Hiding social anxiety

[slimjim119]

I'm good at hiding my social anxiety effects most of the time. Other people usually can't tell even though it can be killing me at times. Rapid heartbeat, hands tremble, upset stomach. Anyone else good at hiding it? The more I exercise and the more I get out, I feel alot more relief. Staying home too much makes it worse. I especially hate being in waiting rooms with other people. Whether be a doctor's office or waiting for your car in a repair shop. Its hard too just sit there. I have to get up and move around. But then I can get more self conscious once i get up because people look your way. Tough thing to live with every day.

 

[livingnsilence]

I'm pretty good at hiding it most times. No one can see that my stomach is upset from the nerves or a fast heart beat so that's no problem. I shake when I'm nervous but then again I always shake and I tell people that when they point it out so they blow it off. I still stay extreamly quite b/c my nerves but most people don't think you are quite b/c you are nervous they think you just like being quite. Interviews is were I'm best at hiding it surprisingly. Despite the fact my nerves skyrocket during interviews, I can force myself for that short period of time to appear to be a really talkative, happy girl, and it normaly works. I had an interview a couple weeks ago and the interviewer asked what one of my flaws are and I said that one is I'm shy. The rest of the interview he expressed his disbelife in the fact I'm shy and quite, he probably thought I was lying. I deffinitely had him fooled. Smiling and laughing a lot seems to fool people too. I was talking to this one guy that I knew when I was drunk and my excessive laughing came up in convo. and I told him I laugh when I'm nervous and he said "all this time I thought you just thought I was a really funny, cool guy but really you were just nervous."

 

[va_boy]

I'm good at hiding it sometimes, other times I feel like I'm just announcing it to everyone.

 

[txblondgrl]

Except when my face turns red, I'm a pro at hiding it. Most people at work have no clue.

 

[2Crowded]

As far as hiding it...I think most times I am fairly good at it but I think sometimes others can tell that something is bothering me...it depends on the situation i guess.

I can get hot faced in a waiting room very easy....if there is another stranger there waiting....sometimes I pretend to read a magazine just so I don't have to look at the other person or persons....with my luck what usualy ends up happening is I'm alone at first & doing ok, then someone comes in & sits right across from me so we have to look at each other...or in my case try not to look. The hot face begins with a sensation of what it feels like when you get shocked or basicly if you were to stick a fork into a wall outlet.

Same deal seems to happen to me in restaurants...when I manage to go with someone. We can be sitting all alone at a table well removed from everyone else, by my request of course...& would'nt you know it, another party chooses the table right next to ours instead of the 10 other empty tables.

:?

 

[italyprincess]

SlimJim

I live with the same nightmare everyday. I know what you mean, as soon as you get up you feel like they're looking at you but when I try to just sit there normal I STILL feel like they're looking at me and I can't breathe. It's a ridiculous thing to have to live with but it's nice to know I am not the only one in the world who does.

 

[cobalt_bluester]

Hi. I too totally detest sitting in waiting rooms with other people as I feel they are looking at me and I have great problems relaxing and making eye contact. I often see 'red' if somebody I don't know stares at me, as I think "what the hell are you looking at"??!!

People in the UK can be particularly bad for staring at you for no apparent reason - they obviously have not heard of the phrase "It's rude to stare". Sometimes, I feel like asking the person who's staring if they want a photo or something!! The other day I felt particuarly bad with nerves depression and anxiety, and I was driving home out of the work car park, and noticed somebody staring at me. When I turned back to check if they were still staring they were and I reacted badly by flicking my fingers up at them! I feel bad for doing this, but it is understandable as I feel threatened by this sort of behaviour and see no need for it at all. I feel that people I know are always judging me badly as they won't speak to me much and don't ask how I am.

I have struggled with this for years and don't really have an answer, other than try and focus on the person you are with, and try not to worry about what other people think of you so much as you are fine just as you are. I am thinking about buying some confidence books by Paul McKenna and would like to suggest you think about purchasing these too.

Regards, Richard

 

[slimjim119]

Hi. I too totally detest sitting in waiting rooms with other people as I feel they are looking at me and I have great problems relaxing and making eye contact. I often see 'red' if somebody I don't know stares at me, as I think "what the hell are you looking at"??!!

People in the UK can be particularly bad for staring at you for no apparent reason - they obviously have not heard of the phrase "It's rude to stare". Sometimes, I feel like asking the person who's staring if they want a photo or something!! The other day I felt particuarly bad with nerves depression and anxiety, and I was driving home out of the work car park, and noticed somebody staring at me. When I turned back to check if they were still staring they were and I reacted badly by flicking my fingers up at them! I feel bad for doing this, but it is understandable as I feel threatened by this sort of behaviour and see no need for it at all. I feel that people I know are always judging me badly as they won't speak to me much and don't ask how I am.

