Opinions please - SA or something else?

[wabbit]

I had decided that the name for what I have is SA but in reading some descriptions of anxious situations I no longer feel that way in some of them--although I used to. I do feel this way though:

I prefer to make phone calls with no one listening to me, but am sometimes anxious speaking to people on the phone.
Speaking in a group or being the centre of attention is worse than physical torture.
Introducing myself when sitting in a circle at a course or party is torture.
Job interviews.....horrible
One on one - usually just fine
If I'm not getting attention then I'm fine in a crowded place -- although it does feel suffocating.
This anxiety has ruled my life. Major decisions were made based on escaping or avoiding this fear.

I had counselling on and off for years and it did no good other than to find out the reasons why I'm like this.

The reason I've (re)joined this group is I had an experience last week that was sheer hell. I had to go with my husband to an assessment involving group activities/interviews. For weeks before going I had knots in my stomach and couldn't stop think about how horrid it would be. Had to be the centre of attention many times. The stress made my brain stop functioning, dry mouth, panic. This was combined with the stress of knowing that if the people watching us saw my fear and lack of self-confidence it would adversely affect the outcome of something I badly want.

So, do I have a specific phobia or is it SA?

[filo]

From what you describe, rather than suffering from a specific phobia, I would say you are more likely to be suffering with problems that fall under the umbrella term of 'SA'.


Welcome back to SAUK btw

[wabbit]

Thanks. I guess I don't have to feel exactly every single fear on a long list of common fears to have SA. I have enough of the major ones though.

[shok]

Hi Wabbit,

From my understanding SA affects people in slightly different ways or in different situations and also in didfferent levels of severty so can be hard identify a list of exact sypmtoms a person will have but from what you describe it does sound like that you have general SA.

My own experience is similar to yours ..there are some situations i find realy difficult while there are others which i can manange without too much difficulty.

I had counselling initialy and it served its purpose but it didn change my SA. There are more better therapies like CBT which have helped me as well as support from other people from this site .
hope thngs start getting better for you.
takecare and keep posting.
shaukat

[hardy]

Sa can vary a great deal . In fact I think most people (fortunatelY!) don't have the full range of possible symptoms. Many people have SA only in specific situations.

[wabbit]

It would be pure torture all the time if someone felt that fear in every single situation.

I have had different types of therapies but it's been a very long time. I gave up and decided I was stuck this way. I'm actually outgoing in certain situations with the right people now, which is a very big deal for me. From what I've read the best thing for me I think would be group therapy where every person in the group all suffered from SA.

Originally Posted by wabbit

I prefer to make phone calls with no one listening to me, but am sometimes anxious speaking to people on the phone.

Speaking in a group or being the centre of attention is worse than physical torture.

Introducing myself when sitting in a circle at a course or party is torture.

My SA is triggered by the above situations too. I have a really bad fear of being the centre of attention in any situation. It's almost painful.

Originally Posted by wabbit
One on one - usually just fine

I can be reasonably OK with one-to-one, however, it depends entirely on the situation. I'm much better with this, when say for example I'm walking in the street and there are other distractions - traffic noise etc. However, I'm much more anxious with one-to-one when indoors without any other distractions.
It also depends on how comfortable I feel with the particular person in question. And of course, there are many other variations that can affect how SA I feel in any given situation.

Hi Wabbit.

Here's the DSM criteria that pyschiatrists etc use to aid diagnosis of Social Anxiety Disorder.

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric Association currently defines social anxiety disorder in the following way:


A. A persistent fear of one or more social or performance situations in which the person is exposed to unfamiliar people or to possible scrutiny by others. The individual fears that he or she will act in a way (or show anxiety symptoms) that will be embarrassing and humiliating.

B. Exposure to the feared situation almost invariably provokes anxiety, which may take the form of a situationally bound or situationally pre-disposed panic attack.

C. The person recognizes that this fear is unreasonable or excessive.

D. The feared situations are avoided or else are endured with intense anxiety and distress.

E. The avoidance, anxious anticipation, or distress in the feared social or performance situation(s) interferes significantly with the person's normal routine, occupational (academic) functioning, or social activities or relationships, or there is marked distress about having the phobia.

