HELP! I have a presentation coming up...

[Reholla]

In the next couple of days Im going to have to give a 30 min presentation to about 20 people...which the number of people isnt important, cause i'll be nervous no matter how manypeople there are. What do you do??? I just know im going to be beyond nervous..

Are there any pointers people have to help them relax.? Im so so so nervous about it alreaady and i know right before im going to freak out. Please if any one has had to do this before and has pointers please let me know! Thank you so much im desperate...

 

[TAMPA-BAY]

First I am glad to see that you are posting again. Its been a while since we have seen you. Anyway maby you can make it a power point presentation with the lights off or dimmed. That might make it a little easier on you.

 

[steviegerrard489]

In the next couple of days Im going to have to give a 30 min presentation to about 20 people...which the number of people isnt important, cause i'll be nervous no matter how manypeople there are. What do you do??? I just know im going to be beyond nervous..

Are there any pointers people have to help them relax.? Im so so so nervous about it alreaady and i know right before im going to freak out. Please if any one has had to do this before and has pointers please let me know! Thank you so much im desperate...

Freaks me out too and I have given 4 or 5 presentations over recent years! They give me sleepless nights and affect my bowel movements!!! (no joke - it's to do with the stress)

Best think to do is use powerpoint because people will be looking at the slides and not you! If you cant, consider printing handouts for people to look at while you talk....

If you actually use powerpoint and a projector, keep the slides fairly basic and uncluttered. Photo's are good to look at if they can be incorporated into the talk.

I find that the only way to get over the stress is to make sure I know the topic inside out and to have backup notes if I forget what to stay. Usually adrenalin takes over and I rarely refer to the notes..

 

[Ray_]

Hi Reholla , I was in the same position as you just 2 weeks ago i guess youll only relise this after you do the presentation but everyone is nervous with presentations .

benzodiazepines help immensly with presentations i cant speak for all of them but 250ug of Gerax did the job for me . No stage fright , No nervous trembling , No quivering voice etc i was and am looking forward to my next presesentation .

I hope this helps you .

 

[scissorhands]

Hey Reholla. I usuall suffer through them, and repeat over and over in my head to myself before hand "I can do this, who gives a f*ck what any of these people think of me. I just stand up there and do it it's not that hard". Basically I work myself up for it by telling myself over and over that it's not a big deal. And usually I insult the people I'm presenting in front of in my mind before hand.lol I know it's mean but it actually makes it easier. Give it a try. Also if you prepare the presentation on notes it is easier because if you lose track of what you are saying because of the SA, you can look to the paper. Also if you're able to use some sort of media, like a slide show, or a projector with the notes on it, it helps to take the attention off of you, and illustrates to the people what you are saying even if you mess up.

Best of luck. I know it is very difficult to do, so reward yourself afterwards. Get something nice for you .

 

[Reholla]

Well, thanks for all the replies!

bad news is that most of you said to do a power point to take the focus off me, but the thing is im teaching the class!! So ya, cant really do that... its an art class...

so are benzodiazepines a drug? where can you get that from? I have anti anxiety meds that i am definitely taking before..

and oh yeah, im getting a starbucks after!! no matter how i do...

Im just gonna have to get thru this, and itll be behind me.

Ray, how are you looking forward to your next presentation???!
if only i could be looking forward to this..

 

[Ray_]

I dont know to be honest it went fantastic everone else was nevervous nd had stage fright it was like the roles were reversed i was completly free from fear and sa and i could just be myself joking with the lecturers etc

i know its lame but i took a photo of them before the presentation Clicky go to your doctor to get them theyre pretty cheep like 2 euros for 5 of them theyre used by people who are afraid of flying etc pretty easy to get tbhonesst.

Just have faith in the drugs have a read through that wikipedia page to know how they work . and that you get to drop another one of these the next time you have a presentation .

Its a great relief to be able to handle any situation even one that would scare the feck outa normal people .

Good luck

 

[Butterflies]

Hi - the build up to giving a presentation is hell - here are some things that I do that help.

1. Prepare well - once that is done. Everytime you think about it - say to yourself "Stop" and do something else to distract your mind. Maybe go to the movies. Give someone a call, sing along to some music, exercise - ANYTHING to get your thoughts of the presentation.

2. Avoid coffee and any food/drink stimulating.

3. Do heaps of exercise before and leading up to it.

4. Calm breathing before you go to bed

5. Postivie self-talk only. eg. This maybe challenging for me, but I am well prepared. If I am nervous that is OK, because most times people won't notice. Anyway it doesn't hurt to get nervous. Most people get a little nervous anyway. Being nervous will give me the edge. Even the best speakers get nervous. I can do this, and after it's over I'll feel fantastic.

