Health Guide

Criteria for Social Phobia

Picture this! A woman hates to stand in the queue in the grocery store. The reason? She feels that everybody standing there is staring at her. She knows this is not really true but she just can't shake off this feeling. She's mustering courage to talk to the person who's checking out her groceries. She tries to smile, but her voice comes out weakly. She's sure she's making a fool of herself. Her self-consciousness and nervousness reaches the peak.

Now visualize this! Another person sits in front of the telephone and stares at it helplessly. She's afraid to pick up the receiver and make a call. After a lot of dilly-dallying she finally manages to give a tinker. But once the call is over, she sits, analyses and ponders over what she said, what tone it was said in, and how the other person perceived her. Her anxiety and racing thoughts convince her that she's goofed up this conversation, too, just like she always does. Her fears give way to sheer embarrassment.

The plight of this senior manager in a company is really pitiable. He is dreading the meeting scheduled at his workplace the next day. He knows that these meetings always involve interaction with his co-workers. The very thought of speaking in front of so many people sends a shiver down his spine. He knows that in front of everybody he'll stammer, hesitate, his face will turn red, he won't remember what to say, and everyone will witness his embarrassment and humiliation. He is finding it hard to pop off to sleep. He has a night ahead of him to think about it, ruminate over it, worry about it, over exaggerate it in his mind. again and again and again

This young girl wants to go to parties and other social events. Indeed, she is very, very lonely but she never goes out anywhere because she's very nervous about meeting new people. She is terrified of the crowds. The thought of meeting strangers frightens her. Will she know what to say? Will they stare at her and make her feel all the more insignificant? Will they reject her outright? Will they sense her tenseness and discomfort and declare her an outcast? She drops the idea of going out and as usual curls up in front of the T.V. She feels comfortable at home, infact, it's the only place where she feels safe.

No prize for guessing!! You all know what I am talking about, in fact some of you out there might be a victim of it. Well, yes, it's social anxiety disorder or in other words social phobia.

Criteria for Social Phobia:

Social Phobia/Social Anxiety Association

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