Bringing Your Social Anxiety With You For The Holidays We have waited all year and they are finally here: The Winter Holidays. Holidays can be a time of excitement, fun, and celebration. They often brings us together with loved ones near and far, giving us the opportunity to reconnect and strengthen our relationships. The holidays… [Continue reading]
Anxiety is a function that is built into the human nervous system, for better or for worse. Understanding that it is natural (though seldom logical, and almost never comfortable) allows space for questions such as, “What would it feel like to fully accept anxiety when it is present?” “If I stopped fighting, what would happen?”… [Continue reading]
What is Paruresis? For the vast majority of people, tending to bodily functions such as urinating happens without much thought or concern. For about 21 million Americans, roughly 7% of the general population, urination causes great worry and inconvenience. They have developed a condition called paruresis also known as shy bladder syndrome, pee shyness, or… [Continue reading]
What is Introversion? Introversion is “the state of or tendency toward being wholly or predominantly concerned with and interested in one’s own mental life.” According to the Myers-Briggs inventory, introverts are more likely to think, “I like getting my energy from dealing with the ideas, pictures, memories, and reactions that are inside my head, in… [Continue reading]
Social Anxiety and The Desire To Avoid For those of you who suffer from social anxiety, you have most likely experienced the urge to avoid being around others. Whether its attending a party, going to lunch with colleagues, or giving a presentation, if you are socially anxious, almost any social situation can create the urge… [Continue reading]
Social Anxiety: Extreme Anxiety Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD) can cause turmoil for those who live as well as suffer from it. This disorder is not just timidity but rather anxiety so extreme that it disrupts daily life by negatively impacting the number of social or romantic relationships and creating a perception of helplessness, isolation, judgment,… [Continue reading]
Negative Beliefs among Lesbian, Gay, Bi and Trans Individuals with Social Anxiety –I’m fundamentally different, and don’t fit in. –I’m not worthwhile unless I’m accepted by those I admire. –I can’t be accepted by others unless I meet their expectations. –If someone got to know the real me, they wouldn’t accept me. These are among the… [Continue reading]
Have you ever found yourself making statements such as: – I’m an anxious person – I’m socially anxious – I’m a worrier If any of these statements sound familiar to you, you may be defining yourself by your anxiety. Of course, if you have high levels of social anxiety, this makes perfect sense. You may… [Continue reading]
The road to developing a relationship, be it platonic or romantic, is complex. Conversation is often the medium used for determining compatibility, identifying shared interests and expressing attraction. Communication can range from non-verbal (such as body movement or facial expression) to verbal (such as the words used, tone or style). Small talk is one conversation… [Continue reading]
Many people mistake social anxiety with introversion. Introversion is a perfectly normal personality trait. More precisely, there is a continuum from extroversion to introversion that describes one dimension of personality. Those who are relatively extroverted have an innate disposition to interact with many different people, often in groups. Those who are relatively introverted are more… [Continue reading]
Our need for human relationships serves many needs. From an evolutionary perspective, our prehistoric ancestors learned that forming community was vital to protect against predators. A group had a better chance for survival compared to the individual. While we don’t usually encounter the same level of threat today, we benefit both physically and psychologically when… [Continue reading]