whats the difference between shyness and social phobia ?

[Clown]

How do you know that ?
I avoid certain things like parties and school etc. but sometimes I don't experience anxiety at all with strangers my head is just empty ... how does someone know its a disorder and not shyness ? and is a great % of this site not just shy instead of having social phobia ???

 

[Necrucifer]

Well for me...being shy isnt usually the case, I am agoraphobic also and when I do go to a public place rarely..., I panic and start shaking real bad, sweat, stomach knots up and my heart beat can be heard clearly because I feel like I am drowning because of my anxiety when I am around alot of people (afraid of people). When I am shy it is just usually when I talk to a pretty girl or a pretty girl comes talks to me. My anxiety usually kicks in but I can tell the difference because usually if I am shy about something other than my anixety kicking in I feel normal and nothing happens to me for me to be in a panic state.

 

[Niteowl]

I would distinguish social anxiety from shyness like so:

A person who is shy will feel somewhat anxious about a difficult situation where people are involved, but they won't necessarily avoid it - this was me, aged 11. I volunteered to speak the first lines, alone on the stage, for a school play - I was perhaps a little scared, but I did it. Parents were filming it. The room was dark; the only light was on me. I read my lines, and when I was finished, it was over - I didn't have to think about what people were thinking of me, or the things that I did wrong. I was just shy, that's all.

With social anxiety, which for me began to develop in high school, the anxiety becomes overwhelming, and there's often a desire to avoid most or all difficult social situations. The shy-me performed in school plays; the anxiety-me began to avoid everything, and just a few months ago I struggled to share a two minute presentation with three students and my tutor. That's what I believe to be the key difference: with shyness, you can still do things, you don't dwell for hours on how you came across to an audience. With social anxiety, it's all switched up to 11 and hooked up to an amplifier.

Another important thing, though, is that there are varying degrees of social anxiety. Some people here are anxious about only one or two situations in particular - other people are anxious about them all, but perhaps less or more anxious than others. I'm terrified of walking through town or even through the park, especially if I'm alone, but I've never been any more afraid of authority figures than I am of anyone else, and I've read that that's a common trait of social anxiety. It varies from person to person, but based on my own experiences, it's fairly easy to distinguish between the two. Maybe there are shy people more shy than I was but without social anxiety - that's possible. I guess they wouldn't be able to compare it without knowing what extreme social anxiety feels like.

 

[Kiwong]

I've always been shy.

However, social anxiety is a much more intense fear, in my experience. For example being so scared it is not possible to walk from one side of the room to another for fear that someone will be watching and tease me. A crippling cold fear inside that makes it impossible to talk to people, that brings on an urgent desire to escape when in that situation. The thoughts after the anxiety can stop me sleeping and eating for days, and lead to panic attacks. Then avoiding anywhere there is a chance of a repeat of the experience.

 

[Clown]

But I mean more like : isn't it just extreme shyness caused by negative experiences ?

 

[Jael]

i think they are soooo closely related we could argue for hours the difference...i believe i am shy and because i am shy, mixed with negative life experiences and hormones...social anxiety raised its ugly head. I was always shy...now i have social anxiety disorder...if people want to argue theres no relation....i beg to differ!

 

[Piece_By_Piece]

I would distinguish social anxiety from shyness like so:

A person who is shy will feel somewhat anxious about a difficult situation where people are involved, but they won't necessarily avoid it - this was me, aged 11. I volunteered to speak the first lines, alone on the stage, for a school play - I was perhaps a little scared, but I did it. Parents were filming it. The room was dark; the only light was on me. I read my lines, and when I was finished, it was over - I didn't have to think about what people were thinking of me, or the things that I did wrong. I was just shy, that's all.

With social anxiety, which for me began to develop in high school, the anxiety becomes overwhelming, and there's often a desire to avoid most or all difficult social situations. The shy-me performed in school plays; the anxiety-me began to avoid everything, and just a few months ago I struggled to share a two minute presentation with three students and my tutor. That's what I believe to be the key difference: with shyness, you can still do things, you don't dwell for hours on how you came across to an audience. With social anxiety, it's all switched up to 11 and hooked up to an amplifier.

Another important thing, though, is that there are varying degrees of social anxiety. Some people here are anxious about only one or two situations in particular - other people are anxious about them all, but perhaps less or more anxious than others. I'm terrified of walking through town or even through the park, especially if I'm alone, but I've never been any more afraid of authority figures than I am of anyone else, and I've read that that's a common trait of social anxiety. It varies from person to person, but based on my own experiences, it's fairly easy to distinguish between the two. Maybe there are shy people more shy than I was but without social anxiety - that's possible. I guess they wouldn't be able to compare it without knowing what extreme social anxiety feels like.

I think it's very clear that there's a significant difference. This post explained it quite well.

 

[Richey]

shyness is when a person is reserved but still has a fulfilling lifestyle and nothing really holds them back, sa seems to be when people start to become more reactive and avoidant to social environments, thinking clearly becomes difficult, breathing and mood can be affected easily, it can be quite daunting in situations.