5. During the presentation -lower your voice and deliberately slow down

6. Get your class interacting with the presentation (keeps them interested and takes the focus off you)

7. When it's over REWARD yourself! The fact the you have done it is amazing!!!

 

[scissorhands]

Best of luck. Let us know how you make out afterwards. I'd love to hear that it went well. It will give us all hope. haha

 

[PhantomPod]

I would say to just practice practice practice, and make sure that you know what you're talking about really well. I always find that that makes me less nervous, if I have my whole speech memorized.

 

[Frankenberry]

Tiny Bit of advice that has helped me


1. chew gum during the presentation - helps articulate and salivate so u dont run dry and miss pronounce words
2. find a place to stare at while talking. usually an empty chair or just something where ur eyes can settlee.
and.
3. don't think to much of the script your reading...improvisation helps deal with quite a bit

 

[socialhen]

power point ，get more pictures，talk to pictures and ramdomly look back at them ,and also make a video or small film or something to pass time.


but still ...30 mins? you mean u have to talk for 30mins ...i have never done that before..

but i think its a big chance for u to gain experice and confidence .not many ppl can talk infront of a bunch of ppl for 30mins ,and no matter how much u screwed it up ,at somepoint when things cant get worse ,u will feel relax and eventually , u will finish this pretty well

 

[socialhen]

and eat banana before , good luk

 

[Snerkable]

Hi, I am in a similar situation, I have a presentation coming up in a matter of days... the best path available to you right now is to go to your General practitioner and explain to him/her that you have a transient need for a benzodiazepine... preferably Xanax or Klonopin.

I'm not fretting over my presentation because I know that .5 miligrams (a low dose) of Xanax takes away the intense fear COMPLETELY. I've done three presentations of 5 minute length with no anxiety what-so-ever. Now, obviously these aren't drugs that you want to take for an extended period of time... as they do build dependency and tolerance, but I had a conversation with my GP and they're extremely safe if used responsibly and for a short period of time... I.E. presentation day.

They're tranquilizers that increase the ability for the neurosecretionary cells in your brain to produce the neurotransmitter GABA... which in turn interacts with other neurons in your brain to slow their firing processes down... I.E. the necessary firing rate requisite of starting a panic attack is taken away in the presence of excessive GABA inhibitor. At appropriate doses it's effectively impossible to have a panic attack assuming there's no prior tolerance build up or what have you, within an hour of taking the medicine... so take it like thirty or so minutes before your presentation.
Of course, you shouldn't plan on driving and you shouldn't take alcohol with this drug... as both increase the risk of drastic side-effects.

Outside of this, the other course of treatment is a relatively small paced-long term treatment, which you should focus on.. and that's Cognitive Behavioral therapy... but for now, your best therapeutic course of action is to get ahold of a benzodiazepine...

 

[Reholla]

It went so well guys!!! Like i couldnt have planned it any better. The class was so cooperative and would talk back to me when I asked questions, it was perfect. I don't think it was exactly 30 mins, but other then that i couldnt have planned any better. The TA critiqued my presentation after and had a few pointers but thank god it was nothing like "dont be nervous next time" cause i wasnt!

Before the presentation I just kept my mind clear, i listened to my ipod on my way to class. And the class before i did a sudoku in it...

And before i left the house i took 2 lorazepams for anxiety. So those helped a lot.

After i got me a nice little starbucks caramel frapuccino!!! it was a nice little reward.

Anyway, yes guys, there is still hope! Presentations suck and its always going to be hell preparing for them but you can be successful even if your a little nervous. It is possible...

Ive done like group presentations, but nothing where i had to teach the class so now i know i can do that and i dont have to be nervous about it anymore...

thanks for all yalls helpful advice! it really helped. Especially Butterfly...thanks!

 

[Snerkable]

Great! I'm so glad for you! It's great that you're being so positive and hopeful, as that means you're starting to get better. Whatever you do, don't focus in on anything that might contradict your positive attitude, it went great as you said and I hope you remember this presentation for a long time to remind yourself that you can do it!

Also, thirty minutes? Sheesh! That's intense! What you just did would be like the timor magna (great fear) of SP'ers with interacting with the audience for so long.. if you can do that... you can do anything!

 

[Butterflies]

That is awesome, fantastic - you must feel so good!

 

[scissorhands]

Congratulations.! That is great news.

 

[PhantomPod]

That's great to hear that it went so well!

 

[Reholla]

ahhh Problem in Paradise guys....

so maybe that presentation went great, and i actually had another presentation since then...where i had to teach the class too, and it was about 15 minutes long, and i did well on that.

But now i am in SPEECH CLASS --- the nightmare of any social phobe!!!

and every day i am nervous, hot, and my stomach hurts. I still say things in class (cause i like my opinion, lol) BUT im scared that if im UP FRONT i will freak! My face might turn red or worse my voice crack!!! omg im just thinking of the worst...but i am worried is the bottom line.

any suggestions??

(having presentations that went well in the past helps, but im still scared about this cause its powerpoint and all formal :-/)