs, making this the first time in yrs where i am "myself" again. coming off of effexor was nightmarish, i cried every day and felt like all of my organs were electric. finally however, things did return to normal, and i was able to, a few months later begin the slow klonopin taper.

it has now been about 2 weeks since by last dose of klonopin. i feel really healthy and surprisingly clear and lucid, ive even lost 20 lbs.

im scared though, because i can feel this next debilitating wave of anxity coming on hard. it is something that gives me a painful instinct to hide myself away. i dread interactng with other people not because i dont like social interaction (i have figured out that having people in my life is actually very crucial and fulfilling) but because i hate the phisical symptoms that come when i am experiencing anxiety.

i am afraid of blushing, and i dread the feeling of sweating profusely. i have had to carefully select shirts that are dark in color and made of knit fabric so that the sweat won't be visible, and i have recently been drawn to shirts with high neck lines so that the blush/rash will be hidden. i only own 1 shirt that fits both requirements.

i dont kknow what to do. there are so many ways that my life has been carefully formed around this "disorder"; it feels as though i am bearing a crown of thorns at this point. it is really hard to imagine being truly happy.

if you have any suggestions or ideas for how to stay hopeful, i am open to all of your wisdom. i know im not the only one, but by the nature of being socially phobic, it is probably common to feel that we are suffering alone; thank god for the internet...

hi marie26. First of you are not alone. I know exactly what you're going through. I think you suffer from Hyperidrosis (excessive sweating), have you tried the 20% aluminium cloride roll ons for under your arms, that should help. I think there's probably a link between blushing/social phobia and sweating, as i to suffer from these and its a real pain in the butt but I manage some how. I'd like to talk to you more about this as I think we both are in a very similar situation. speak soon.

hey hh,

is hyperhydrosis when u sweat excessively all of the time? i only sweat when i am in a situation that includes an anxiety trigger... either way, it is a real uncomfortable situation.

i havent tried the aluminum stuff because ive heard it causes cancer, and it isnt worth that fear for me.

wish it would just stop! id love to be able to wear shirts withou t having that stupid fear.

There's different kinds of hyperhidrosis, sometimes it can be caused by anxiety or if you're in a stressful situation and you can also swaet all the time. I think you should give the aluminium stuff a try, I'm not sure about the cancer risk though, I've never heard of it and people have been using this stuff for years and what things don't give you cancer these days anyway

i think that's fairly common physical symptoms. what i did to stop that from happening is to not -try- to stop it from happening... so when you feel your face blushing or feel yourself sweating, dont try to stop it, just let it do it's thing and distract yourself away from thinking about it. it sounds difficult but it's really not. the sooner you learn to 'forget' about these things and just live with them, the sooner they will go away. and trust me.... they Will go away and over time they will happen alot less.

Hi Marie26. I don't have the profuse sweating but I do have the extreme blushing and anxiety at times. You know, it's weird though. I am not currently on any medication. I've had brief stints in the past (Paxil. zoloft, prozac to name a few) but never felt they helped (quite possibly because I never stayed on them long enough...) Today, I felt pretty good though. I took an over the counter diet pill. And I swear it did something to my mental state. Like coming out of a dream, sort of. At one point today I suddenly thought to myself "What am I always making such a big deal of??" I just felt more clear-headed today when usually I feel so cloudy and grey. (Can you feel grey? Cuz' I swear I've felt grey- not to be confused with feeling blue mind you. totally different feeling) As I was saying though, I was able to interact w/people more freely than usual. Not thinking so much! Not worrying so much! I've had moments like this in the past. Kind of like "Ah-Ha" moments where I wonder what the heck I've been doing all this time. Sadly, I have not had much success in making those moments become days, months or years. At best, a few hours. Perhaps this is my own testament that I need to get on medication??... What made you decide to go off the meds.? And did you feel they helped you when you were on them? And oh yeah, I believe you responded to my Birthday post. Happy upcoming Birthday to you as well. May we not be red (or sweaty) for the one day!

i am 61 and have lived with this beast all my life and it never gets better..now it is eating at my nerves..i hope u have better luck than me

61 years old never get better??? WE ALL CURSED.

