social phobia

[cali7925]

Have any of you ever been diagnosed with a mild social phobia? If you have and have had success in treating it, i'd like to talk to you.

Thanks.

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[wends]

well, the best treatment for a phobia is to confront....so go out and mingle! 🙂

 

[ocean11]

well, the best treatment for a phobia is to confront....so go out and mingle! 🙂

That IS SOOOO TRUE!!!! I had a good friend with this problem and he forced himself to 'socialize'. He still gets a little nervous with 'certain' crowds but forces himself to talk to them and try to go to parties etc... and now he is sooo much better, with many more friends and is on the road to complete recovery 🙂

 

[dgf32]

Have any of you ever been diagnosed with a mild social phobia? If you have and have had success in treating it, i'd like to talk to you.

Thanks.

Come on, guys. The above comments are certainly not very helpful, and I certainly hope you wouldn't give that advice to a patient who presents with this problem.

Social phobia can be treated very successfully. At the current time, the most prevalent treatment is a short course of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and in some cases the adjunctive therapy of a psychopharmacological agent such as an SSRI or SSRI/SNRI. I'd suggest that you contact a clinical psychologist, and if he or she thinks pharmacotherapy is appropriate, he or she will be able to refer you to a colleague for the appropriate evaluation.

My own mental health problems (primary diagnosis dysthmia with some co-occurring social anxiety) responded very, very well to a few years of psychodynamic therapy, which was a particularly effected modality for me. A clinician will be able to help you identify which type of therapy is best for you, but you have any questions, feel free to message me.

 

[cali7925]

thanks a lot for your advise q. if anyone else has gone through a similiar situation, i'd appreciate your help. as for the rest of you who havent, thanks for trying to help, but its more complicated then socializing. in fact, i have no problems socializing at all, mine is a specific phobia. thanks though.

 

[ocean11]

Come on, guys. The above comments are certainly not very helpful, and I certainly hope you wouldn't give that advice to a patient who presents with this problem.

Social phobia can be treated very successfully. At the current time, the most prevalent treatment is a short course of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and in some cases the adjunctive therapy of a psychopharmacological agent such as an SSRI or SSRI/SNRI. I'd suggest that you contact a clinical psychologist, and if he or she thinks pharmacotherapy is appropriate, he or she will be able to refer you to a colleague for the appropriate evaluation.

My own mental health problems (primary diagnosis dysthmia with some co-occurring social anxiety) responded very, very well to a few years of psychodynamic therapy, which was a particularly effected modality for me. A clinician will be able to help you identify which type of therapy is best for you, but you have any questions, feel free to message me.

Not very helpful?!? what are you a psychiatrist?!?

 

[Doc Ivy]

I know that the specific social phobia of public speaking can well effectively treated with a B-blocker to get rid of the sympathetically mediated 'jitters'. It might help if you told us what your phobia is.

 

[dgf32]

I know that the specific social phobia of public speaking can well effectively treated with a B-blocker to get rid of the sympathetically mediated 'jitters'. It might help if you told us what your phobia is.

Social phobia is a specific phobia, and it's so common that it has its own DSM diagnosis (300.23).

(Don't ask my why I know the number. I've coded WAY too many insurance forms.)

 

[Doc Ivy]

Social phobia is a specific phobia, and it's so common that it has its own DSM diagnosis (300.23).

(Don't ask my why I know the number. I've coded WAY too many insurance forms.)

No, you're right. I guess what I mean is that doesn't social phobia manifest itself in various ways?

 

[dgf32]

No, you're right. I guess what I mean is that doesn't social phobia manifest itself in various ways?

Oh sure, it typically manifests itself in multiple or sometimes just one type of situation. Parties are common, as are bars or other places unstructured social interactions are expected to occur. Others have problems more in work or school settings. It can be a debilitating problem, but luckily, as I said before, it responds very well to proper treatment. And by proper, I mean that a script for an SSRI from the PCP isn't going to make much of a difference.

 

[typeB-md]

Come on, guys. The above comments are certainly not very helpful, and I certainly hope you wouldn't give that advice to a patient who presents with this problem.

Social phobia can be treated very successfully. At the current time, the most prevalent treatment is a short course of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and in some cases the adjunctive therapy of a psychopharmacological agent such as an SSRI or SSRI/SNRI. I'd suggest that you contact a clinical psychologist, and if he or she thinks pharmacotherapy is appropriate, he or she will be able to refer you to a colleague for the appropriate evaluation.

