What Is The Psychological Treatment Of Social Phobia?
We are all susceptible to feeling more or less shy in social situations. Especially those who are prone to shyness, will experience moments that can cause them some trouble when it comes to interacting with others, but there are more extreme cases.
Let’s see what it is and what is the treatment for social phobia which has to do with intense fear of social interactions.
Social phobia is linked to an intense and disproportionate anxiety reaction to social situations , which can cause anxiety attacks and lead to low self-esteem, low mood, and avoidance of social situations. Over time this can lead to serious losses and limitations in daily life.
The person who suffers from social phobia knows that his fear is disproportionate, but You can’t help but let yourself be carried away by fear even though you know it is irrational
Like any phobia, the physiological reaction of anxiety is so strong that at first it is difficult to face feared social situations without fleeing, even when you adjust your thinking and try to rationalize.
Symptoms
These are the main symptoms of social phobia, to take into account in your psychological treatment.
Physical symptoms
The physical symptoms of social phobia are basically the symptoms of an anxiety crisis, and appear in the feared situation and even when thinking about it:
Thoughts related to the fear of being disqualified, not being liked or feeling humiliated predominate, which denote low self-esteem:
Behavioral symptoms
Faced with this intense fear of interacting with others, the person with social phobia presents tendency to avoid social situations such as asking for information, asking questions in public, participating in conversations, going to meetings, etc.
Avoidance will be greater the less control one feels over the situation. Thus, avoidance will be greater the more people there are in a social gathering.
The person with social phobia may have high anxiety in a group of two or three people, but It will be much more intense the larger the group so they will always try to relate to only one person, considering it more controllable and less risky.
What is the treatment of social phobia?
In therapy it is common to treat people who suffer from social phobia. Nowadays, social networks and virtual reality also make it easier to avoid relationships, so they can live a long time without facing their fear.
The suffering is high and frustration, low self-esteem, sadness and feelings of hopelessness These are some of the emotional symptoms they suffer from. For our team of psychologists, these are the symptoms to be treated most urgently, in addition to progressive exposure to social situations in the most controlled way possible, so that social relationships are considered safe spaces.
Treatment from cognitive-behavioral psychology has proven to be very positive and efficient as well as third generation acceptance and commitment therapies.
During therapy, special importance is given to how to interpret interaction with others , learning to adjust thinking when it is very negative. It is very important to recognize the cognitive distortions that cause emotions of shame or intense fear that lead to avoidance, to learn to think appropriately and realistically.
Delving into the causes is also part of the therapy, so it is important to de-traumatize old situations that still weigh to unblock on an emotional level.
It is essential to reestablish self-esteem and confidence, reinforcing the patient’s abilities while providing training in progressive exposure to social situations , without rushing and from less to more level of coping. With all this, the goal is for the mood to improve as achievements are achieved and self-perception improves.
Work on social skills is also essential; relativize the opinion of others and not give them so much power; lose the fear of conflict by learning to get angry and express opinions, rights or needs assertively; be aware that we cannot meet all the expectations of others to be loved and learn not to take responsibility for everything for fear that they will be angry with us or judge us.
Causes
social phobia It usually has its origin in more or less traumatic situations, usually occurring in early stages especially in adolescence, and in relation to social situations that are experienced as unpleasant or humiliating.
A bad experience in class speaking in public, feeling that others laugh every time you speak, having made a mistake in front of others, having felt judged or criticized… are some of the examples of possible triggers for social phobia.
Added to this is a certain susceptibility to fear of criticism, of being judged, fear of conflict an excessive need for approval and the need to be liked, and a tendency to make internal attributions or feel responsible for everything.
Having grown up in family environments where personal disqualification has been abused without fostering good self-esteem or, on the contrary, social relationships have barely developed due to excessive protection, may also have an influence.
Social phobia usually occurs at an early age (Kendler et al, 1992) and the appearance of other possible disorders usually occurs after the development of this alteration; This is why at Avance Psychologists we are aware that early detection and treatment is essential.
