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Helping People With Social Anxiety - How?
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Helping People With Social Anxiety - How?Posted:
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The way that people on social media talk about social anxiety is great for spreading awareness of social anxiety. It's great for letting people know that social anxiety is a somewhat common issue for people to look out for and be aware of. What it is not great at is telling people how to help.
A video just popped up on my timeline: 5 Things Not To Say To Someone With Social Anxiety
Excellent, I know now not to say those 5 things to my friend with social anxiety.
How about telling me what I should say instead then? Because I never see this.
I have never seen a video or an article shared widely on social media by pages like this one [ Register or Signin to view external links. ] letting people know what they can do to help people with social anxiety or people who are having anxiety attacks.
And it isn't like there aren't good ways to help people with social anxiety, we are just never exposed to them by these groups and here is the controversial part which I'm sure will get backlash - it is almost like these groups don't want to spread the ways to help people because they enjoy the attention of people knowing that there is something wrong with them [which is why they spread awareness] but if they spread the ways people can help then this attention would diminish.
I'm not saying that it's all people with social anxiety who are like this, but the people who own these groups and regulate the content on them have an interest in people being ignorant of the ways to help people with social anxiety because it means that they can keep selling their product, in essence.
Of course you can probably go through this page and pages like it and find the odd article explaining a couple of ways to help, but if I were the owner of one of these groups I would be pumping out 'how to help' manuals for people every single day because knowing what not to say is great, but knowing what to say is a whole lot better.
Spreading awareness articles only or majorly leaves people in the position of, "OK. I recognize that my friend has social anxiety, I know not to tell him to calm down, I want to help him, but all of the ways which make sense to me will apparently just make him worse. What the hell do I do?" and it leaves people feeling useless and like they are unable to do one of the most basic things: help someone in need.
This is a clinical psychologist's view on how to help people with social anxiety and it makes a lot of sense to me, if you agree then I encourage you to share this video on your social media platforms. People will appreciate it because people without social anxiety feel completely unequipped to help those with social anxiety at the moment and the proof of this is that if they were then these groups wouldn't feel the need to continuously pump out, 'What not to do' videos and articles.
And just as a side note if anyone feels like commenting "Ha who even uses Facebook any more?"
1.28 billion people do - Daily.
A video just popped up on my timeline: 5 Things Not To Say To Someone With Social Anxiety
Excellent, I know now not to say those 5 things to my friend with social anxiety.
How about telling me what I should say instead then? Because I never see this.
I have never seen a video or an article shared widely on social media by pages like this one [ Register or Signin to view external links. ] letting people know what they can do to help people with social anxiety or people who are having anxiety attacks.
And it isn't like there aren't good ways to help people with social anxiety, we are just never exposed to them by these groups and here is the controversial part which I'm sure will get backlash - it is almost like these groups don't want to spread the ways to help people because they enjoy the attention of people knowing that there is something wrong with them [which is why they spread awareness] but if they spread the ways people can help then this attention would diminish.
I'm not saying that it's all people with social anxiety who are like this, but the people who own these groups and regulate the content on them have an interest in people being ignorant of the ways to help people with social anxiety because it means that they can keep selling their product, in essence.
Of course you can probably go through this page and pages like it and find the odd article explaining a couple of ways to help, but if I were the owner of one of these groups I would be pumping out 'how to help' manuals for people every single day because knowing what not to say is great, but knowing what to say is a whole lot better.
Spreading awareness articles only or majorly leaves people in the position of, "OK. I recognize that my friend has social anxiety, I know not to tell him to calm down, I want to help him, but all of the ways which make sense to me will apparently just make him worse. What the hell do I do?" and it leaves people feeling useless and like they are unable to do one of the most basic things: help someone in need.
This is a clinical psychologist's view on how to help people with social anxiety and it makes a lot of sense to me, if you agree then I encourage you to share this video on your social media platforms. People will appreciate it because people without social anxiety feel completely unequipped to help those with social anxiety at the moment and the proof of this is that if they were then these groups wouldn't feel the need to continuously pump out, 'What not to do' videos and articles.
And just as a side note if anyone feels like commenting "Ha who even uses Facebook any more?"
1.28 billion people do - Daily.
#2. Posted:
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Deeper than Adele this topic.
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#3. Posted:
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Error_404 wrote Deeper than Adele this topic.
What's your opinion it?
Is there enough information being spread around in regards to how to help people with social anxiety?
Or is ill concealed sarcasm all you can muster up today?
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#4. Posted:
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MrWednesday wroteError_404 wrote Deeper than Adele this topic.
What's your opinion it?
Is there enough information being spread around in regards to how to help people with social anxiety?
Or is ill concealed sarcasm all you can muster up today?
How about you stop taking such a serious approach on life. Maybe that will help? I'd does with me.
Wondered why this has got no other replies? Because it's depressing.
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#5. Posted:
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Error_404 wroteMrWednesday wroteError_404 wrote Deeper than Adele this topic.
What's your opinion it?
Is there enough information being spread around in regards to how to help people with social anxiety?
Or is ill concealed sarcasm all you can muster up today?
How about you stop taking such a serious approach on life. Maybe that will help? I'd does with me.
Wondered why this has got no other replies? Because it's depressing.
Yes it may be depressing. But it's the truth. Sorry your life is perfect and you don't deal with problems many others deal with. There was NO reason to be rude about it.
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#6. Posted:
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Truthfully, I didn't watch the video sooner because I thought it was going to be long and wasn't going to be informative. Kind of wrong. Having issues myself, it sounds like good information. Just not sure how well it'd work in reality.
One of my issues is that I just can't look at people and speak. I freeze up and lose everything I want to say. It is like I have to tell myself to look at them and that takes the place of the conversation I was trying to have.