My own mental health problems (primary diagnosis dysthmia with some co-occurring social anxiety) responded very, very well to a few years of psychodynamic therapy, which was a particularly effected modality for me. A clinician will be able to help you identify which type of therapy is best for you, but you have any questions, feel free to message me.

Oh, brother... not this again! How can you imply that others are closed-minded when you also use personal accounts as evidence. Oh, because it is yourself and not someone else, then it must be true! So since you are not willing to keep an open mind, i'll help you out.

tell me what is wrong with the following approach:

That IS SOOOO TRUE!!!! I had a good friend with this problem and he forced himself to 'socialize'. He still gets a little nervous with 'certain' crowds but forces himself to talk to them and try to go to parties etc... and now he is sooo much better, with many more friends and is on the road to complete recovery

i'm not here to argue the efficacy of drugs (because studies do show they can be effective). but why would you be quick to disregard a face-your-fear type method of overcoming a phobia? Are only psychiatrists able to help people overcome adversities?

Here is a nice quote from an article about cog. behavioral therapy

"Essentially, all CBT practices work on the assumption that the client needs to experience a difference in the situation; they only disagree about what the nature of this difference should be. The technique of applied relaxation suggests that the experience of relaxation, rather than tension, in the situation is the most helpful difference. Social skills deficit models propose the use of social skills training on the assumption that clients need to experience acting skillfully, rather than incompetently, in the situation. In exposure plus cognitive restructuring, the assumption is that clients need to remain in the situation while, at the same time, changing or forming a different relationship with their anxiety-provoking thoughts by noticing what the situation is really like. Here, the difference of prime importance is that of the difference between the client's ideas about the self in relation to the situation versus the client's actual experience of the self in relation to the situation. In our work with clients, we have repeatedly found them to have relatively simplistic, stereotyped expectations regarding social situations. To a certain extent, the important issue is not that these expectations generate inaccurate predictions (although they usually do), but that these expectations are based on a paucity of rich experiences in the social world. It should not be surprising that clients are unable to feel comfortable in a situation that they have never fully experienced." -Clinical Psychology Review
Volume 24, Issue 7 , November 2004, Pages 883-908
Social Phobia and Social Anxiety

this article seems to show that placing one's self into the unwanted situation is a quite effective method of controlling the phobia. just because a person has the will-power to do this doesn't invalidate the form of therapy. "OMG, they aren't licensed... now i can't be greedy and rip off another helpless victim!!! We must stop the public education and extol only the dr./patient relationship!!!"

i'm sure you are the same person that also doubts exercise has a significant impact on people's lives as well, right? well here's another study just for leisure reading.

"High and low-dose aerobic exercise are somewhat effective in the treatment of milde to moderate depression"

"[moderate exercise] was also as effective as drug therapy in treating mild depression"
-American Family Physician, 5/1/2005, Vol. 71 Issue 9, p1769, 2p

i always love it when people are quick to judge others. "c'mon guys, just tell him what i think it is best, stop giving him all this other information that might work and studies have shown it to work, but i don't think it will work, so i can prescribe it, and if i can't prescribe it, you shouldn't either, c'mon be good to your patients and tell them what is best!"

 

[dinesh]

hmf, just did a google search...looks like I am in the same boat.
grrr...
go out and mingle you say....

 

[Mumpu]

Therapy (CBT, exposure/flooding, psychodynamic, etc.) is the first choice for social phobia (or any phobia for that matter) and, unlike the drugs, can actually cure it. Beta-blockers ameliorate the symptoms but do not cure the underlying disease.

 

[dgf32]

Oh, brother... not this again! How can you imply that others are closed-minded when you also use personal accounts as evidence. Oh, because it is yourself and not someone else, then it must be true! So since you are not willing to keep an open mind, i'll help you out.

tell me what is wrong with the following approach:



i'm not here to argue the efficacy of drugs (because studies do show they can be effective). but why would you be quick to disregard a face-your-fear type method of overcoming a phobia? Are only psychiatrists able to help people overcome adversities?

As medical students hopefully we're being trained to take psychiatric complaints seriously. If someone is bothered enough by their social phobia to complain about it, it's serious, and should be treated seriously with a referral to the appropriate treatment just as you would do for any other medical problem.

