Managing Post-Pandemic Social Anxiety

The pandemic took a toll on the lives of everyone around the world. Social distancing, which took people out of their routines and required them to work or attend school from home, had an unexpected impact on people’s mental health. As helpful as social distancing was for containing the pandemic itself, it did lead to a spike in mental health concerns.

Worldwide, the pandemic led to a 25% increase in reports of anxiety and depression. The added stressors of that time, including not being able to engage in social interactions, contributed to the rise in social anxiety, in particular.

Understanding Social Anxiety

Social anxiety disorder, also called social phobia, is more than shyness. It refers to feeling intense and persistent fear of being watched or judged by others. The discomfort can be enough to lead to avoidance behaviors. Some of the most common emotional and physical symptoms of social anxiety disorder include:

• Worry about embarrassing yourself

• Intense fear of others, especially strangers

• Intense fear or anxiety during social situations

• Worry that others will notice your anxiety

• Avoidance of social situations where you may be the center of attention

• Avoiding places where there are other people

• Feeling anxiety in anticipation of an event or feared activity

• Rapid heartbeat

• Muscle tension

• Dizziness

• Upset stomach

• Nausea

• Sweating

• Trembling

Like many other mental health concerns, social anxiety can run in families because genetics influence our brain structure. Your environment can cause it or worsen it, as well, with stress and traumatic events being the primary issues that can trigger this condition.

For many, post-pandemic anxiety and post-pandemic depression are the direct results of the elevated stress levels experienced during the COVID-19 emergency. Fortunately, there are ways you can mitigate the symptoms.

Strategies to Cope with Social Anxiety

If you are struggling with post-pandemic social anxiety, some strategies can help you better manage your everyday life.

Ground Yourself

If you are feeling overwhelmed about interacting with others or just being around people, you may have the urge to run away. That is part of your fight-or-flight response. Instead, try to center yourself in the moment by using grounding techniques.

Grounding techniques can help you refocus while steering you away from the distress you feel. Breathing exercises can be very beneficial. Take slow and deep breaths to help your nervous system calm down.

Pay attention to your senses. What do you see, taste, touch, smell, and hear? A good exercise is the 5-4-3-2-1 mindfulness exercise, which encourages you to name five things you can hear, four things you can see, three things you can touch, two things you can smell, and one thing you can taste. This technique anchors you to the present.

Create Time for Relaxation

Like all anxiety, post-pandemic anxiety tends to worsen when you experience more stress. Social anxiety itself can lead to more stress, creating a vicious cycle that seriously impacts your mental health. To halt the cycle, give yourself time to relax. Make it part of your daily routine to regularly take 10 minutes breaks for breathing exercises and practicing mindfulness.

Many people benefit from progressive muscle relaxation techniques, which encourage you to slowly tighten and then relax muscles throughout your body. If you have more time, do something that you find calming, like taking a bath or doing a craft.

Exercise Regularly

It can be difficult to deal with significant anxiety, but staying active can help your mental health tremendously. Exercising releases feel-good chemicals in the brain called endorphins while also reducing stress hormones.

Aerobic exercise is the most beneficial type of exercise for your mood, but something as simple as taking a walk around your neighborhood can make a difference in how you feel.

Practice Social Exposure

It can be tempting to avoid social interactions so that you do not experience the uncomfortable symptoms of social anxiety, but avoidance does not fix anything. On the contrary, it creates a stronger bond between discomfort and social interactions.

Progressively increase your social exposure. You can pursue a short conversation with a cashier, for example, or say hello to someone you meet on your daily walk. Take any chance to increase the social interactions you have.

Recharge Your Social Battery

People who have social anxiety tend to have more introverted qualities, so spending a lot of time with others can quickly drain their energy. Keep this information in mind as you work toward getting past social anxiety. To recharge after a long exposure experience, take time to be alone to relax and release some of the stress that interactions can create.

Practice Self-Compassion

Often, people struggling with social anxiety feel that they should be able to manage the symptoms. After all, what is there to be afraid of? As much as you can try to logically work yourself out of your symptoms, social anxiety is a response that you cannot simply turn off from one day to the next.

Be compassionate with yourself as you deal with social anxiety. Do not beat yourself up if you cannot manage today. But it is important that you try again tomorrow. Avoiding situations only reinforces your social anxiety.

Try Talk Therapy

Talk therapy can be an excellent way of managing post-pandemic social anxiety. Talk therapy helps you understand the underlying causes of your distress while also providing the tools you need to make behavioral changes.

Cognitive-behavioral therapy can be especially effective for dealing with social anxiety. It shows you how to recognize unhelpful thought patterns that might be impacting your emotions and actions. Once you can identify those patterns, you can start changing them.

The mental health professionals of Wellness Links have the training and expertise to help you cope with your social anxiety.

Finding a Path Toward Healing

Living through a stressful time like the COVID-19 pandemic can leave emotional wounds. It is important to face the distress head-on and be proactive to move toward healing.

Notes

World Health Organization. (2022, March 2). COVID-19 Pandemic Triggers 25% Increase in Prevalence of Anxiety and Depression Worldwide. World Health Organization. https://www.who.int/news/item/02-03-2022-covid-19-pandemic-triggers-25-increase-in-prevalence-of-anxiety-and-depression-worldwide

Mayo Clinic. (2021, June 19). Social anxiety disorder (social phobia) - symptoms and causes. Mayo Clinic; Mayo Clinic. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/social-anxiety-disorder/symptoms-causes/syc-20353561

National Institute of Mental Health. (2022). Social anxiety disorder: More than just shyness. National Institute of Mental Health; National Institute of Mental Health. https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/social-anxiety-disorder-more-than-just-shyness

Exercising to relax. (2020, July 7). Harvard Health; Harvard Health Publishing. https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/exercising-to-relax