Is something wrong with me?

@MyChaiLatte I'm glad you've found something that you enjoy and a career you're certain of. You may want to try practicing. Talking in front of people can be very scary. If you practice what you're going to say before, it might help you feel more confident. Also, the more you talk in front of people the easier it will get. Good luck!

@MyChaiLatte

HI,

I have two thoughts

1. I am wondering if part of your social anxiety stems from your thoughts that othet people are judging you or you think they don't like you. This is very common and be corrected by constantly changing what is called negative self talk. This and other strategies can be found in self help books about social anxiety.

2. Speaking in front of people is a fear most people have. One of the best ways to deal with being anxious about giving presentations is to practice practice practice in front of a mirror. I gave done this and it really helps.

Hope this helps.

@MyChaiLatte It's AMAZING that you found something you're passionate about. Passion can conuer any fear or anxiety you have - it's all about learning to cope with it. Always remember to give yourself time for self-are and breathing deeply If you have a presentation, prepare what you have to say with notes or an outline - it always makes things easier to remember and gives your mind something more to focus on rather than your audience. You can get through this! If you ever want to talk about this more, feel free to reach out to a Listener.

@MyChaiLatte I have always suffered from social anxiety as well to where I feel like fainting when doing a speech. Find out I'm real good at speeches. I would suggest maybe speaking with a therapist about the anxiety. We also have mindfulness exercises that help and self help guides to anxiety and panic attacks. I also suggest looking up desensitization exercises :)

Definitely practice talking to people. Just start easy by writing out simple conversations, maybe practice them in the mirror or something, and slowly progress toward talking to new people. Also get a therapist. You're still young, so take care of this growing anxiety now. Finding a therapist will really help you a great deal.

If you do start trying to talk to people any time soon, make sure you stop yourself after the interaction and think about how it affected you. Was it different from your expectations? Positive? Negative? Or as is usually the case, neutral? Think about the interaction from the other person's point of view too. If it was you being spoken to by a person with anxiety, would you really think negatively of them? Probably not. You probably wouldn't even notice that they were anxious.

Start thinking about things like that. If you have problems with panic attacks, don't be afraid to try medication. Sometimes it's really essential.

Good luck.

I know what you mean... I was used to my little high school and when I got into college it was so hard. Had some few panic attacks because the classrooms were full of so many people, and I wasn't used to it. I've gotten used to it, though, little by little. I think it gets easier every day. Sometimes I feel like I took a step back - but whenever that happens, I try to breathe in deeply, think of my happy place and focus on the fact that tomorrow I can improve more! Stay safe and good luck. You can do it!