helpful tips i learned in therapy for ppl with social anxiety — a thread

꧁ focus on facts ꧂

challenge negative thoughts by acknowledging them and then trying to see things for what they are instead of what they could be

꧁ u don’t always have to fill the silence ꧂

u can reply with sounds like “mmm” and affirmations like “yes” and “i see” if you’d like instead of voicing out what u want to say right away,,, it helps with that uncomfy feeling of interrupting others

꧁ focus on others ꧂

people without social anxiety love talking abt themselves so u can divert attention back to them when u feel uncomfy talking abt ur personal experience

꧁ control ur breathing ꧂

if ur able to focus on the conversation while keeping track of how u inhale and exhale, pls do!! it will help with the shakiness

꧁ shaky voice can be prevented ꧂

i tend to have a very shaky voice when i’m experiencing social anxiety and u can help lessen this by speaking from ur diaphragm instead of ur throat so it doesn’t come out squeaky and strained

꧁ not everyone hates u ꧂

if ur like me and tend to think this way, just remember it’s ur brain speaking against u and chances are ppl are too busy focusing on themselves to care too much abt others

꧁ pause ꧂

it’s socially acceptable to pause before answering a question,, if u want to be less obvious u can take a sip if u have a drink on hand but yeah pausing before answering is always good

꧁ anxiety isn’t as visible as u think ꧂

if ur afraid that ppl can tell ur panicking, it probably isn’t as obvious as ur mind is telling u so don’t sweat it too much if u can help it!! ur doing great keep it up ily