How do I go about getting medication for Social anxiety?
I don’t even know where to begin to look. I work part-time, still live at home, don’t have health insurance or a family doctor, but I desperately need medication for social anxiety. I get nervous just walking down the street, for example, or talking to a cashier. I’ve tried herbs from the grocery store like Valerian Root, they haven’t helped.
How do I go about finding an inexpensive medication, or getting a doctor to write me a prescription for one?
Thank you.
Imo, you are much better off getting self-help books from the library or looking up self-help advice online on how to deal with shyness than you are getting medications. antidepressants turn out they were approved by the FDA under false pretenses (google antidepressants placebo kirsch). the drug companies jiggered the data and suppressed the studies that showed bad results in order to get 2 studies showing their drugs worked a bit better than a sugar pill. benzos are really addictive and only work for a few weeks or months, and you get ever-increasing tolerance to them & will have to go thru withdrawal when they finally stop working. or else start abusing them. I’ll give you my story, for what it’s worth.
Social anxiety is really just shyness. The term social anxiety disorder used to be reserved for people with the most severe problems. After the drug companies marketed their antidepressants for this problem, the definition expanded, so now people who are just shy are taking pills for something folks used to LEARN how to deal with.
My teachers thought I was mentally retarded in first grade, and again in 4th grade, because I never spoke. So you can conclude I was pretty darned shy.
Here’s what I did to overcome shyness. I did a couple of plays in junior high school, debate and speech in high school, lectored at my very large catholic church in college, and ran a club of 200 people where I regularly had to get up in front of about 50 people at monthly meetings. I coached debate. I went to graduate school and was a TA for labs of about 20 students. I faked it until I made it – people can’t tell I’m shy anymore, and in fact, I am much less shy.
So find some activities where you have to FORCE yourself to speak up, and then DO it, no matter how afraid you are. Truth is, most people are terrified of speaking up in groups. I was a high school debate coach – most of those kids of mine were terrified!! Also do some confidence building things. For me, a HUGE confidence builder was camping out under the stars in Minnesota in January – it was 20 below zero F. I froze my buns off & didn’t get a lot of sleep, but hey! I did it! I feel like if I could do that, i could do anything. Competitive extracurriculars are big confidence builders too.
“social anxiety” is a kind of phobia – and there are 2 ways to deal with a phobia – gradual desensitization, where you gradually expose yourself to more and more intense situations, but start off easy, or “flooding” where you jump right in with both feet, which is what I did. You can only be terrified for an hour or two, then you run out of adrenaline and calm down quite a bit.
all the best to you! You have to screw up your courage and face your fear – that is what a phobia is, when a person avoids the situation or object that they are afraid of. COURAGE – that’s the ticket, and then it will get easier as you keep practicing. It’s ok to be afraid.
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The Shyness and Social Anxiety Workbook for Teens: CBT and ACT Skills to Help You Build Social Confidence $11.17 If you struggle with shyness, you’re all too familiar with the feeling of not knowing what to do or say, and you’ll do anything to avoid feeling that way. But, most likely, you also know that you’re missing out on a lot—friendships, potential relationships, and fun. You’ve chosen this book because you’re ready to stop hiding behind your shyness and start enjoying everything life has to… |
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Shyness and Social Anxiety Workbook: Proven, Step-by-Step Techniques for Overcoming your Fear $13.81 There’s nothing wrong with being shy. But if social anxiety keeps you from forming relationships with others, advancing in your education or your career, or carrying on with everyday activities, you may need to confront your fears to live an enjoyable, satisfying life.This new edition of The Shyness and Social Anxiety Workbook offers a comprehensive program to help you do just that. As you complet… |
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A Life Less Anxious: Freedom from panic attacks and social anxiety without drugs or therapy $12.56 Do you have a tremendous fear of public speaking, flying, or other social situations? Do you live in fear of having another panic attack? Do you depend on antidepressants, alcohol, or other medications to calm you down or help you sleep? If so, you’re not alone. Tens of millions of Americans are affected by anxiety disorders and many more worldwide. I personally struggled for five years with ext… |
