Something was missing. I had just spent the better part of a week contemplating my situation and still couldn’t put my finger on the reason for my failure. One thing was certain - It would take more than exposures (no matter how small) to break this cycle. I thought I was on the right track [...]
I spent the next few days in a foul mood – feeling sorry for myself and not venturing past the front steps of my parents’ house. I was so tired of the same old feeling of defeat - just really, really tired. Nothing ever seemed to work out as planned. Reality just always seemed to [...]
Although the exposures were minimal (making eye contact and saying hi to strangers), the anxiety was just as bad - and what’s more, I didn’t feel any different afterwards. I was back to square one – I hadn’t changed a thing.
Sure, I forced myself to speak to people, and tried to maintain some sort of [...]
After a few weeks of experimenting in the incubation level, I felt as though nothing had changed. Yes, I had managed a few low-level exposures around town and got varying responses from people, but nothing spectacular. I don’t know what I was expecting, but it seemed as though my social phobia was still running the [...]
The day I started the “levels” approach in my battle with social anxiety, was the day I started feeling better and feeling that I just might be on the verge of a promising future – really, even at 33! Looking back now, I saw a change in my demeanor and I can honestly say that [...]
The incubation stage was very low-key. There was very little pressure here, so it was actually enjoyable in many ways. In fact, the reason this level even existed, was so that I could let loose, mix it up, experiment, fall down, and then do it all over – All this in a very safe environment.
I woke up the next morning determined to make a difference. Realizing how much of my life had been wasted (especially the last year), I felt a sense of urgency to try to get things sorted. I was hitting my mid thirties, time was running out, and I could not allow social anxiety disorder to [...]
The problem in having to deal with the rest of the world was that I had little or no control over things. Life just went along its merry way regardless of what I did. I had little influence.
Most of the time, I was in over my head (or at least that’s how it felt). I [...]
Most self-help books and tapes advocate the slow approach - and after several failed exposure attempts, I knew that it would also be mine. However, it would have to be more than that – I would not only have to start slow, but I’d have to create a small, customised and controlled environment - and [...]
Once again, I was back at square one. I needed a starting point and some sort of plan. Anything would do for now, as long as it got me moving - I could tweak it later. The last six months had not been a total waste. I learned a lot about myself. For example, I [...]