Social Anxiety and Mental Discomfort

 

Everyone feels social discomfort of some kind, but for many people social anxiety can feel unbearable and crippling. Social anxiety is a problem that, if left unchecked, can lead to complete avoidance of potentially rewarding situations. Social withdrawal is also associated with depression.

Living in New York City demands that you interact with other New Yorkers whether you want to or not. Social phobia can make seemingly harmless interactions feel painful. I have developed a method for helping people overcome social anxiety.

Nervousness in social situations can be improved. Social anxiety therapy may just change your life.

 

Signs of Social Anxiety

 

While it’s debatable how helpful it is to label yourself as having a “disorder,” a diagnosis of Social Anxiety Disorder is based on the following criteria (as stated on the Social Anxiety Institute’s website):

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.  The fear, anxiety, or avoidance is persistent, typically lasting 6 or more 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.

 

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Social Anxiety That NYC Needs

 

You no longer have to feel like you don’t know what to say in an unstructured social situation.

You don’t have to worry about how people are judging you when you’re socializing.

You need not worry about feeling like the odd person out, like you’re a fraud with something to hide.

I can help you feel prepared for new and ambiguous social situations.

I can assist you in social habits and patters that have brought you mental discomfort in the past.

I would like the opportunity to help you to dispute irrational beliefs around who you are as a social being, what people might think of you and what the risks are.

I can help you to overcome depression associated with disappointing social experiences or avoidant behavior.

My enhanced cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) approach is designed to give you the tools you need to feel more comfortable in your own skin in social settings.

 

Why Try Social Anxiety Treatment?

 

I have helped many New Yorkers to feel less socially anxious, which in turn, has made them experience less overall anxiety. People begin therapy saying, “Doctor, I have social anxiety.” They leave therapy after a group of sessions feeling like they have a mental backpack of tools for managing anxiety before social situations and in moments of actual social contact.

Given how much time we spend with our heads buried in our screens, it has become that much more important to make sure you get quality face-to-face time with friends to counterbalance the negative effects of constant screen time.

Most importantly, enhanced social confidence from social anxiety treatment will open doors for you. You will find that your support network expands, that it’s easier to access help from friends when you’re struggling and that you spend less time worrying about upcoming social events.

I enjoy doing this work as a psychologist in New York. It’s powerful to watch people change the way they feel about their social self. There’s so much pressure in NYC to be a well-liked extrovert. I help people free themselves of this outside pressure and to get in touch with their strengths and who they want to authentically be in the world.

Feel free to contact me with any questions about social anxiety treatment.