Anyone here gone through social anxiety disorder therapy?
My social anxiety got better in last four years, since I force myself to social situations a lot, but it's still far from great, and takes opportunities from me, so I'm thinking about going to a doctor.
So, if you did the therapy - how did it look? Was it just "role play" situations? Did it help you?
Thanks.
>>17207777
Nice quads
Social skills are like a muscle that need to be worked. If you don't interact with people, your social skills disintegrate.
I have a friend who never comes out to anything because he has "anxiety". The reason he has anxiety is because he never comes out to anything. He doesn't see anyone else other than me and 2 other friends once a week. That's not enough, we're social beings and we need real interaction.
By thinking you have some sort of disorder will only make it worse. Your social skills are weak because they aren't worked enough. Apply the "fake it till you make it" mentality and work your social skills. Try not to be too analytical of social cues and behaviours. Spend enough time in social situations and they will come naturally. Just remember that if you want others to like you, remain positive and try not to be offended.
There's no doubt that you want to be around other people. You're just uncomfortable at the moment because you lack the social skills. If you're anything like my friend, you are comfortable only around certain people. That's because you've spent enough time that you've learned how to act in front of these people. The key is to learn how to act in front of new people. By doing it a lot you will become better and eventually you will want to meet new people.
>>17207830
I agree with this. I'm still not good socially but have gotten so much better after getting a job where I'm forced to interact with people (after spending years interacting with literally no one, ever). I went to therapy and it did jackshit, it just made me feel worse because the therapist literally kept treating me like I was some sort of retard. I still have insecurities, anger, and anxiety from that experience. But putting yourself out there works.
>>17207830
>He doesn't see anyone else other than me and 2 other friends once a week
not op
dear god, that's way more than I do...
outside university, where I have no friends nor collegues I rarely see anyone within months
the ironic part is, that I do not feel myself being shy or having anxieties, it's just that I never had friends or a social life.
Throughout my school time I have been bullied heavily for nearly a decade.
I guess I have never learned how to act or preform "socially".
It makes me sad, every attempt within the last 4 years to obtain relationships (friendships) failed horribly. I do not know what to do.
Reading books and internet articles or psychology guides did not help either...
>>17207999
The only thing you can do is put yourself out there and interact with people. It'll be hard because you'll be shit at it, but it's the only way you'll improve. And it's definitely worth it.
It's like if you've never played the piano before but everyone else around you is pretty good. You won't learn by reading psychology guides about playing the piano. You'll learn by actually going out there and doing it. At first the music you produce will be really ugly, and painful if others are in earshot, but you'll be improving. It does get a lot better. You just need to practice a lot, you won't learn how to play the piano by playing once a month or once every other week. It takes active effort and a willingness to endure the awkwardness and pain of being bad at it.
>>17208080
>It's like if you've never played the piano before but everyone else around you is pretty good. You won't learn by reading psychology guides about playing the piano. You'll learn by actually going out there and doing it.
Wow, you never played piano, did you?
Go ahead and mash those keys, I'm sure you'll be Beethoven eventually.
Being socially stunted and being socially anxious are two completely different things. You can have all the social skills in the world and still have social anxiety. You can be shamelessly awkward with zero social skills nor anxiety to speak of.
>>17208136
Being purposely obtuse, are you? Why contribute to the world when you can be a jackass for no reason on the internet.
You're not going to learn how to play the piano just by looking at a book and never hearing or interacting with an actual piano. You won't know what the keys sound like, you won't be able to practice the physical aspect of playing, you won't gain the intuition. You won't be able to see what the material in the book sounds like. No one was talking about just mashing keys.
>>17208136
Oh cool, you can learn muscle memory from a book.
>>17208176
>You're not going to learn how to play the piano just by looking at a book and never hearing or interacting with an actual piano.
And you won't learn how just by sitting in front of it and hoping for the best, either.
You need both.
