Anxiety disorders – Social Phobia
Social Phobia is diagnosed if the person has strong fears of being the centre of attention, or fears behaving in an embarrassing way AND avoids situations where this might happen. Commonly, the person has these fears in social settings, such as eating, speaking in public, going to social gatherings or meetings.
The person has symptoms of anxiety such as racing heart, sweating palms, difficulty breathing or feeling choked up, as well as symptoms of blushing, shaking, vomiting, and even feeling that he/she might lose bladder control. Most individuals recognise that their level of fear is excessive and want to do something about changing it.