Social Anxiety Disorder

Facts About Social Anxiety Disorder

Anxiety is a strange feeling. As a performance actor, it is difficult for me to make people believe that I used to be pathologically scared of them. Before I became the mountain of self-confidence that I am now today, I used to have extreme symptoms of social anxiety disorder. Every time I was in a large group of people, in fact, I would get anxiety panic attacks. I could not go to anxiety support groups because I was afraid of the people there. The bizarre thing was that I was able to interact easily with one or two  or maybe three person at a time – especially if they were people that I knew. I could even meet strangers, provided that there wasn't a big group around. It was simply being in front of a lot of people that terrified me. Basically, everything that I am today would have seemed completely impossible to me at that point.

Social anxiety disorders are one of the most frequently debated subjects in the medical community. If you have a social anxiety disorder, almost everyone has a way to cure it, but very little of it will work. Socialanxietydisorder treatments include herbs, drugs, therapy, meditation, and things so esoteric that they would be difficult to explain. As a matter of fact, I was even briefly enrolled in a program to of social anxiety treatment that involved horseback riding as a therapeutic modality. The whole thing was ridiculous, but I was desperate for results. But nothing was working.

Can You Cure Social Anxiety Disorder?

Finally, in the end, I was only able to cure my social anxiety disorder through sheer grit and perseverance. The simple fact was that I wouldn't give up. The meditation helped somewhat, nutrition and exercise helped  also, therapy helped a little bit, and the anxiety support group helped. What helped most of all, however, was to face my fear. My anxiety social disorder would not get better from avoiding groups. If anything, I would become more afraid of them. I knew that the only way to successfully face social anxiety disorder was to get up in front of a crowd.

I wish I could say that I bravely stood up and deliver the performance of my life, but this is not the case. When I actually got around to facing my social anxiety disorder, in fact, I was drunk at a comedy club, giving a horrible performance. Some of the crowd actually booed! I was mortified, terrified, and shaking by the time I was done, but I had done it. The next time I stood up in front of a crowd, it was easier, and the next time easier still. You see the only way I got cured was to confront my fears. After a while it seems easier and down the road I surprise myself to laugh at my past misfortune. My socialanxietydisorder was gone. There must be a lesson in that experience. Face your fears.