Social anxiety is the fear and anxiety developed in a person that he will be judged negatively in social situations. This fear and anxiety causes feelings like embarrassment, low self confidence and depression. Here are some ways to deal with this fear.
Challenge your negative thoughts
Social anxiety and depression, can be successfully treated. You can overcome your fears successfully, but for this to happen you need to put in a little effort. A person suffering from social anxiety and depression is due to the negative thoughts in their brain. One effective way to overcome these negative thoughts is, by challenging them. By doing so either, with therapy or on your own you can reduce the symptoms of social anxiety disorder. First of all, identify the negative thoughts in you that triggers your social phobia. For example, if you have an upcoming work presentation and you are worried about it that you might not do well and your friends are going to laugh at you, or your boss might fire you. These are the negative thoughts you need to overcome. Challenge these thoughts. Think in a positive way. Remind yourself that you have the potential to put forward a good presentation and work towards it. Imagine that you have done well and your boss has commended you for it. Bringing these kind of thoughts will help you overcome your fears.
Try relaxation techniques
Relaxation does wonders in reducing anxiety. Anxiety causes a change in your breathing pattern. Due to anxiety the number of breaths you take per minute also called the “Respiratory rate” increases. This causes an imbalance between the oxygen and carbon dioxide levels, which leads to anxiety symptoms like increased heart rate, sweating, suffocation etc. In order to prevent this you need to learn to control your breathing which is a form of relaxation.
Sit comfortably on a chair in upright posture. Close your eyes and take slow deep breaths with your nose and then hold for five 5 seconds and then slowly exhale with your mouth. Practice this everyday regularly. This helps you in relaxing your body and mind.
In addition to breathing exercises, yoga, meditation can help you overcome stress, anxiety, depression.
Face your fears
The best way to overcome social anxiety and the depression that follows it is by overcoming your fears. It is ideal to face your fears rather than avoiding them. Avoiding your fears will only make matters worse and you have to keep on living with your fears. The more you avoid them the more you keep fearing them. You might get rid of the situation by avoiding it for once, but it is not a long term solution. You need to get rid of it once and for all, for a permanent solution.
Avoiding your fears can lead to many problems, it may hold you back from achieving your goals. For example, a fear of speaking up may prevent you from sharing your ideas at work, standing out in the classroom, or making new friends.