I have struggled with this for years and don't really have an answer, other than try and focus on the person you are with, and try not to worry about what other people think of you so much as you are fine just as you are. I am thinking about buying some confidence books by Paul McKenna and would like to suggest you think about purchasing these too.

Regards, Richard

Thanks for the information.

 

[Kamen]

Well, I have a good, real-looking anti-social-anxiety mask because some people think I am friendly, even social (for example, a colleague of my mother who I met months ago). Sometimes, while waiting with an unknown person, I could even start a little conversation. For me, waiting rooms are actually terror rooms and I hate them, too.

 

[chriskel]

I KNOW EXACTLY WHAT YOU MEAN. I HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM.

I'm good at hiding it sometimes, other times I feel like I'm just announcing it to everyone.

Maybe it has something to do with what we ate for that particular day, you think? Food has a lot to do with mental functioning.

 

[Helyna]

Well, if I told everyone I had anxiety, I think 90% of them (even my friends) wouldn't believe me. I never let my feelings show, really, except at home. Sometimes I feel like I'm such a faker.
I also laugh when I'm nervous. I don't know what the deal about waiting rooms is, though. What's so terrible about them? I've never had anyone in a waiting room try to talk to me or anything. Can someone explain?

 

[slimjim119]

Well, if I told everyone I had anxiety, I think 90% of them (even my friends) wouldn't believe me. I never let my feelings show, really, except at home. Sometimes I feel like I'm such a faker.
I also laugh when I'm nervous. I don't know what the deal about waiting rooms is, though. What's so terrible about them? I've never had anyone in a waiting room try to talk to me or anything. Can someone explain?

Waiting rooms just feel awkward. I think I would feel more at ease if I did start talking to someone or vice versa. It would break the ice at least. You sit there staring into space feeling uncomfortable. Your in a confined space feeling your being watched. Best I can explain it.

 

[dottie]

im so bad at hiding it. i put so much energy towards hiding it but i am just awful. i smile way way way too much, i have piss poor eye contact, i slur my words out of nervousness... it's humiliating.

 

[caitlynx]

I laugh a lot and act super friendly. Over the years I tried really hard to always hide my being scared of people and to "act normal" so I've gotten good at that, even when inside I'm an anxious wreck.

 

[Schmoo]

im so bad at hiding it. i put so much energy towards hiding it but i am just awful. i smile way way way too much, i have piss poor eye contact, i slur my words out of nervousness... it's humiliating.

I also feel like I'm spending way too much effort hiding my anxiety, but it just makes it worse. I also lie about my social life to cover up the fact that I have no life. Wonder how transparent I am.

 

[ljwwriter]

I hide my anxiety from my best friend. I TRY to anyway. We went to the movies last Friday night (the first time I'd seen her in months as usual) and I felt like I was being false the entire time we were together. It was such an exhausting act, even with the pills I'd popped before I left. I did notice that while I was getting my ticket for the movie and being my usual nervous and socially awkward self my friend was staring at me somewhat curiously. I often wonder what she makes of my shaky interactions with other people. Once I forgot my date of birth when I was asked for it in a store and she laughed. I'm certain she didn't realize that it was my anxiety that had tripped me up.

 

[Argamemnon]

im so bad at hiding it. i put so much energy towards hiding it but i am just awful. i smile way way way too much, i have piss poor eye contact, i slur my words out of nervousness... it's humiliating.

it gets much worse when i see people becoming uncomfortable around me.

 

[blue]

I am not so good at hiding my anxiety im a really emotional person and i carnt hide anything.It worries me constantly im always checking how i look, i think i look awful when im anxious, during a really bad time i used to get people laughing at me.

 

[CK23]

I can't shake it either... i end up getting nervous, tongue tied and then i panic cos of the fear that other people know that i am scared and i havent managed to hide myself... I am at a total loss for words especially if someone has been nice to me, i can't make conversation with such people cos i dont trust myself and have very little confidence, i feel like beating myself when i do this cos it's terrible to hurt people who have cared for you... I've had plenty of hell in my past life so kindness totally knocks me out like a knock out punch and then i end up being quiet and tongue tied in front of the people who were there for me... I really hate myself...

 

[Tab]

I'm excellent at hiding it. I don't show emotion (it doesn't mean I don't feel it) except for excitement sometimes or if I'm drunk but even then its still hidden.