Social Anxiety Therapy in San Francisco and throughout California
Pacific CBT provides evidence-based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for social anxiety disorder in San Francisco. Social anxiety can make social interactions, public speaking, dating, work, school, and other everyday situations feel extremely difficult. CBT can help people understand the patterns that maintain social anxiety and develop effective strategies for facing feared situations.
Social anxiety disorder, also known as social phobia, is one of the most common forms of anxiety disorders. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, about 12.1% of U.S. adults experience social anxiety disorder at some point in their lives. People with social anxiety disorder have a fear of being rejected, negatively evaluated, being the center of attention, or embarrassing oneself. The median age of onset is about 13 years.
Social Anxiety Disorder Symptoms
Social anxiety disorder can involve several types of feared situations, including social interactions, fear of performing in front of others, and fear of public speaking. The level of severity is on a continuum from mildly disabling, where there is little impact on functioning, to severely disabling, where most interactions are avoided or experienced with extreme distress. It’s normal to feel some anxiety in new or unfamiliar social interactions. It becomes a disorder when social anxiety becomes an obstacle to leading a satisfying and productive life. For some people, avoiding social interactions is not possible. They may experience extreme distress or discomfort.
People with severe social anxiety can be isolated from others and have difficulty holding a job or attending school. Co-occurring depression is common because of the life limitations. Substance and alcohol abuse may be an attempt to self-medicate social anxiety.
Social Anxiety Causes
What causes social anxiety disorder is not fully understood. Behavioral health researchers believe that social anxiety may develop through an interaction of genetic predisposition, learned through modeling from the person’s environment, and experiencing a social trauma.
Social Anxiety Treatment
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy can help people learn to manage their social anxiety. The three most important components of CBT are psychoeducation, cognitive restructuring, and exposure therapy.
The therapists at Pacific CBT tailor treatment to each person’s unique needs. For some people, individual therapy will be most helpful in reducing symptoms. For others, group therapy may be more effective. Lastly, for some, a combination of individual and group therapy may produce the best results. Following the assessment phase of treatment (typically the first 2 – 3 sessions), your therapist will make recommendations and lay out a preliminary treatment plan.
Social Anxiety Therapy at Pacific CBT
Pacific CBT provides individual therapy for social anxiety in San Francisco and throughout California. Treatment is based on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and may include psychoeducation, cognitive restructuring, behavioral experiments, and exposure therapy. Following an initial assessment, your therapist will work with you to develop a treatment plan based on your symptoms, goals, and treatment needs.