Other than in conversations, looking at people isn't much of an issue I have. It is being around numerous people that gets to me. I think I try to focus on everyone. I say "I think" because it isn't something I actively try to do, but I feel as though I am looking at everyone and trying to hear everything each of them are doing.
One of my issues is that I just can't look at people and speak. I freeze up and lose everything I want to say. It is like I have to tell myself to look at them and that takes the place of the conversation I was trying to have.
Other than in conversations, looking at people isn't much of an issue I have. It is being around numerous people that gets to me. I think I try to focus on everyone. I say "I think" because it isn't something I actively try to do, but I feel as though I am looking at everyone and trying to hear everything each of them are doing.
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#7. Posted:
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Status: Offline
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Yin wrote Truthfully, I didn't watch the video sooner because I thought it was going to be long and wasn't going to be informative. Kind of wrong. Having issues myself, it sounds like good information. Just not sure how well it'd work in reality.
One of my issues is that I just can't look at people and speak. I freeze up and lose everything I want to say. It is like I have to tell myself to look at them and that takes the place of the conversation I was trying to have.
Other than in conversations, looking at people isn't much of an issue I have. It is being around numerous people that gets to me. I think I try to focus on everyone. I say "I think" because it isn't something I actively try to do, but I feel as though I am looking at everyone and trying to hear everything each of them are doing.
I have a bad problem with both of those. It really upsets me. (No I'm not making a username joke) it's stressful
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#8. Posted:
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Yin wrote Truthfully, I didn't watch the video sooner because I thought it was going to be long and wasn't going to be informative. Kind of wrong. Having issues myself, it sounds like good information. Just not sure how well it'd work in reality.
One of my issues is that I just can't look at people and speak. I freeze up and lose everything I want to say. It is like I have to tell myself to look at them and that takes the place of the conversation I was trying to have.
Other than in conversations, looking at people isn't much of an issue I have. It is being around numerous people that gets to me. I think I try to focus on everyone. I say "I think" because it isn't something I actively try to do, but I feel as though I am looking at everyone and trying to hear everything each of them are doing.
What do you think is a good way to help someone in your situation?
I was thinking along the lines of taking the attention away from you and making the other people focus on something else so that the pressure is alleviated a little but would that work or just make it worse because then you have the pressure of knowing that your friend is trying to help you and if it doesn't work then you're wasting their time?
I'd like to hear your view as well, upsets.
Error_404 wrote How about you stop taking such a serious approach on life. Maybe that will help? I'd does with me.
Wondered why this has got no other replies? Because it's depressing.
Of course it would help if I stopped taking such a serious approach on life.
The difference between you and I is that I don't view this as a depressing topic.
For the first 3 years of being on this website people had real conversations about real issues all of the time.
In the past year a paradigm shift has happened and now these kinds of topics and conversations are a dime a dozen.
So I'd rather make a topic like this and have one or two people reply than make a 'family friendly' topic and have thousands of teenagers show me their favorite type of Yeezy.
Last edited by ProfessorNobody ; edited 1 time in total
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#9. Posted:
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MrWednesday wroteYin wrote Truthfully, I didn't watch the video sooner because I thought it was going to be long and wasn't going to be informative. Kind of wrong. Having issues myself, it sounds like good information. Just not sure how well it'd work in reality.
One of my issues is that I just can't look at people and speak. I freeze up and lose everything I want to say. It is like I have to tell myself to look at them and that takes the place of the conversation I was trying to have.
Other than in conversations, looking at people isn't much of an issue I have. It is being around numerous people that gets to me. I think I try to focus on everyone. I say "I think" because it isn't something I actively try to do, but I feel as though I am looking at everyone and trying to hear everything each of them are doing.
What do you think is a good way to help someone in your situation?
I was thinking along the lines of taking the attention away from you and making the other people focus on something else so that the pressure is alleviated a little but would that work or just make it worse because then you have the pressure of knowing that your friend is trying to help you and if it doesn't work then you're wasting their time?
I'd like to hear your view as well, upsets.
As far as being able to look at people to talk, I think that is just something I will have to do myself. I just find it weird looking someone in the eyes while talking. Don't know.
As for how I am when not in a conversation and I am focused on other people, just being in a conversation or something like that helps. I can walk through a mall with a friend having conversations, and I am fine for the most part. I still look around a lot more than the average person, but it isn't as bad. While I'm still not comfortable, I don't feel the metaphorical cross hairs of everyone on me as much.
I also feel that other people taking charge helps as well. Like, I am better following the lead of others around an area. We need to get to that point? Lead the way. Need help carrying something? Ask for it, don't expect. There have been times that I have frozen and I have been called out (in public) on the spot for not helping. I didn't mean to. I just froze in a "just pretend I don't exist" kind of way. I would 100% help if I know from the person they need it. There is a disconnect there where I know I should do something when the time comes and actually doing something when the time comes, if that makes sense.
Going back to the paragraph before last, it just dawned on me that maybe you are talking about group conversations that I am a part of. That seems like a tough one. My brother dragged me into some groups when he'd have big get togethers at his house. Probably one of the few times I have spoken to someone while looking them in the eyes, lol. He'd say something weird about me, and I'd joke back. It is like I have to become a character in those moments to get through them as a normal person. It's odd, though I wish I could do that more often. Not totally sure what you can do for someone in those moments. I was fine for the most part standing around while others talked. I mean, I don't have much in common with groups of people, so... I was fine as long as I wasn't completely ignored. A girlfriend I had was talking in a group. It was kind of uncomfortable, but she would ask me a question here or there (even if it was pretty pointless) or would just say something about us to them. It was including me without me being much included. Not sure if that would help in other cases where someone has it worse than me though.
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