There are a number of treatment options available for people suffering from social anxiety, an often debilitating condition that is characterized by the fear of being negatively evaluated by others in social situations. Because social anxiety disorder has both mental and emotional symptoms, as well as physical signs of distress, most treatment regimens focus on the combined use of medications and various behavioral therapies. While medications have proven to be successful in alleviating many of the physical aspects of the condition, in order to permanently affect changes in the underlying thought processes of the patient usually involve such therapies as exposure and response prevention.
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When you have a big ego like I do, finally admitting you have a problem with social anxiety disorder is difficult to say the least. I was like that guy in the joke who won’t admit he is paranoid but prefers to insist that everybody really is out to get him. I can’t speak for everybody, but in my case, denial was the biggest obstacle I had to overcome to finally seek some help with my social anxiety disorder.
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Social anxiety disorder is one of the least understood anxiety disorders. In fact, some psychiatrists and psychologists are still suggesting that it is not a true mental condition. They dismiss the problem as simple shyness or the result of deeper underlying issues.

I spend a lot of time reviewing books, video, audio, and reading tons of information on various websites – anything to do with social anxiety disorder. I feel compelled to do this because I want to eventually beat this thing; and having lots of information with different viewpoints is invaluable. The conclusion that I have come to is that most of the top people really have no idea what it is like to live with this condition; that is painfully obvious in the way they talk about it. (more…)