What do you think caused your Social Anxiety Disorder?

[outsideroftheoutsiders]

I thought this would be a good way to reflect on the potential causes of why you got it and to learn a bit more about the others on here. Also to relate to others I guess and see where others come from.

I think these were my contributing factors..
1. My general disposition...
2. Genetics... I'm a lot like my dad in regards to social things and he is shy and we have similar interests etc..
3. I "matured" physically very young (9-ish) and I guess mentally I couldn't catch up and that made me feel so left out from the other girls.. made me more aware of my body and self conscious etc.. which probably has alot to do with my body issues..
4. I've been bullied.
5. I've been a bit of a 'deep' thinker ever since I remember. I remember in pre-school at at friends house and I just felt like I was so alone in the world.
6. Aspergic tendencies.. I do not have aspergers syndrome.. my parents thought I may have so they took me somewhere to get tested and found I have tendencies.. this includes seeing things more logically than emotionally which affects alot of things.. especially relationships with girls... I've never fitted in with girls and have felt more at home with guys... and I hate small talk... I don't know but sometimes I just don't want to talk and that's just me and people take it the wrong way

That's all I can think about right now and when I lay it out it's just no surprise I have it.

 

[Rainbow Brite]

"post removed"

 

[Sial Axetder]

People.....

 

[Psychedelicious]

The Second Day

Mostly genetics. I don't really recall ever not being anxious, so I am more convinced it is just part of my temperament.

 

[rebyoo]

I've had M.E. (cfs) since the age of 9 so was bed-bound for a few years and missed lots of school so i find it hard to interact with poeple.

 

[this_portrait]

I think it's a combination of genetics, environmental, and social factors. After observing both of my parents, I've come to the conclusion that they have SA and just never got any treatment for it. Being raised by them probably contributed as well, since I probably picked up some of the characteristics by being around them my whole life.

As for environmental factors, I was a shut-in quite a bit when I was growing up. My mother was very overprotective of me. Living in a not-so-great neighborhood taught me to be cautious of my surroundings (which can be a good thing, but I became a bit overly cautious).

For social factors, I felt out of place being kind of a poor kid at the small private school I went to. I felt awkward being one of the few kids who didn't go to church on a regular basis and whose parents were unmarried. Living in a ghetto neighborhood and having an alcoholic father made me feel even more awkward around these kids with supposedly "perfect" families. Let's not forget that I was teased quite a bit, which had a pretty big impact on me.

One thing I wonder about in terms of the causes of my SA is the fact that I was touched inappropriately by my grandmother when I was 3 years old. I have no recollection of this, mind you; any information I've gotten is from my mother. She briefly took me over to my grandmother's apartment during that time because she had a fight with my sister (who then refused to watch me) and my father wanted to go out to the bar those nights, so my mother had to find someone to watch me while she was at work. She had suspicions about one of my uncles, so she told my grandmother that she didn't want him over at her place when I was there.

After about the second time I went over there, I started crying and saying I didn't want to go over there, so when my mother brought me home after about the 3rd time being over there, she asked me a bunch of questions. Was my uncle there? No. What did me and my grandmother do? I responded that she touched me in my crotch area (I phrased it differently, of course, but that's basically what she did). My mother was shocked, and after asking about it again, she said that I even demonstrated it. From then on, I rarely ever saw my grandmother unless I was at a family gathering, and there was a lot of family drama about the whole thing.

My sister's response was that she wasn't surprised, because when she was growing up, she was molested by our grandmother's boyfriend at the time. One of my other uncles (who was a cop at the time) believed me, responding with, "A 3-year-old doesn't know how to tell a lie."

Like I mentioned before, I have no recollection of this event (in fact I can't really remember anything before I was at least 5 years old). I'm not sure if it contributed to my SA and/or any other emotional problems I developed, but I wouldn't be surprised if it did.

 

[gwennaelle]

1) Low self esteem (still don't know how that ever developed. I had pretty supportive parents.)

2) I grew up in a quite rural area and often had little-to-no interaction with other kids. Sometimes I think I just never learned how to "play".

3) I'm *extremely* sensitive and am crazy-hurt by put-downs and rejections. I'm pretty sure this is the main cause of my SA. It was forever easier to lose myself in books and toys than interact with other kids where the potential for someone not to like me was pretty much guaranteed.

