Social Phobias
Some people feel extremely anxious in social settings. They feel they might be under scrutiny and their actions might embarrass or humiliate them. Although the fear is all in the head, it becomes so intense and persistent that they begin to shiver at the thought of facing up to such a situation and do their best to avoid it. The fear may become so pervasive that it might interfere with their daily routine, occupation or social life. Social phobias can relate to several situations. The more common examples include the fear of public speaking or stage performance, fear of eating in a restaurant and fear of using a public restroom. The whole thing can turn into a vicious cycle. The anxiety associated with the disorder may actually mar performance and worsen the phobia.
People who suffer from social phobia are often hypersensitive to criticism, negative evaluation, or rejection by others. They find it difficult to be assertive and suffer from low self-esteem. They may not be able to achieve as much as they are capable of at work. The anxiety in speaking to a group or to authority figures and colleagues further lets them down.
Tagged under:anxiety authority figures embarrass fear of public speaking hypersensitive low self esteem negative evaluation Phobias public restroom scrutiny social phobias stage performance