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Managing Social Anxiety $42.95 Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD) is common and often underdiagnosed. It can interfere with school or work, and may cause difficulty with close relationships. In repeated trials, cognitive-behavioral therapy has proven the most effective treatment for this disorder. Written by the developers of an empirically supported and effective CBT program for treating Social Anxiety Disorder, this guide includes all the information and materials necessary to implement successful treatment. The therapeutic technique described in this book is research-based with a proven success rate, and can be used with those clients currently taking medication, as well as those who aren't. Using a model that focuses on how social anxiety is maintained rather than how it develops, the renowned authors provide clinicians with step-by-step instructions for teaching their clients important skills that have been scientifically tested and shown to be effective in treating Social Anxiety Disorder. Designed to be used in conjunction with its corresponding workbook, the therapist guide focuses on using cognitive restructuring techniques to help break the cycle of anxiety. When used together, both books form a complete treatment package that can be used successfully by informed practicing mental health professionals. Complete with session outlines, key concepts, case vignettes and strategies for dealing with problems, this user-friendly guide is a dependable resource that no clinician can do without! TreatmentsThatWorkTM represents the gold standard of behavioral healthcare interventions! DT All programs have been rigorously tested in clinical trials and are backed by years of research DT A prestigious scientific advisory board, led by series Editor-In-Chief David H. Barlow, reviews and evaluates each intervention to ensure that it meets the highest standard of evidence so you can be confident that you are using the most effective treatment available to date DT Our books are reliable and effective and make it easy for you to provide your clients with the best care available DT Our corresponding workbooks contain psychoeducational information, forms and worksheets, and homework assignments to keep clients engaged and motivated DT A companion website (www.oup.com/us/ttw) offers downloadable clinical tools and helpful resources DT Continuing Education (CE) Credits are now available on select titles in collaboration with PsychoEducational Resources, Inc. (PER) |
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Social Anxiety $99.95 Clinicians, social and developmental psychologists and behavioral geneticists have all conducted research over the past ten years which is essential to furthering our understanding of and treatment of social anxiety disorders. If researchers and clinicians are to successfully combat this disorder, the literature must fully integrate studies on social anxiety, shyness, and embarrassment with the research on social anxiety disorder subtypes, biological theories and cognitive-behavioral or pharmacological treatment outcome studies. This book weaves together research findings gathered by renowned minds across these various disciplines, and chapters deal with both theory and research. Thorough exploration is given as to how to define what constitutes social anxiety, and assessment of the condition and its relationship to other psychological disorders. The biological basis and treatment approaches are also all explored in full. Coverage includes key issues not disucssed fully by other existing books, including related disorders of adult and childhood, relationship to social competence and assertiveness, relationship to perfectionism, social skills deficit hypothesis, comparison between pharmacological and psychosocial treatments, and potential mediators of change in the treatment of social anxiety disorder. * The most comprehensive source of up-to-date data, with review articles covering a thorough deliniation of social anxiety, theoretical perspectives, and treatment approaches * Consolidates broadly distributed literature into single source, saving researchers and clinicians time in obtaining and translating information and improving the level of further research and care they can provide * Each chapter is written by an expert in the topic area * Provides more fully vetted expert knowledge than any existing work * Integrates findings from various disciplines – clinical, social and developmental psychology, psychiatry, neuroscience, – rather than focusing on only one conceptual perspective * Provides the reader with more complete understanding of a complex phenomena, giving researchers and clinicians alike a better set of tool for furthering what we know * Offers coverage of essential topics on which competing books fail to focus, such as: related disorders of adult and childhood; the relationship to social competence, assertiveness and perfectionism; social skills deficit hypothesis; comparison between pharmacological and psychosocial treatments; and potential mediators of change in the treatment of social anxiety disorder population |
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Coping with Social Anxiety – Eric Hollander – Paperback $17 Coping with Social Anxiety |
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Overcoming Social Anxiety and Shyness – Gillian Butler – Paperback $11.96 Overcoming Social Anxiety and Shyness |
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Managing Social Anxiety Workbook – Debra A. Hope – Paperback $30.75 Managing Social Anxiety Workbook |
