Blue Teardrops
Banned
I personally don't have any ideas, and hope to get some here. Do you have one? Tell us what your ideas are or what's working for you, pleez.
What's your recipe for beating Social Anxiety?
- Thread starter Blue Teardrops
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Better diet, exercises, breathing exercises, Positive self talk, consistent exposures to phobic situtations.
This is what I use but it has to be consistent, and whatever you do you take your time. There is no rushing cause this will backfire. Try to understand that any progress you make helps in the grand scheme of overcoming Social phobia, there is no fast results.
When learning something you gradually get better at it. But there is no fast results.
No more negative self talk like "You're a loser" , " You're stupid", "You're ugly". This is extremely destructive to your self esteem. Replace this with positive words.
Also, try to not compare your life with others. Find meaning/purpose and stick with that. Stop thinking of what others are doing and start living life for yourself. Cause in the end, you only got you.
This is what I use but it has to be consistent, and whatever you do you take your time. There is no rushing cause this will backfire. Try to understand that any progress you make helps in the grand scheme of overcoming Social phobia, there is no fast results.
When learning something you gradually get better at it. But there is no fast results.
No more negative self talk like "You're a loser" , " You're stupid", "You're ugly". This is extremely destructive to your self esteem. Replace this with positive words.
Also, try to not compare your life with others. Find meaning/purpose and stick with that. Stop thinking of what others are doing and start living life for yourself. Cause in the end, you only got you.
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someday1988
New member
Started playing sports of all kind, an activity that almost force you to interact with others.
dooby-duck
Well-known member
Definitely agree with the above. I tell myself that I will get there in the end, and that although people I may compare myself to have it all now, I'm just taking my time and going at my own pace.
I think relaxation and trying to get some enjoyment out of life every day is important. It's too easy to get bogged down in negative thoughts.
Blue Teardrops
Banned
Tell me about it. Almost every single thought I have is negative, but I think that's more because I'm cynical about the world and about people. I'm always scared that something bad will happen to me or a loved one. I'm even nervous about having to fill my car up with gasoline tomorrow because I have this intense fear that someone will attack me! I just don't know how to get these negative thoughts out of my head.
For me, the key has been building my self confidence in general (outside of social situations.) Improving my self asteem has gone hand in hand with this also.
Doing so has allowed me to walk down a busy highstreet with little or no anxiety because I feel as good as everyone else.
I'm still a ways off overcoming my SA completely but I've made HUGE improvements over the last 2 years. Things like having a job, learning to drive, etc have all built up my self asteem and given me the confidence to get out and take further steps.
There are other things that have helped me make progress of course (such as medication) but I think the above has made the biggest change.
Edit: Oh, and of course baby steps. This has been the foundation of my social exposure. Start off really small so you don't set yourself up to fail.
Doing so has allowed me to walk down a busy highstreet with little or no anxiety because I feel as good as everyone else.
I'm still a ways off overcoming my SA completely but I've made HUGE improvements over the last 2 years. Things like having a job, learning to drive, etc have all built up my self asteem and given me the confidence to get out and take further steps.
There are other things that have helped me make progress of course (such as medication) but I think the above has made the biggest change.
Edit: Oh, and of course baby steps. This has been the foundation of my social exposure. Start off really small so you don't set yourself up to fail.
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dream
Well-known member
Ok, well i know my appearance and sad,depression & phobias have made me isolate my self from my family and friends i have been in this place i know it to well unfortunetly but on the plus side i have come out of this the only way is to improve, revamp and renew my outer and inner being! And when i feel comfortable enough to seek a qualified mental heath practioner who deals with SAD/PHOBIAS and to see there success rate i guess i have always been in denial i mean who wants to have SA it has totally destoyed my social life I know im at fault i should of got help but i chose to wallow in self pity instead
i know theres hope i been there and know what its like to join the pack of the beautiful people
i know theres hope i been there and know what its like to join the pack of the beautiful peopleLotsa exersice, eating an anti-anxiety diet. Forcing myself into situations step by step. accepting myself rather than trying to convince myself im something im not. Something i feel a lot of people try to do. realising its ok when people make hurtful comments and that its their problem not mine.
none of these things have gained me a great social life nor made me open up and talk more but i now have nearly no anxiety and feel much happier and more relaxed, and im not sure if I want these things anyway. I like being quiet and i like my own space.
works for me but if your an extrovert might not be the best advice.
none of these things have gained me a great social life nor made me open up and talk more but i now have nearly no anxiety and feel much happier and more relaxed, and im not sure if I want these things anyway. I like being quiet and i like my own space.
works for me but if your an extrovert might not be the best advice.
a lot of fruit and nuts. vegetables, meats; turkey apparantly has something really good for reducing anxiety, drinking lots of water, cammomile tea. basically anything that is not junk food. I know its easier said than done as healthy natural food tends to be more expensive.
