While most people look for their soulmates—friends, partners, or companions—individuals with social anxiety often choose solitude and their own company. The fear of rejection can be so strong that people may limit leaving their homes in order to avoid social interactions. In extreme cases, they may choose isolation and leave the house only when it is absolutely necessary.
How to cope with social anxiety?
Some parents try to deal with their children’s social anxiety by forcing them to interact with other people. They believe that taking their son or daughter to visit a classmate will positively influence the child’s development. Teachers with pedagogical knowledge sometimes act in a similar way, trying to help students who avoid others find companionship. However, it is important to emphasize that a person with social anxiety needs professional support. Forcing them into interpersonal relationships may have the opposite effect and ultimately increase their anxiety.
Properly selected therapy, on the other hand, can reduce anxiety and improve quality of life. A person with social anxiety is usually characterized by withdrawal and passivity. The individual affected by this condition tends to be compliant and is typically neither aggressive nor malicious toward others.
Social anxiety – online therapy
As mentioned earlier, the treatment of social anxiety should be based primarily on psychotherapy. Only an experienced specialist can help improve mood and foster more positive emotions in interactions with other people. Isolation and avoidance of social contact often function as defense strategies that may have been helpful in childhood. However, they usually do not work well in adult life and can significantly limit it.
Healthy interpersonal relationships based on friendship and respect bring many benefits to our daily lives. Online psychotherapy can be a good solution for starting the process of overcoming anxiety. Easy access to this form of therapy means that more and more people are choosing it. Treating social anxiety can significantly improve the quality of life for those affected by it.
The best results are often achieved with TEAM-CBT therapy and cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). Effective therapeutic approaches aim to change patterns of thinking and behavior related to situations that trigger anxiety during social interactions. The psychotherapist helps the patient replace negative thought patterns with more adaptive ones, which leads to greater openness to interpersonal relationships.
Treatment of social anxiety often involves the use of so-called interpersonal exposure techniques, such as rejection practice, shame-attacking exercises, the “stranger on the train” effect, self-disclosure practices, the “smile and hello” technique, and flirtation training.
Social anxiety – pharmacological treatment
Therapy alone does not always bring sufficient improvement. Although psychotherapy usually produces excellent results, in some cases pharmacological treatment may also be recommended as supportive therapy. If a psychotherapist determines that a patient is experiencing social phobia, they may refer the patient to a psychiatrist, who will conduct appropriate diagnostic assessments and, if necessary, prescribe medication.
Pharmacological treatment of social anxiety most often involves monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs) and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). However, in order for pharmacotherapy to produce the expected results, it is usually necessary to wait at least several weeks.