Monday, 7 January 2013

Social Anxiety Disorder Symptoms - Want to Have More Self Esteem

By Manuela Sousa Almeida


One of the most prevalent psychological disorders today is SAD and it is estimated that there are up to 12% of people suffering with some degree of social anxiety disorder symptoms today.Social anxiety occurs when someone suffers from dread, uneasiness or fear about a social interaction which can be a cause of a major obstacle in their life. It is quite different from shyness, which is more of a personality trait, where someone may prefer to not expose themselves to social situations. Social anxiety is a problem when the sufferer is unable to involve themselves in normal situations without significant emotional stress.

Social anxiety disorder symptoms are things that sufferers describe when they are describing their social anxiety. They can be broadly divided into anxious thoughts, anxious behaviours, and anxious feelings. Anxious thoughts can include over thinking certain situations. For example, someone can think that everyone is staring at them, or everyone is laughing at them, or that they are making a fool of themselves, whereas from an outside perspective, everything is normal. So someone suffering from social anxiety could be unwilling to go into a crowded meeting because they feel that everyone would be staring at them, as opposed to the main speaker, which of course is completely illogical.

Anxious behaviours can include avoidance - for example, simply avoiding social situations, or being excessively late, or making excuses to leave. They can also involve using mobile phones to avoid talking to others or making them uncomfortable. Their behaviour is centred on avoiding or escaping a situation that has made them uncomfortable and promoted anxiety. These responses and behaviours are essentially learned responses that enable reduction of anxiety. A sufferer from social anxiety may also excessively groom themselves or spend too long preparing for social situations - again a method to help them reduce their anxiety.

Sufferers also describe anxious sensations in their body when they are thinking or experiencing social situations. They may find that they get sweaty and clammy. They may feel their heart beating quickly or thumping. Their breathing may increase, and they may feel light headed and faint. They may suffer from a dry mouth and stammer or stutter.All these social anxiety disorder symptoms have been experienced by everyone to some degree at one point in their lives. In certain situations it is totally normal - there are not many people who would not exhibit some of symptoms if they were to stand up and speak to one thousand people for example. However, when these symptoms are triggered in everyday life, then it can be a significant problem.

People who are unfortunate enough to suffer from social anxiety to a significant degree can find that their lives can be held back in terms of love and relationships, at work, with friends, at play, and even with their families. When these symptoms start to be triggered by everyday things such as meeting a stranger, starting a conversation, entering a new place or even holding eye contact with someone, then it can be a major problem. Fortunately, there are techniques available to help sufferers break free from this and live an anxiety free life.Stress and anxiety is very normal in everyone's life, but would you be able to recognise if you had any generalized anxiety disorder symptoms?

Normal anxiety is beneficial in an odd sort of way to complete tasks successfully and to respond to threats in a helpful way. Chronic, excessive and exaggerated worry without any valid causes for worry is called generalized anxiety disorder (GAD for short).When a person is constantly worried, nervous, anxious and uneasy for six months or more, he is said to suffer from this condition. GAD can affect a person physically, socially and occupationally. To avoid all the adverse effects of GAD, it must be diagnosed in the early stages. You should know the symptoms to help you make the right diagnosis.What are the symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder?It is important to note that everyone experiencing GAD does not have the same symptoms. The symptoms may vary from one person to another depending upon the cause and the severity of the disorder. However, there are some common symptoms of GAD. They are as follows:

Persistent worry that interferes in your normal day to day life. This is one of the most common symptoms of GAD.If you worry about a wide variety of things in life like money, kids, work, food, travel and everything else for an abnormally longer period of time, you may be suffering from GAD. If your anxiety is uncontrollable in spite of the anxiety reduction techniques you try, it can be a symptom of GAD.Other generalized anxiety disorder symptoms can be classified into three categories. They are physical, emotional and behavioural symptoms.

What are the physical symptoms of GAD?Tightened, strained and tense muscles are one of the physical symptoms. When your muscles are stressed, you may feel persistent muscular pain.The next physical symptom is fatigue. If you have GAD, you feel exhausted and tired almost always.Insomnia - Most of the people who suffer from GAD have sleeping problems. They have difficulty in falling asleep and in staying asleep. Lack of sleep aggravates the anxiety problem.Stomach problems like nausea, abdominal pain and cramps and digestive problems are symptoms of anxiety.Light-headedness and headaches are common physical symptoms of GAD.Other physical symptoms include frequent urination, hot flashes, sweating, trembling, and trouble in swallowing and increase in the heartbeat.What are the behavioural symptoms of GAD?Difficulty in concentrating is the first and foremost behavioural symptom.

Avoiding situations that cause anxiety.Feeling irritated often.Feeling depressed.Having negative thoughts Finding it extremely difficult to relax.Avoiding and postponing doing things that cause anxiety.Loss of interest in sex.What are the emotional symptoms of GAD? Feeling of dread and fear without any valid reasons.

Lack of self-confidence and looking upon others to get approval for everything that they do.Thinking constantly about something that makes you anxious in spite of trying to avoid thinking about it.Feeling that all your worries are out of your control and that you can do nothing about them.Feeling uncertain about the future.As you can see, generalized anxiety disorder symptoms vary a great deal and often confused with other conditions. This is why correct medical attention is sought and you do not try to self-diagnose.There are various therapies, medications and techniques to treat generalized anxiety disorder. If you notice a few symptoms mentioned above, then you should seek medical help before the condition worsens. Early diagnosis and early treatment is essential to get rid of GAD.




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