”Social anxiety disorder, also known as social anxiety disorder, is a type of mental illness. Because of the increased pressure of modern people, many people will face some social anxiety disorder.” Li Yihua, chief physician of the Department of Psychology at the Second People’s Hospital of Guangdong Province, said that many young people It is talking about “social phobia” with a self-deprecating mentality, and it is not as important as other mental illnesses. “We should pay more attention to patients with social phobia from a pathological perspective.
” What exactly is “social phobia”? Bitten
by a tiger Now, will you ask for help? “I won’t. Because no one saves me, I just might die, but when someone comes to save me, I have to say hello to him.” This very popular joke has few words, although it is exaggerated, it accurately touches a lot of “social fear” “People’s pain point: I don’t dare to socialize, and I feel nervous and anxious when facing the crowd.
”Social phobia refers to significant fear or anxiety in the face of social situations that may be scrutinized by others. It usually occurs in adolescence and is one of the most common psychological disorders.” Li Yihua explained that people with social phobia , In the face of social scenes, you will feel uncomfortable, afraid of being in an embarrassing situation and being judged. In addition to psychological nervousness, you will also be accompanied by blushing, trembling, rapid heartbeat, and dare not look at each other.
Social phobia usually begins in childhood or adolescence, but a small percentage of people develop the disorder in adulthood. Some people can pinpoint the onset of social anxiety and link it to a specific event (such as being ridiculed for a bad grade), while others cannot pinpoint the origin.
Now, social phobia has evolved from a medical concept to a meme that everyone makes fun of on the Internet. “The term ‘social fear’ is actually a generalization.” According to Sun Ping, an assistant researcher at the Institute of Journalism and Communication, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, many young people are now chatting wildly with people they can talk to. Put a “social fear” label and stay away.
Online carnival, offline silence
The generalization of “social phobia” reflects the increase in the number of pathological social phobias to a certain extent? Mu Xiaodong, director of the Psychological Clinic of Nanjing No. 1 Hospital, said that instead of saying that there is an increase in the number of people with social phobia, it is better to say that more people know that they may have a tendency of “social phobia”. “The younger generation has only one child in the majority, and the building has broken the state of being inseparable in the past, and the frequency of social interaction from a young age is much lower than that of the previous generation; and the growth of this generation coincides with the rise of the Internet and the popularization of social software, and young people are becoming more and more The more it presents a state of ‘online carnival, offline silence’.” Mou Xiaodong said that today’s young people are more accustomed to hiding behind mobile phone screens and are not used to being exposed to others, which may cause social phobia to occur more frequently among contemporary young people. In a broad sense, social phobia can be said to be a common disease of modern people. Some people’s ‘social phobia’ cannot reach the level of mental illness, but it will also be reflected. Although not “everyone is socially terrified”, the phenomenon of “social phobia” does deserve more attention.
”Social fear cannot be simply attributed to introversion or shyness. Introverted people just like to work quietly by themselves and are not afraid of people. This needs to be distinguished.” Li Yihua reminded.
What are people thinking of “social fear”
Why do people feel anxious when facing crowds? Liu Li is a “social anxiety” person who suffers from moderate social anxiety disorder. “I always feel anxious when facing crowds, such as chatting with classmates. If he doesn’t respond to what I say, I will think, does he think I am boring? Over time, I am very afraid to deal with people.” Liu Li said , this anxiety makes him always want to “escape” when facing the crowd. From the perspective of cognitive psychology, Liu Li’s mental activities can be called cognitive processing bias. Social phobia is often associated with cognitive processing biases, such as exaggerating the likelihood of negative outcomes when confronted with social groups, or making negative interpretations of ambiguous situations.
Liu Li said that many “social fear” people are like him, and they actually look forward to a pleasant exchange, so they will “please” each other. But the feeling was not good, so I gradually gave up socializing, and became more and more unwilling to take the initiative to contact the outside world.
”No one likes loneliness, but they are afraid of disappointment.” Wang Mingrui, a Ph.D. in the Department of Psychoanalysis at the University of Paris VIII, borrowed the words of Haruki Murakami to summarize the complex mentality of “social fear” people. “An important manifestation of people with social phobia is the inability to gain a sense of identity in social interaction, or the fear of not getting the recognition of their inner hope in social activities.” Wang Mingrui analyzed. He thinks it has something to do with the way of education. “Our traditional education is more inclined to allow children to be recognized in communication, such as being recognized by teachers and relatives, rather than encouraging children to simply express themselves in social interactions. This makes children grow up to be recognized. The demand is very high, and once the expected recognition cannot be obtained in social activities, it is easy to have an avoidance mentality.”
Does “social anxiety” need treatment?
80% of people with social anxiety do not need treatment. Although these people also have symptoms related to social anxiety, they can maintain a normal life by doing work that does not interact with others and reducing the frequency of social activities. So to what extent should you turn to professionals? Mou Xiaodong gave a judgment standard: social phobia symptoms persisted for more than 6 months, and seriously affected work, study and social activities. Li Yihua said that you can also do some relevant self-measurement forms issued by hospitals or psychological institutions to judge the severity of your symptoms.
Why does severe social phobia need active medical treatment? Wang Mingrui said: “The etiology of each patient with social phobia is highly individualized and accidental, and the in-depth search for the cause must be completed by professionals. Turn it on.”
”Severe social phobia is often accompanied by depression.” Mou Xiaodong reminded that when the symptoms of social phobia aggravate, the degree of depression may also deepen. At this time, the patient should take another depression scale. Seek medical attention in a timely manner.
Can mild “social anxiety” heal itself?
”Patients with lesser degrees of social phobia can try desensitization therapy, which is to take the initiative to approach social situations that make them feel fearful.” Li Yihua suggested, “From the perspective of behavioral science, avoidance of social situations means that patients will never be able to Get out of fear. If you want to eliminate the fear of social situations, you should approach the fear first.” If you are afraid of speaking in public, you can get closer or often to the situation where you have public expression. Excessive stress and anxiety due to public speaking. Successful experiences are very important for healing. But without any new experience, the fear will always be there. ”
In modern society, there are many situations in which you need to show yourself. For example, you are always hiding in a safe “shell”, which is easy to miss opportunities. Once the social model is improved, the quality of work and life will be improved. Li Yihua encourages the lesser “social fear” People try to heal themselves.
The road to self-healing can also be combined with mindfulness therapy. Mou Xiaodong added: “For example, you can meditate often, tell yourself that you can complete social activities well, and then have more positive emotions. Don’t always feel that others are watching and evaluating you, creating unwarranted anxiety. In fact, other people don’t pay that much attention to your every move, and they don’t think you are bad. Don’t blindly label yourself and draw conclusions for yourself.