Exposure therapy is a perfectly acceptable component of therapy, but simply telling someone to go mingle isn't going to be very successful, and the patient will leave feeling dismissed and certainly not helped.

 

[cali7925]

thanks guys, i've found what i needed.

 

[typeB-md]

As medical students hopefully we're being trained to take psychiatric complaints seriously. If someone is bothered enough by their social phobia to complain about it, it's serious, and should be treated seriously with a referral to the appropriate treatment just as you would do for any other medical problem.

Exposure therapy is a perfectly acceptable component of therapy, but simply telling someone to go mingle isn't going to be very successful, and the patient will leave feeling dismissed and certainly not helped.

i forgot that you guys all worked the same way. "no, you can't help yourself, you must come in and pay us money to help you do the same thing that you could do by yourself... we'll have none of this 'personal motivation' nonsense."

psychiatric complaints should be taken seriously, but treatment and diagnosis have gotten out of hand. it's like hypertension... yea we could prescribe you a drug that would work, but you can also go online and read that moderate exercise can be very beneficial. why not give the latter a try before shelling out the $$ for treatment?

but we all know it's not about curing the patient. it's about the power that the psychiatrist has over other people. keep labeling others to make yourselves feel better. "nobody is perfect!"

 

[tank you]

i have one more suggestion: before you go out and try to practice the particular social skill you are working on (exposure), do it alone in your room in your imagination in vivid detail. if you are really into it, you should feel the same anxiety level as you would feel in the real-life situation. after a few imagination exposures, the anxiety level will steadily decrease, so when you actually perform the act in real-life, you will feel much more relaxed and have had practice in your mind beforehand. hope this helps 🙂

 

[maxflash04]

I've got a question...

I've been naturally anxious my whole life - whether it be tests, meeting up with friends, studying, or thinking about the future - I find myself being so anxious my stomach hurts incredibly bad! I was diagnosed with UC 1.5 years ago and even though anxiousness/stress doesn't trigger UC relapses, it certainly affects it. I haven't gone to a Psychiatrist or any doctor about my problem but merely mentioned it to my GI and he said to contact my family doctor. What do you think I should do? Could my symptoms be something serious?

I had a colonoscopy done last week and they found a polyp. Good thing it was benign because I worried my butt off about it until I found out the results. My parents along with the rest of my family have told me I've been a natural worrywart my entire life. I was worrying about petty stuffy like getting my drivers license/passing the course when I was 8 or 9.

What should I do? Any comments would be appreciated.

Thanks!

maxflash04

 

[unoriginal]

I've got a question...

I've been naturally anxious my whole life - whether it be tests, meeting up with friends, studying, or thinking about the future - I find myself being so anxious my stomach hurts incredibly bad! I was diagnosed with UC 1.5 years ago and even though anxiousness/stress doesn't trigger UC relapses, it certainly affects it. I haven't gone to a Psychiatrist or any doctor about my problem but merely mentioned it to my GI and he said to contact my family doctor. What do you think I should do? Could my symptoms be something serious?

I had a colonoscopy done last week and they found a polyp. Good thing it was benign because I worried my butt off about it until I found out the results. My parents along with the rest of my family have told me I've been a natural worrywart my entire life. I was worrying about petty stuffy like getting my drivers license/passing the course when I was 8 or 9.

What should I do? Any comments would be appreciated.

Thanks!

maxflash04

Either read up on your condition (google) or get help from a psychologist/psychiatrist if you feel it is having a negative effect on your every day life (it sounds like it is). i think there are few people on here that are qualified to tell you what to do.

 

[maxflash04]

Yeah, I'll wait on a few more responses from some more qualified people before I go to a doctor to get treated. Thanks unoriginal. 🙂

 

[TheSkipperToo]

Have any of you ever been diagnosed with a mild social phobia? If you have and have had success in treating it, i'd like to talk to you.

Thanks.

Have it. Just take baby steps and try to increase your social level little by little...that should do.

 

[Paws]

Sometimes I feel like I have a social phobia, or else paralyising shyness. But then it tends to be situational. LIke when I am in school I tend to become exhausted and mentally beat. So, that messes up my social skills. I feel like my conversational timing is off and I am just not 'with it' socially. Well, ok. But maybe that's because my brain is flattened by studying?

Otherwise, I think I am as social as anoyone else. Sometimes shy, sometimes outgoing. It depends on who I am with, what I am doing, etc.