Realities For People Living With Anxiety Disorder

Often Back Out Of Social Invitations

Individuals with anxiety disorders often back out of social invitations. Though this isn't a constant for everyone with an anxiety disorder, it is an extremely common behavior. There are a few reasons for this. With social anxiety, patients feel very anxious about performing well in social relationships. They may be worried about saying the wrong thing, making social mistakes, and being perceived as weird or unpleasant. Another component is that public social outings tend to have many elements that can't be controlled. Individuals will never know who they'll see or exactly what the experience will be like. The unknown can increase anxiety, especially if the individual is prone to catastrophizing. It's also possible that social invitations will include other fears the person has. There may be loud and overwhelming places, intimidating travel, and the need to navigate situations they're unsure of. Many therapists recommend their patients with anxiety work to get out of the house more, since facing fears is the best way to overcome them.

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Avoidance Of Specific Situations And Things

It's very common for individuals with anxiety disorders to practice avoidance of specific situations and things. From an evolutionary perspective, this is a survival mechanism. In a neurotypical brain, the brain sends signals that indicate when an individual is in danger or may be in danger in the future. This causes stress levels to rise. The individual may experience fight-or-flight responses along with fear. In patients with anxiety disorders, though, the brain mistakenly flags non-dangerous situations as dangerous. The excess sense of danger leads to higher stress levels and panicked thinking. When individuals experience panic and fear in situations, the evolutionary instinct is to avoid those things to stay safe. Patients with anxiety disorders may avoid situations they can't control, certain social interactions, places, and anything that triggers phobias. Therapists typically help individuals slowly expose themselves to the situations they avoid so they can retrain their brains into recognizing those situations as safe.

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