The Development of Social Anxiety Disorder

Also known as social phobias, social anxiety disorders may be chronic in nature and result in the patient suffering a disability that leaves them to deal with the problem in silence while the people around them are unable to understand what is causing the person to behave in a strange manner. Everyday situations cannot be handled by a person that suffers from social anxiety disorder because of the overwhelming anxiety and self consciousness that the patient feels.

Regarding social anxiety disorders in the United States the National Institute of Mental Health (NMH) reveals the following statistics. Social anxiety disorders is suffered by 5.3 million adult Americans or 3.7 percent of the total population and it is twice as prevalent among women as men. During childhood or when the patient is in the adolescent years social anxiety disorders may begin and they typically do not occur after a person reaches twenty-five years of age.

A patient may even attempt suicide when such anxiety becomes very severe. From person to person the different anxieties about their social situations will vary and the feelings that a person experiences may becomes of such intensity that they are very uncontrollable.

Intense Fears Regarding Social Situations

Excessive fear that everybody seems to be concentrating their attention on him or her are the feelings that a person suffering from social anxiety disorder will feel. Sometimes the patient will also feel like every will notice the mistakes that he or she makes and feel they will be error-prone. Feelings of inadequacy may also be suffered by the patient and they may feel that others are more capable than them or feel that others are passing judgments about them. They may also have a sense that they will end up embarrassing themselves in front of others.

When a patient undergoes a situation that causes them to feel intense anxiety then it may lead to feelings of nauseous, trembling, pounding heart, blushing, sweating as well as stammering. The anxiety in some cases may manifest into a panic attack which may only end up causing the patient further embarrassment.

Some people with a social anxiety disorder may only feel fear in certain social situations while others only feel comfortable when around close friends and other family members. Other instances of social fear may including not being able to deal normally with persons in authoritative positions and public speaking as well as using public restrooms, eating out, using the telephone and writing in front of others.

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