 

[pop-princess]

In no particular order

- Genetics. I'm a lot like my mom. I remember when I was small how she got really, really nervous whenever we were having guests. Then we eventually stopped having guest because I guess she couldn't take it. My mom also has few friend and I notice with her friends she never suggests anything, she just waits for them to call.
It's funny because my dad is the total opposite. He is extremely social and always joking with everyone. Everyone loves him and he gets new friends all the time.

- I grew up as an only child and with overprotective parents.

- When I was 5 my parents put me in a school that was located very far away because the school near me didn't have a good reputation. All my kindergarden friends and other kids that lived near me started that other school that was nearer. I still remember how scared I felt the first schoolday with totally new people everywhere. The school also had the older students in the same building and I felt very intimidated by them. I think it was from that day I became extremely shy and quiet. Also I gradually started to loose contact with all the kids that lived near me and that I used to play with.

- Before my father knew I had serious problems he could comment things like "speak louder!" or "don't look down when you are speaking to the lady!". It worked to opposite way for me...

- Probably some negative comments that have stuck

 

[Iluv]

Very
L
O
W Self- Esteem and a tendency to surround myself with people who hurt me, therefore causing a fear of even interacting. Plus a few things in my childhood I wont get too into.

 

[WeirdyMcGee]

1. verbal, physical, sexual abuse leading to loss of trust/faith in humanity
2. genetics

That's the short version, anyway.

 

[MikeyC]

1. verbal, physical, sexual abuse leading to loss of trust/faith in humanity

Yep, that'll do it. :: Sorry you had to go through that.

Mine would be my school life. 2000 and 2001 were the years that broke me, I reckon. My life has not been the same since.

 

[setmefree]

1. I think I was probably born being very sensitive, since I've also had a lot of other phobias, like insects, heights, water etc.

2. My upbringing, definitely. My father in patricular. He was very verbally abusive, but also very ill so you could never really talk back to him because he made you pity him. My mother, very sweet but having very low self esteem, was scared of him and never came to my rescue. My brother joined my dad in the verbal abuse for a while, but thankfully stopped when he got older. I remember I counted the days to see if I could experience one day where my father didn't say something aweful to me, but that day never came.

3. Growing too fast. I was a lot taller than everyone else for many years before they caught up with me, I was also a bit chubby and clumsy, and my parents were quite poor so my clothes didn't always fit me...

4. Clinging too much to one friend. I got a best friend at kindergarten and she were to be my only friend for 10 years. I got way too comfortable, so didn't get to practice my social skills like everyone else.

 

[bardock]

I think it was because my parents gave me very little freedom :/
and my looks ofc.

 

[SilentBird]

I hope this isn't self-pity

I attribute my developing of social anxiety and depression to a combination of factors - genetic predisposition, physical characteristics, life experiences and environment.

I was born with a hole in my heart, this was successfully operated on but I have always felt physically weak. I have poor eyesight in one eye. I used to squint with that eye as a child before I discovered sunglasses. I am clumsy. Like the thread-starter, I have considered that I have autistic tendencies, or maybe I have developed rituals to cope with life. I worry/think a lot. Emotionally, I feel very soft.

I think that I have internalized a lot of negative messages from my environment and learnt to become maladjusted to life. My father was angry and I learnt to be fearful. I do love my father and we get on quite well now. My mother is also shy and I followed her example. I don't think she gave me very much encouragement and I became dependent. I do admire her because despite her shyness she provided for three children on her own. I had bad experiences at school, particularly name calling. I have had my trust severly broken. I have always had difficulting communicating.

I really don't know. I just feel really different, although I think that being different is neat in other people, I find it painful in myself.

 

[razzle dazzle rose]

My OCD. It just hit me really hard and at a very young age. But even before that, I was kinda a strange child. I would wander off by myself during recess just to think and daydream. I felt very apart from other people...like I was from another world and just didn't belong.

Also, my home life was not a peaceful one; a lot of that verbal and sometimes physical abuse. We were all afraid of my dad. But then it became my brother. I didn't feel comfortable bringing friends over, and my mom didn't like me going to other people's houses so that put some restrictions on my friendships. My mom became depressed after her father died, so we no longer attended family gatherings or did much of anything. We just became very isolated as a family. But not all my sibs were affected the same way, though we all have issues. I believe this family stress brought on the OCD, which later brought on the depression and anxiety.

The OCD is what really messed things up for me. I avoided people so they wouldn't ask me about it. That was my thing from ages 8-20: to hide! My OCD has gotten better these last few years, but those avoidant tendencies of mine are hard to shake off. They are a part of who I am I fear.

So in a nutshell, my OCD, strange personality, and crappy family are the factors that contributed to my anxiety.