Social phobia., How do you get over it? Options

[georgeWIRELESS]

( Excuse me, I'm not sure if this belongs here, so if it needs moved, I'm sorry O.< )

I've been shy, all my life. I've never had more than a few friends, I've never been able to speak up to anyone, I've never been able to ask for help because I was afraid.

I failed a grade once because I was afraid to go to school. I don't know why I was afraid.

I don't have much time left before I'm going to have to start making it on my own, only a couple years, which isn't that much.

How can I prepare for the real world when I'm afraid of it?

If I've been this way all my life, will the future be any different?

My parental units say homeschooling is a bad idea, but I don't think it's any worse than public school. I'd get about as much social interaction in homeschooling, with none of the anxiety. >_____>

The more I'm forced to socialize, the more fearful and withdrawn I become.

Everyone thinks pushing me into social situations is the answer, but it's only made it worse.

Have you ever had social phobia? Do you still? If you don't, what changed?

[angelrevelation]

hmm... i'm pretty sure it's probably not what's wrong, but google Body dysmorphic disorder. it has stuff to do with social phobia. if it's not your problem... then just try to do something 'noticeable' little by little. like... say hi to a friend, raise your hand in class... just keep on pushing yourself. ask your friends to help you to, or ask your teacher to call on you more often?

and stop worrying so much. people don't judge you on every little thing you do

[ceara cecilyrose]

*hugs George*
It sounds like you've done a bit of research into social phobia. Would I be right in thinking that?

I think it's great that you're posting here about it :D Do you feel anxious about talking to people online, or is it more of a face-to-face thing?

Are there other things that you feel anxious about?

There ARE things that you can do to treat your feelings of anxiety. They may not always be easy, but you can do them! You don't always have to be this way... There are just so many things you can do that might help. Have you seen a psychologist? Or even an MD...

You can use some graded exposure to slowly get used to doing things that scare you. That means that you just start out with things that you can do - are you able to go to your local shop and buy yourself something you like? Or perhaps get on a bus to a park? You may not be able to do these things perhaps, depending on how able to cope you are outside of your home environment.

hmm...  i'm pretty sure it's probably not what's wrong, but google Body dysmorphic disorder.  it has stuff to do with social phobia.

Humm... Nothing that George has said sounds like BDD to me.

Also, those of you posting here need to understand that social anxiety (which is something we all feel from time to time) is different to social phobia. It really is. Social phobia can be extremely debilitating. It goes way beyond just being shy, or being worried about what people will think of you if you do something silly.
I've worked with people with social phobia (I'm a psychologist in training and have had to do field placements) and from everything they've told me and everything I've studied about it it can be really hard to cope with. I know that one man I was working with wasn't capable of coming into the office because he was too scared to leave his house. Another did come into the office but spent a good hour sitting in the chair looking absolutely terrified because he hadn't met me before. Terrified! Of me!
I apparently LOOK like a nice person (I'm fat and smile alot :P)
He did eventually relax quite a lot, even to the extent that I think he was really close to telling me about some issues that he'd been dealing with. But I could tell, especially at first, that he was forcing himself not to be afraid.
The man I talked to on the phone wasn't dissimilar, but I managed to build up a really nice rapport with him eventually.