The main things to avoid though that have helped me are fatty foods, caffiene and alcohol. I used to be an alcoholic so the last one was really hard for me but all these things are proven to increase anxiety. it might not work for everyone and i still feel exersising regularly has benefitted me the most.
The main things to avoid though that have helped me are fatty foods, caffiene and alcohol. I used to be an alcoholic so the last one was really hard for me but all these things are proven to increase anxiety. it might not work for everyone and i still feel exersising regularly has benefitted me the most.
El.Sonador
Well-known member
From an experience that I had just 2 weeks ago, I would say: don't ever say I can't do it, challenge yourself, try not to be afraid of fear itself, put yourself out there, and just do it.
I was working as a facilitator for the past month and a half for some inter cultural meetings ( being a Facilitator ) and I had not only to speak in front of a group of students but to be the one guiding the discussion and asking them questions and making sure quiet people are talking and participating and making the discussion fun and educational at the same time. I don't have to tell you that I was getting nervous and sick just thinking about it , but somehow after few meetings the fear was going away , and I was comfortable enough to talk and crack jokes and go to a café with the group and even perform a kind of a skit in front of about 40 person, and I wasn't worried about it, because I have been doing that like everyday for a month when we were being trained as facilitators. I saw a friend of mine shaking when we had to be on stage and this guy is the tough kind of guys, he is always out with friends and he plays basketball in local leagues. I guess what I'm saying is it's ok to be nervous and anxious , because we were hiding for a very long time that even the most normal situations make us nervous, and we chose to not be afraid by not facing those situations and that only made our SA worse and worse. now it's up to us to fight it, by putting ourselves into all kinds of social situations like everyday and in time the fear will start to go away, either that or stay socially handicapped for the rest of our lives, because SA is not going anywhere as long as we are not fighting back.
I was working as a facilitator for the past month and a half for some inter cultural meetings ( being a Facilitator ) and I had not only to speak in front of a group of students but to be the one guiding the discussion and asking them questions and making sure quiet people are talking and participating and making the discussion fun and educational at the same time. I don't have to tell you that I was getting nervous and sick just thinking about it , but somehow after few meetings the fear was going away , and I was comfortable enough to talk and crack jokes and go to a café with the group and even perform a kind of a skit in front of about 40 person, and I wasn't worried about it, because I have been doing that like everyday for a month when we were being trained as facilitators. I saw a friend of mine shaking when we had to be on stage and this guy is the tough kind of guys, he is always out with friends and he plays basketball in local leagues. I guess what I'm saying is it's ok to be nervous and anxious , because we were hiding for a very long time that even the most normal situations make us nervous, and we chose to not be afraid by not facing those situations and that only made our SA worse and worse. now it's up to us to fight it, by putting ourselves into all kinds of social situations like everyday and in time the fear will start to go away, either that or stay socially handicapped for the rest of our lives, because SA is not going anywhere as long as we are not fighting back.
Adammm
Member
^ That's a very positive post, i completely agree.
For me, the main thing that has helped me to fight SA is to get out there and face my fears. Just 2 years ago i was completely friendless, and any kind of social situation, even small things such as talking to a bus driver would terrify me. However, i started working at facing these fears, starting with the easiest things until i felt comfortable doing them, then moving on to bigger, more difficult things. In the 2 years since then i have improved so much, i have passed 2 years of uni, passed my driving test, made a lot of friends, and my anxiety has decreased loads as my confidence has increased.
Rewarding yourself for your achievements is a good thing to do too. Like as an example every time i significantly fought my fears and succeeded, i would do something such as buy a new CD, DVD, game or any clothes i had wanted to treat myself.
I also think moving out into my own flat helped when i started uni. It's also important to become comfortable with yourself, and to try and concentrate on the positive things about you. Once you do this, it will be easier for other people to see these qualities
For me, the main thing that has helped me to fight SA is to get out there and face my fears. Just 2 years ago i was completely friendless, and any kind of social situation, even small things such as talking to a bus driver would terrify me. However, i started working at facing these fears, starting with the easiest things until i felt comfortable doing them, then moving on to bigger, more difficult things. In the 2 years since then i have improved so much, i have passed 2 years of uni, passed my driving test, made a lot of friends, and my anxiety has decreased loads as my confidence has increased.
Rewarding yourself for your achievements is a good thing to do too. Like as an example every time i significantly fought my fears and succeeded, i would do something such as buy a new CD, DVD, game or any clothes i had wanted to treat myself.
I also think moving out into my own flat helped when i started uni. It's also important to become comfortable with yourself, and to try and concentrate on the positive things about you. Once you do this, it will be easier for other people to see these qualities