Diff. between shyness + soc. anxiety?

[deadendphilosopher]

Is there a difference between shyness and social anxiety? I was just wondering because I've always been shy, but when I was younger I made friends fairly easily, and don't remember being particularly anxious in social situations if I was with people I knew (like in school until I moved and had to go to public school in 2nd grade, but even then I wasn't THAT anxious). However I just read something about social anxiety disorder, and I think I have it, though I'm not sure when it started, maybe like 4 - 6 years ago.

In some ways it seems to be getting worse, and in some ways better so I'm kind of confused. Is it possible I had a mild case when I was little that just started getting out of control?

[nats]

i think there is a difference- like i'm really shy i find it hard to talk to people i don't know, and i get really nervous if i'm not around people i know, and i'm with people id on't know.

But i wouldn't say i have social anxiety, i generrally enjoy being in social situations and the situations itelf doesn't scare me, just the interaction with others.

[MrNice]

i generally think that identifying yourself with disorders is not a good idea. both shyness and social anxiety are not real things. there is only you and how you feel in relationship to other people. if you go to a doctor he may use one term but if you go to a different doctor he may use another term. yet there is no exact way to say - this is social anxiety as opposed to just shyness as opposed to low self esteem or just feeling low.

[wagnerr]

I think they are different things. There are some people here who are shy; they may not be afraid to socialize, but they don't know what to say in a given situation.

Then there are people here like me, who are not shy at all, but who feel panicky around people in general. I like people and i want to be around them, but i'm afraid to at the same time. I suffer panic attacks in groups of ten or more clustered around me, for example.

The lines blur widely, i think, and people may often experience the same symptoms of both shyness and SA.

[deadendphilosopher]

lsdima said:

i generally think that identifying yourself with disorders is not a good idea. both shyness and social anxiety are not real things. there is only you and how you feel in relationship to other people. if you go to a doctor he may use one term but if you go to a different doctor he may use another term. yet there is no exact way to say - this is social anxiety as opposed to just shyness as opposed to low self esteem or just feeling low.

But doesn't having a disorder mean you have a kind of mental illness? I guess you could maybe call any irrational fear a kind of mental illness, but why exactly do you think identifying yourself with disorders is a bad idea? The article I was reading on social anxiety disorder said there were specific therepy treatments that could be done to decrease social anxiety, so wouldn't identifying yourself with a disorder be helpful for finding the right treatment?

[MrNice]

so wouldn't identifying yourself with a disorder be helpful for finding the right treatment?

well, I like to think in terms of - will doing this [therapy] help me?
it does not matter if its called social anxiety or shyness or low self esteem or a social phobia or some abc disorder. I feel that if you identify yourself with a certain definition then you will see yourself in terms of it - thinking along the lines of 'as a person with social anxiety I ...' and then this may influence your actions in a negative way, sort of like a feedback loop. As long as you don't let it define you, it should be fine.

[deadendphilosopher]

lsdima said:

so wouldn't identifying yourself with a disorder be helpful for finding the right treatment?

well, I like to think in terms of - will doing this [therapy] help me?
it does not matter if its called social anxiety or shyness or low self esteem or a social phobia or some abc disorder. I feel that if you identify yourself with a certain definition then you will see yourself in terms of it - thinking along the lines of 'as a person with social anxiety I ...' and then this may influence your actions in a negative way, sort of like a feedback loop. As long as you don't let it define you, it should be fine.

That makes sense. Even thinking of myself as shy influences me in a negative way. I especially hate it when others label me as shy because it makes me feel like I'm not free to move past my shyness.

[sushiboat]

How would you know whether a therapy can help you? You would look at studies of people who have similar problems. When certain problems keep occurring together, it's convenient to give that group of problems a name.

Whether a mental health professional makes a diagnosis and uses an official label, or you use intuition to figure out what you need, you still have to assess where you are right now. You will be better off if you can take advantage of the knowledge and experience of millions of people instead of reinventing the wheel.

[MrNice]

You will be better off if you can take advantage of the knowledge and experience of millions of people instead of reinventing the wheel.

they are all wrong

[wagnerr]

lsdima said:

You will be better off if you can take advantage of the knowledge and experience of millions of people instead of reinventing the wheel.

they are all wrong

But the wheel was a great and innovative invention!!! How was it wrong?

[MrNice]

But the wheel was a great and innovative invention!!! How was it wrong?

the wheel brought great misery to society
millions of people die every day because of automobile accidents
death to technology