Four Things that Counselors Don’t Know About Social Anxiety Disorder

This video answers the question: What are some things that counselors may not know about Social Anxiety Disorder. When I use the term counselor at least in the context of this video I’m really talking about anyone who delivers talk therapy. Symptoms of Social Anxiety Disorder in Diagnostic and Statistical Manual -Fear or anxiety in social situations (humiliated embarrassed or rejected) -social situations almost always provoke fear or anxiety (not occasional) -social situations may be avoided or endured with intense anxiety -fear or anxiety is out of proportion to the actual threat -symptoms need to be present for six months or more and need to cause clinically significant distress or impairment Four things that counselors may not know about Social Anxiety Disorder: 1. Not understanding the relationship between trauma and social anxiety disorder 2. Understanding the chronic nature of the illness 3. Not considering exposure therapy when looking at treatment options 4. How to use the panic attack specifier Norton, A. R., & Abbott, M. J. (2017). Bridging the Gap between Aetiological and Maintaining Factors in Social Anxiety Disorder: The Impact of Socially Traumatic Experiences on Beliefs, Imagery and Symptomatology. Clinical Psychology & Psychotherapy, 24(3), 747–765.