Lesson Overview: Understanding Social Anxiety

Lesson Title: Understanding Social Anxiety

Objective

By the end of this lesson, participants will:

• Understand what social anxiety is and how it manifests.
• Recognize the interconnected cycle of thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that drive social anxiety.
• Gain insight into the role of automatic thoughts and cognitive distortions in maintaining anxiety.
• Begin identifying their own experiences with social anxiety.

Key Concepts

1. Definition of Social Anxiety:

• • A common mental health condition characterized by an intense fear of social situations due to a fear of judgment, embarrassment, or rejection.

1. The Social Anxiety Cycle:

• • Thoughts: Negative interpretations like “Everyone will judge me” or “I’ll embarrass myself.”
  • Feelings: Physical symptoms such as a racing heart, sweating, or shaking.
  • Behaviors: Avoiding social situations, staying silent, or relying on safety behaviors.

1. Common Cognitive Distortions:

• • Catastrophizing: Assuming the worst-case scenario.
  • Mind-reading: Believing you know what others think about you.
  • Emotional reasoning: Mistaking feelings of anxiety as evidence of danger or failure.

Lesson Activities

1. Scenario Analysis:

• • Participants observe an example of someone experiencing social anxiety and reflect on the thoughts, feelings, and behaviors involved.

1. Personal Reflection:

• • Guided journaling to identify personal experiences with social anxiety and how the cycle plays out for them.

1. Introduction to Cognitive Distortions:

• • A brief explanation of common distortions that fuel anxiety, with real-life examples.

Takeaway Message

• Social anxiety follows a predictable pattern of thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. Understanding this cycle is the first step toward breaking free from its hold. Recognizing and naming the thoughts and distortions that contribute to anxiety is empowering and creates the foundation for change.