What is Social Anxiety?

Hey there! Do you ever find it tough to interact with others? Maybe you've noticed yourself avoiding social situations more often? If this sounds familiar, you might be dealing with social anxiety. In this blog post, we're delving into Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD), a common mental health issue that can start in your teenage years. Our goal here is to raise awareness on SAD and help you and other teens understand what it is, how it impacts your brain, treatment options, and why it's important to act.

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What is Social Anxiety Disorder?

Social anxiety disorder (SAD) is when you feel really scared in social situations. You worry a lot that you might do something embarrassing or that people will judge you. This fear can be so strong that you end up avoiding social situations altogether, which makes the fear even worse (Ernst et al., 2023).

Did you know that SAD is one of the most common anxiety issues out there? It usually kicks in during your teenage years; about 90% of SAD cases start at adolescence and are developed by age 23. That's because you're relying less on family and relying more on your with friends. But you're not alone in this; stats show that around 11.2% of teen girls and 7% of guys deal with SAD. Two of the most common triggers for SAD are giving presentations or taking tests (Leigh & Clark, 1995).

How does Social Anxiety Disorder Affect Your Life?

SAD can really impact your life as a teenager. It makes social situations super hard – like making friends, talking in class, or even going out. It can mess with how you feel about yourself, making you super anxious and stressed. This can affect schoolwork, friendships, and just feeling good overall. But here's the deal – by supporting each other and those dealing with SAD, we can all work towards living happier lives together!

Symptoms

 Here are some of the symptoms of SAD:

·       You constantly worry about being judged, evaluated, or embarrassed in front of others.

·       Your shyness goes beyond what's reasonable.

·       New situations make you feel uncomfortable or anxious.

·       Your fear of social situations starts to get in the way of your daily life.

·       You might experience physical symptoms such as blushing, sweating, trembling, and avoiding eye contact in social settings.

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Risk Factors

·       Your genes: If SAD runs in your family, that can increase your risk of SAD.

·       How you think: Negative self-talk, overthinking, feeling overly self-conscious and doubting yourself in social situations are also common in SAD.

·       Your family, upbringing, and culture: If you grew up in a place where speaking out was discouraged, if you were bullied, or having authoritative parents, that can contribute to SAD.

·       Childhood trauma: Bullying is another contributing factor that could cause SAD (Stein & Stein, 2008).

In short, SAD is a mix of genes, thinking patterns, family dynamics, and life experiences. Understanding this mix can help us find ways to manage it and support each other better!

Neural Basis of SAD

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Now that we've covered the basics of SAD, let's dive into how it messes with your brain. If you're dealing with SAD, your brain might be on high alert in areas that handle fear and keep tabs on your surroundings. Plus, there can be some wonky connections in parts of your brain that deal with emotions and social stuff. Your mood swings and impulses might be affected too because of some hormonal imbalances tied to SAD. Understanding this brain dance can help us figure out ways to tackle SAD and find ways to support each other better (Stein & Stein, 2008).

Treatment Options

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·       Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): It helps you learn strategies to manage anxiety by looking at how you think and practicing new coping methods through exposure exercises.

·       Exposure therapy combined with relaxation techniques: Both help you face your fears in a controlled way. For example, it can help you get used to asking your teacher for help or going into class without feeling overwhelmed.

·       Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT): It teaches you to deal with negative thoughts differently, through goal setting, and uses mindfulness techniques to help lower anxiety levels.

·       Prescribed medications: Anti-depressants or anti-anxiety drugs. Only take them if a doctor recommends them, due to the risk of dependency (National Institute of Mental Health, n.d.).

Conclusion

SAD is all about feeling super anxious in social situations. It can get so bad that it messes with your daily life and how you feel about things. Symptoms can range from being overly shy, to physical stuff like a racing heart, sweating, and struggling with eye contact. Lots of things can lead to someone having SAD – genes, how you grew up, your surroundings, and how you think about yourself all chip in. These things make your brain work a bit differently. The good news is that there are lots of treatment options. By raising awareness about SAD, we can create a kinder space for everyone. Remember though, it's always best to chat with a professional to figure out what's best for you.

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Call-to-Action

If you or someone you care about is dealing with SAD, don't wait – act now! Talking about it is a first step. Reach out to someone you trust and share your worries! When SAD starts affecting your daily life, chat with a healthcare professional about getting help. Seeking help is a sign of strength and is worth it! Remember the basics – enough sleep, staying active, and eating healthy can all help with your mental health. SAD is treatable. Take that first step and get the help you need! For more info, check out www.nimh.nih.gov/mymentalhealth and www.nimh.nih.gov/psychotherapies. And remember, you've got this!

Credits

Research: Lucy Go, Kiera McKelvey

Writing: Michelle Stephenson, Avneet Kooner, Rose Morel

Editing: Michelle Stephenson, Avneet Kooner, Rose Morel, Lucy Go

References

Alves, F., Figueiredo, D. V., & Vagos, P. (2022). The prevalence of adolescent social fears and social anxiety disorder in school contexts. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(19), 12458. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191912458

Brook, C. A., & Schmidt, L. A. (2008). Social anxiety disorder: A review of environmental risk factors. Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment, 4(1),123-143. https://doi.org/10.2147/ndt.s1799

Ernst, J., Ollmann, T.M., König, E., Pieper, L., Voss, C., Hoyer, J., Ruckert, F., Knappe, S., Beesdo-Baum, K. (2023). Social anxiety in adolescents and young adults from the general population: An epidemiological characterization of fear and avoidance in different social situations. Curr Psychol 42, 28130–28145. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-022-03755-y

Leigh, E., & Clark, D. M. (2018). Understanding social anxiety disorder in adolescents and improving treatment outcomes: Applying the cognitive model of Clark and Wells (1995). Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 21(3), 388–414. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10567-018-0258-5

National Institute of Mental Health. (n.d). Social anxiety disorder. https://www.nimh.nig.gov/health/statistics/social-anxiety-disorder#part_2644

Stein, M. B., & Stein, D. J. (2008). Social anxiety disorder. The Lancet, 371(9618), 1115-1125. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(08)60488-2