Social anxiety is not just for adults
In the "Talk Show" program that was aired a while ago, Wang Mian exploded with a self-made "Song of Social Fear in the Workplace", and the lyrics spit out two colleagues in the workplace because they couldn't chat when getting along. The topic is too embarrassing, so I always rack my brains to avoid the other party-pretend to look at the phone in the elevator with no signal, rather than get in the rain and miss the bus to avoid walking with the other party.
Netizens have expressed that this song is too real and sang the embarrassing status quo of contemporary workplace socialization.
Many netizens admitted that they also have the "social phobia" described in the song.
So, is being nervous about socializing a mental illness?
Is it a sign of social phobia for colleagues to avoid each other in order to avoid the embarrassment of having nothing to talk about?
About half of people have experienced social anxiety
Zhang Weihua, deputy chief physician of the Department of Psychiatry at Peking University Sixth Hospital, told China Youth Daily and China Youth Daily that social phobia is also called social anxiety disorder, or social anxiety disorder, which is a kind of anxiety.
Social phobia mainly refers to the strong fear, tension, and worry about dealing with strangers in social situations (such as visiting customers, interviews, etc.) or expressing opinions in public (such as meeting speeches, etc.), and avoiding them as much as possible because of this Performance on such occasions.
Zhang Weihua believes that the psychology of the characters described in "Song of Social Fear in the Workplace" does show anxiety. The protagonist lacks basic social skills and does not know how to express himself, so he feels nervous about some social activities. The more nervous he is, the less he knows. How to do.
According to Zhang Weihua, social anxiety is common in life. According to his clinical experience, at least half of people may have symptoms of social anxiety during their growth. "Especially when they enter adolescence and start to like the opposite sex, there will be a I want to express my instinctual reaction. The most common manifestation is that I feel very nervous when speaking in public in class, my voice trembles, my expression is unclear, my mind is suddenly blank, and my original thoughts are completely messed up. This is actually An experience of social anxiety."
Zhang Weihua told reporters that there is no need to worry about this kind of physiological social anxiety. Individuals generally have the ability to self-regulate—even if they are nervous, they can complete class speeches.
Moreover, in the process of growing up, individuals will also work hard to overcome this anxiety, and anxiety symptoms will gradually decrease as the person grows and experiences more.
Overcoming social anxiety is also a process of getting to know yourself and understanding yourself in the process of growing up.
Although many people have experienced social anxiety as they grow up, not many people have really developed into persistent symptoms of social anxiety.
Zhang Weihua said that the core symptom of social anxiety disorder is a strong sense of tension in certain social activities or occasions.
This kind of tension is not only manifested as psychological tension, fear, worry and even fear, but also physical reactions such as rapid heartbeat, shortness of breath, muscle tension, and sweaty hands.
People with social anxiety disorder always try to avoid corresponding social activities or occasions, especially those in contact with strangers.
If it is an unavoidable situation, such as having to visit a certain customer, or suddenly receiving a notice to talk to the leader, and unable to dismiss it, the social anxiety disorder patient will feel very intense pain during the whole process, which will also affect him Communicate normally, and as soon as the meeting is over and the other person leaves, people with social anxiety disorder will immediately breathe a sigh of relief, and the intense tension will quickly ease and return to normal.
In addition, for planned social activities, people with social anxiety disorder will start to be nervous in the first one or two days or even longer, especially when the target of contact is a stranger, or the plan to do is more important to them, such as To participate in an interview or to meet with an important leader, people with social anxiety disorder will be nervous, uneasy, sleep well, involuntarily rehearsing social scenes in their minds, worrying about their performance one or two days before the appointment. Don't wait.
For mild symptoms of social anxiety, individuals can reduce and relieve themselves through self-training.
"If the psychological pain and physical response felt during the social process are not too strong, although the process is uncomfortable, it can basically complete the social behavior. In this case, you can adjust yourself through mental training and social training." Zhang Weihua said "First of all, we must understand the reaction of our own body, realize that this is an anxious reaction, accept our own situation, accept that we are an imperfect person. Don’t think about whether you will be embarrassed, because such thoughts will Increase anxiety." Zhang Weihua suggested that you might as well admit that you are nervous and ask the other party to understand.
Expressing one's anxiety openly will relieve the anxiety. If you can learn to tease yourself and deal with your tension in a humorous way, it is also very effective in alleviating anxiety.
This effectiveness is not only immediate, but also slowly reduces anxiety symptoms overall.
If anxiety symptoms are more severe, medications are needed.
Zhang Weihua said that at present, there are a variety of drugs that have the effect of treating social anxiety. These drug treatments can reduce the psychological response of patients with anxiety, especially for those who have long-term social anxiety attacks that are accompanied by depression or other fear symptoms. For patients, medication can be very helpful.
Zhang Weihua also emphasized that these drugs are all prescription drugs and must be used under a doctor's prescription. Do not take them by yourself. They must also follow the doctor's instructions for regular follow-up visits to evaluate the efficacy and possible adverse reactions, and adjust the plan in time if necessary.
Children also have anxiety reactions
Although the experience of social anxiety is uncommon among adults, it is not a "patent" of adults.
Zhang Weihua believes that children are afraid of living and dare not talk to strangers, which is also a manifestation of social anxiety.
Zhang Weihua told reporters that anxiety is not uncommon among children. Social anxiety and separation anxiety are common anxiety disorders among children.
Zhang Weihua said that children cannot express their emotions in words as accurately and clearly as adults, and their emotions are often expressed through certain behaviors.
When a child is anxious, some will cry too much, and some will not say a word.
Those children who are usually very active, but come to unfamiliar occasions, and do not say a word because of nervousness, have symptoms of selective mutism because of anxiety.
Zhang Weihua explained that many children have anxiety symptoms during their growth.
For most people, this is a physiological reaction. At a certain age, they can adjust themselves without special treatment.
"Everyone responds differently to external environmental stimuli. Some children are more sensitive. It is normal to have anxiety symptoms at a certain stage in the growth process. Such symptoms are conditional. As long as they do not affect the children’s daily life, parents Don’t care too much, just let the flow happen. If the parents pay too much attention to the child’s performance at this time, and eager to correct the child, use the attitude of'what a big deal, it will not be like this' to force the child to change his performance, instead It may aggravate the child’s symptoms."
Zhang Weihua believes that the most appropriate way for parents is to go with the flow, patiently encourage their children, and slowly guide their children to learn to understand themselves, accept themselves, and admit that they may be vulnerable in some cases.
At the same time, face life normally, don't deliberately avoid what should be done because of anxiety symptoms, and don't care too much about the symptoms, and live normally after the symptoms are eliminated.
"Everyone has to face pain and dissatisfaction in the process of growing up. For painful and unsatisfactory things, we must first learn to accept and face them, and then figure out ways to deal with and solve them. If the problem cannot be solved, we must adjust Attitudes towards problems." Zhang Weihua reminded parents to change the idea of "not letting the child experience any pain and not letting the child suffer." This idea is very detrimental to the growth of the child.
At the same time, parents should also pay attention to adjusting their emotions and be wary of their own anxiety problems because their children have anxiety symptoms.
The anxiety of parents not only cannot help the child solve the problem, but also has a negative impact on the child and may cause greater harm to the child.
China Youth Daily·China Youth Daily reporter Xia Jin Source: China Youth Daily