I suffer from social anxiety disorder. Have you ever had any problems with a social phobia?
As a matter of fact, I suffered from agoraphobia when I was in my early twenties.
So it was hard for you to be in open spaces such as malls?
I avoided malls, restaurants, movie theaters, elevators and basically any place that I thought I couldn't leave if I wanted to escape.
That sounds unfortunate. Did you ever experience panic attacks?
My panic attacks were at an extreme level for many years.
along with rapid speech. Panic attacks can also occur under intense fear and discomfort. Some sufferers may use alcohol or other drugs to reduce fears and inhibitions at social events. It is common for sufferers of social phobia to self-medicate in this fashion, especially if they are undiagnosed, untreated, or both; this can lead to alcoholism, eating disorders or other kinds of substance abuse. SAD is sometimes referred to as an "illness of lost opportunities" where "individuals make major life choices to accommodate their illness"
suffer from other complicating disorders and phobias, such as social anxiety, fear of flying and agoraphobia. These three are very common, because people who fear vomiting are often terrified of doing so, or encountering it, in a public place. Therefore, they may restrict their social activities so they avoid any situations with alcohol or dining out in restaurants. Emetophobics may also limit exposure to children for fear of germs. Females who suffer from this disorder delayed pregnancy or avoided it altogether because of the fear of morning sickness. People