What Is Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD) and How Do We Overcome It?
Did you ever avoid doing something, such as public speaking, because you were afraid of being humiliated, embarrassed, or rejected? Most people have. Although it is common, that doesn’t mean it is normal or appropriate. Such feelings clip our wings, preventing us from reaching our potential. Because they impair our ability to function, they are called dysfunctional, and because they create a mental disturbance, they are called a disorder. The psychological term for this affliction is Social Anxiety Disorder, or SAD for short. It is so prevalent that until 1980 it was more or less considered normal human behavior. That is, nothing much was done to help those suffering from SAD, other than uttering a few stern words such as, “pull yourself together, you can do it.” The problem is no one explained how we could `pull ourselves together.’ Before going any further, let me give an example. Early in her career, Barbra Streisand once forgot the lyrics to a song. She became so terrified of it ha
