5 Calming Ways To Cope With Social Anxiety

According to statistics released by the WHO, one in every five people, almost 60 to 70 million Indians suffer from mental disorders. Out of this, over 45 million have some form of an anxiety disorder. But these are just figures to most people until they suddenly find themselves short of breath when facing a crowd or being overwhelmed when meeting a new person. Social anxiety, one of the most common types of anxiety, is often sneaky. One may not have any apparent issues with socialising or conversing with people but may find socialising increasingly difficult or scary. If adequate steps are not taken, social anxiety can grow to engulf a person's personality and ability to engage with the world. 

If you think you may have social anxiety, here's how to deal with it. 

1. Mindfulness

Mindfulness is one of the most underrated forms of self-care, often being clumped in with meditation and prayer. But mindfulness is more than just meditation. Mindfulness helps one become more aware of their surroundings and get out of their own head. Often, in the case of anxiety, people get stuck in loops of thought. What if scenarios blaze through their minds, and often, it is hard to get out of this kind of obsessive thinking? Mindfulness helps with just that. Being mindful ensures that you take care to ground yourself and remind yourself of your surroundings. Often, your thoughts are hardly your reality and becoming aware of your surroundings helps remind us of that. The benefits of mindfulness also involve increased focus and joy. 

2. Challenge Your Thoughts 

At times, when stuck in an anxious frame of mind, we might play out the worst-case scenarios over and over in our heads. Everything takes an increased importance, and everyone is suddenly out to get you. But more often than not, these thoughts are versions of reality that are coloured by your insecurities. If you wear a bad outfit to an event and is insecure about it, then suddenly in your eyes, everyone who looks at you is judging your fashion style, when most likely they wouldn't even have noticed the flaws in your dress.

Challenging negative and out-of-proportion thoughts can lower you back to reality and remind you that sometimes, things aren't all that bad. 

3. Exercise 

There's nothing a good workout cannot cure. The next time you find yourselves in an obsessive thought pattern, put on your favourite dance workout or hit the gym. You would get healthier and realise the world looks like a much brighter place today. 

4. Breathing exercises 

Breathwork and meditative exercises are renowned for having transformative powers for the nervous system. Here are some breathing exercises for the next time you have an event that you are dreading to attend : 

1. Box Breathing - Box breathing involves inhaling, holding your breath, and exhaling for four counts each. It is one of the most common exercises and is known to reduce stress and improve focus. 
2. Mindful breathing involves knowing your breathwork and letting go of any accompanying thoughts. A variation involves uttering a peaceful word that you resonate with while breathing. 
3. Belly breathing - Belly breathing is a technique that allows the body to learn to breathe properly by aligning your stomach correctly. Belly breathing is one of the most efficient exercises for anxiety. 

5. Face Your Fears 

At the end of the day, social anxiety is always made worse by hiding away. While crippling anxiety can make it seem impossible to get out of bed, staying in and letting your thoughts consume you is far worse. Learning to validate your anxious thought patterns and not beating yourself up for it, is crucial. Anxiety is a prehistoric defence mechanism - as hunters and prey, our ancestors had to have a nervous reaction when something unexpected occurred in the wild that would prompt them into a flight, fight or freeze mode. 

Even today, when faced with unexpected circumstances, our body reacts to it the way it used to react thousands of years ago - by pumping adrenaline into your blood. Except, in the modern world, we are not plagued by the extremely dangerous situations our ancestors had to deal with. So, it is often the best approach to become mindful of your body's reaction, validate the feeling and tell yourself that you are safe. Then, challenge yourself to face what terrifies you. Then, you would realise that, hey, it's not that bad after all. 

Of course, not all problems can be dealt with on our own. Sometimes, it is best to approach a mental health professional or trusted friend or relative if you are struggling. But it is important to remember that our mental health struggles do not make us weak or broken in any way. Sometimes, existing can be exhausting, and reaching out for help is the first step to recovery. 

Views expressed by the author are their own