F. In individuals under age 18 years, the duration is at least 6 months.

G. The fear or avoidance is not due to direct physiological effects of a substance (e.g., drugs, medications) or a general medical condition not better accounted for by another mental disorder.

Copyright 1994, The American Psychiatric Association

Sorry to quote stuff at you but I thought it might help shed some light on what you're going through.

Good luck!

[wabbit]

Yep, that's me. A-G.

[Bex]

I prefer to make phone calls with no one listening to me, but am sometimes anxious speaking to people on the phone.
Speaking in a group or being the centre of attention is worse than physical torture.
Introducing myself when sitting in a circle at a course or party is torture.
Job interviews.....horrible
One on one - usually just fine
If I'm not getting attention then I'm fine in a crowded place -- although it does feel suffocating.
This anxiety has ruled my life. Major decisions were made based on escaping or avoiding this fear.

Before I read about SA and other anxiety disorders, and indeed before I came across this site I felt that my whole life was shaped by these weird things I was experiencing (everything quoted above) Once I understood what SA was I realised that this was what I had been living with and I gained some perspective that whilst it has affected my life, I have experienced 'moderate' levels of SA. Unlike some, I really do not experience any problems meeting people, socialising, having relationships etc.....

Like you I find doing some things whilst being observed a problem, but one-to-ones not too bad!!!!! Public speaking and introducing myself has always been a hideous prospect. Signing my name on documents, especially legal with people watching has become an all consuming nightmare for me over the last couple of years.

However, one thing that has always been present is an inbuilt dislike for being the centre of attention, hence the 'being watched' thing. Whilst I believe I could over come the anxiety triggered by public speaking, or signing documents etc, one thing I know is that I will never feel comfortable being the centre of attention. Its not who I am and its something I will never be. For these reasons I will never get married, but not because I can't sign the register, but because you have to be ok with that one day being all about you ( and your partner of course)

So I do believe what you experiencing is SA, to whatever degree that might be, but like myself, not wanting to be the centre of attention made the progression towards a condition like SA likely, and despite the many tools available to control it, you may never feel differently about having 'all eyes on you'.

[W!llow]

Sorry haven't read the whole thread yet. But I would say I think it is SA. Even though you are o.k (ish) in a crowd it is the personal attention you find makes you anxious, same here. All the other things are typical SA characteristics.

When I was on a course last year it really brought home how bad my SA was. We did a lot of role-play and I was dreadful my mind would seize up in panic. Its funny as sometimes I could answer a question that I knew an answer to in class (it would be a real effort though) but having to make up dialogue as I went along was awful for me.. Also we did some memory work and my short term memory was terrible because I was so anxious about speaking next that I would forget what the person had told me..:embarass:

[wobbly]

Same as Willow for me. It's the personal attention that turns my legs to jelly. I go from this (reasonably) intelligent human being to a quivering wreck who's only just able to scrawl his name if asked to. The pressure in my chest becomes all consuming and my brain and eyesight all but shut down. Bad enough normally but difficult to deal with at work.

I think the key for me is the thought of being judged by other people and them confirming what, perhaps, I really think about myself. So I think the basis for my SA (and what I see from people on here), is not a fear of people/social situations per se but rather issues regarding my own low (abnormal) self esteem.

[wabbit]

I think the worst thing if that people will know I'm afraid or think I'm crazy, and the fear puts my brain into neutral. So even worse I come off looking stupid.

I may have some courses coming up that will involve role-playing, which I just detest! And the subject will be something I've never dealt with before.

[Rosiemoore]

Originally Posted by wabbit

It would be pure torture all the time if someone felt that fear in every single situation.

I had full-blown SA with everyone (except my parents) for about a year and a half and it IS pure torture!!!

[MelG]

Originally Posted by Rosiemoore

I had full-blown SA with everyone (except my parents) for about a year and a half and it IS pure torture!!!

me too rosiemoore i have it with every1 except my mum
have u got over sa then