This excludes friends/family/people I am close with.
My hand shakes whenever people are having fun conversations in a group chat then suddenly mentions me to join the fun.
There is literally no reason for my to feel nervous, I dont even think I am. But I can’t stop my hands at all.
This is similar to my body shaking when I have to personally present in front of group of people. Happens since childhood until now (Early 20s)
But since pandemic hit and most of us are working from home, I only experience the hand shaking on group chats.
This is frustrating and I don’t have the money for a therapist. I will appreciate any advice.
1 comment
Social anxiety is really common. You are not alone. You are being put on the spot so it’s normal to feel anxious (albeit by well-meaning people). It may having some small situation appropriate phrases handy so you can be seen as contributing to the fun breathe in/out, smile “that’s great!”, “So then what happened?” or decline participating “thanks, I’m good”.
Breathing techniques are really helpful and are worth practicing in any situation you are anxious, in pain, trying to get through a dentist appointment,etc
If this is something you want to change, you can. It may never go away fully but it can get better. You can google for free resources, support groups (recognizing the irony here) in your area. If you’re in school, see if you can speak with a school counselor about it. I know someone who joined a local improv group to help her with her anxiety. When the class started out asking why people joined she said because I have major social anxiety and I’m desperate to get over it. The group was so supportive and helpful. It really changed things for her.
Also if this makes you feel less alone from elementary school through my twenties I was always really nervous in a group of people I didn’t know. My body used to feel like it was humming and I only realized later on that that was anxiety over speaking or having people look at me. I It only really got better when I realized that people were truly interested and weren’t just making conversation. The only anxiety I have now is public speaking and I’m getting better at it.