18 years now, every day i felt got worsened. Now in a simple conversation i blush..! Fucking idiot question i turn to red color. Just ordinary "what did you do on your off day" Fuck that red again


Herringman, would you want to live those years again?

no Aldebe i would not want to relive it..But i relive it almost every day even when i dream i blush..I grew up in a small fishing town of 200 people so everyone knew each other..I grew up in the days of radio and jukebox..We had a small caf'e where all the teenagers went to play jukebox and dance..i walked the road outside. i would not want to relive that.In highschool everyone would turn to stare at me when the teacher asked a question ..would not want to relive that..dealing with dates, family,friends,coworkers has all been a nightmare..just the simple things in life like getting groceries is a nightmare..riding buses etc etc....would not want to relive any of it....nice to finaly meet a support group after thinking i was the only one in the world for 48 years...thanks again

Words not enough to describe how i am sorry about you..

Are you married? Have child?

I was 21 when i first married , we had a boy. a year later we split and i have had no contact with either since.I was in the Air Force at the time and after 5 years i gave up a great career because i couldn't cope with it any longer. I hitchhiked around the country for a few years not knowing where i was going. My second marriage took place when i was 26 and lasted 3 years..We had a boy and i haven't seen either one since..I finally contacted him through facebook but he wants nothing to do with me. My 3rd marriage was 15 years ago..she is a special person and we are still together..either she dosen't know or don't care but surely she must have noticed..she had 2 boys who live on their own now but i never had a close relation with them..I also have a daughter from another relationship. She lives about a mile from me and is 26 years old..i only see her when she drops my grandson off..she has a better relationship with my wife than me..i can live with that....The curse remains...Tks

Hey big man, you a lot better then many of us, what else you want? Already married 3 times???

I have a girlfriend but can't marry her just because i will blush in the wedding and i can't stand visits because as a couple you need visit other couples, picnics, life etc.. I can't

Beyond that, you don't blush? How did you survive those weddings? Just curious...

Yes of Course i blush ,like yourself..even when someone askes me a question..I work on a tug boat now with a crew of 3.We have 2 tugs here ,so 6 of us in all. Just an hour ago the other crew comes for a visit and a chat..I turned bright red a dozen times..i have to sit with them or they think somethings wrong...sometimes i think they do it on purpose..my brain takes a shit kicking..lets face it..who has seen a 60 year old man blush...they must have a laugh when they leave...as for the weddings well i drank a bottle of rum each time...it helps but you make an idiot of yourself...the inlaw visits i do not do so they all hate me an think im not very friendly....What does your girlfriend think of your blushing????

Hi again Herringman1. I think a flushing face shows a sensitive soul. I struggle with it daily and it makes me angry because I don't want to look embarrassed when I am not! But maybe we should just stop fighting it! It's the hardest thing to do because, at least for me, flushing is accompanied with extreme discomfort. However, sometimes calling attention to it helps it go away. Like saying "Hey, I know I'm blushing over here but"...and then go onto a new topic. I've tried using humor too, once in a while, when I am feeling more brave. For example, someone said to me "Oh my God! Your so red!" (Gee, really??!!) and I said "Hey, my dad was a tomato- so I'm red, what can I say" It's a really stupid reply but it got a chuckle and took some of the attention/pressure off me. No matter the age 10, 25, 34, 68 it just shows you are very self-aware and sensitive to the world and environment around you.

I know this doesn't really help or change things but... well, that's what I would think of you if I were sitting across from you at your work or something like that.

hi Snow...I think head on is the best way to handel it...If u go red so what..I finally e-mailed my oldest brother and told him everything..i have 3 brothers and 2 sisters...It was 4 days ago and i havent herd back..they probaly all going...holy shit lol...oh well its done now..no turning back..Since meeting u all in here..im felling better about this curse...i'm going to try and meet the bastard head on...got to clear that head...i can picture myself in old folks home with my walker and still blushing...lol

hi guys ummm well i am 20 and i feel really nervous writing this.......i have just been reading about how you all are dealing with blushing...which personally i think is a nice way of saying it because i think of it more as going extremely red

and i do very often i get really red over things i am not even embarressed by and feel like i am looked at like i am stupid because ppl who i am talking to notice and cant understand why i am reacting like that

the thing is i have noticed you have said take your mind off it while it is happeneing but it just seems impossible i cant control it and i often feel like crying and running away in that situation and to make it worse i dwell on it for days, weeks afterwards

i mean i still have specific memories from being younger and blushing and when i think of them from time to time it makes me blush again

i just wanted to ask coz i love my friends and fammily but they are all really outgoing ppl and nothing much phases them
so i am finding when i go out i tend to drink a lot and its gotten to the point were i rely on it, if i am invited somewere i am always them most drunk there
and have to deal with it the next day.......i feel like and idiot and i dont ever want to see anyone again

does anyone else ever do that or feel that way???