When you have social anxiety disorder, it can feel as though your world is falling apart. Even the most common social situations can trigger bizarre reactions in your mind and body, including nervousness, difficulty breathing, heart palpitations and profuse sweating. Even the anticipation of a social event can cause these symptoms. This is definitely no way to live your life, so there is a need to explore the various treatments for this condition.
There are generally two treatments for social anxiety disorder - medical and natural. Medical treatments generally include prescription medications, such as Paxil, Xanax, Librium, Valium, and Ativan. The benefits of medical treatments are that they work quickly. The drawback is that they simply mask the underlying root of the problem. Each of these medications can be used to treat various conditions related to social anxiety disorder, therefore, it is always important to speak to your physician about the medical treatment options.
There are also natural treatments for social anxiety disorder. It is my opinion that these natural treatments can be broken down between two categories - cognitive behavioral therapy and self-help.
The primary focus of cognitive behavioral therapy is to move the person thoughts in a more rational direction and help them stop avoiding situations that once caused the anxiety. It attempts to teach people to react differently to the situations that trigger their anxiety symptoms. Cognitive behavioral therapy is typically administered by a therapist in a group or individual setting.
Self-help treatments for social anxiety are books and programs administered by the individual seeking treatment. There are a number of these resources that can work better than medications and cognitive behavioral therapy. Additionally, these self-help treatments for are a much less costly alternative.
The benefits of natural treatments for social anxiety disorder are that they attack the root of the problem so that the individual achieves long-term success. The drawback is that they can take a lot work and can take longer than common medical treatments.
In general, a combination of medical and self-help treatments for social anxiety will give the optimal results. As the individual begins to improve, the medical treatment can be phased out with continual support through self-help resources.