I want to take some time to give you some helpful ways to combat social phobia. These are tricks I’ve picked up during my quest to be more social. Some I have tried myself, others I have read about or learned from others. I hope you find these helpful ways to combat social phobia a way to better your situation and become the person you want to be.
As discussed HERE, social anxiety disorder or social phobia can be an extremely debilitating condition to live with. Because many people will go completely unchecked and passed off as “weird” or “awkward” by typical society, a lot of people who suffer from a social phobia don’t even realize that they are suffering. Instead, they blame themselves and their personalities, looks or anything else they can think of to be the sole reason for their elimination from typical social activity.
If you deal with a social phobia, or you know somebody who does, then fighting back and creating a more comfortable situation is very important. Left unchecked, a social phobia could cripple somebodies life – leaving them unable to leave the house, get a job that involves dealing with people or even eating out & buying their shopping. It’s a condition that can get worse without treatment, and can drastically affect your quality of life and bring on uncontrollable levels of stress & fear.
Even people who reek of confidence like comedians and professional sports people get confidence problems – it happens to everyone. When the confidence problems become the norm, though, something has to be done;
Here are some Helpful Ways To Combat Social Phobia
Challenge Your Negativity
Try and think of it this way – your negative thoughts are coming from your “bad” side, and your positive thoughts come from the “good “side. You’re Ying & Yang in your own mind. When you find yourself denigrating your lifestyle, personality, looks or achievements or coming up with “What If?” events in your head about the outcome of a social event, challenge them.
Many of us allow ourselves to become overcome with the thoughts and get washed away in a tide of fear and dread. Instead of letting this happen, why not challenge these thoughts? How can you be certain that will be the outcome? How do you KNOW that your meeting with the boss is going to be end of your career? What if it’s a promotion?
Watch The Best Fail
We alluded to it above, but even those who run the show and look like they are in control of everything have lapses in confidence. Get on YouTube and look up blooper videos of famous people. You’ll see that even the professionals have moments of weakness.
If you suffer from a social phobia you may feel that your incidents and problems are something only an idiot could do. This is not the case at all. Mistakes are allowed, it’s when the mistakes become the norm that the problems start. And this can happen when you allow yourself to wallow and become consumed with the idea that you are a failure.
Sometimes, dealing with a social phobia just takes a little bit of luck – meeting the right person who is hospitable and receptive to you right away. Coming out of your shell can take time, patience and a lot of hard work, but defeating a social phobia is most certainly possible, if you want to change.
