Compare And Contrast Social Anxiety And Depression

Improved Essays
Many Americans today suffer from either social anxiety disorder (SAD) and/or depression. In general, people who suffer from either one of these disorders will actually have both as social anxiety and depression are closely related. If someone has social anxiety disorder or social phobia and does not receive treatment, they have the tendency to develop depression. A person suffering from SAD is unlikely to attend social situations out of fear that they will not be liked by others. Someone suffering with depression avoids social situations because they feel hopeless and may no longer care about themselves. This is because individuals with depression are apt to withdraw from society as they no longer have the desire to interact with others. The person suffering from social phobia may have the desire to interact in social settings, but chooses not do so out of fear. The following paragraphs will …show more content…
Every year 6.7% of The United States adults will experience a major depression disorder. Depression is more common in women than in men. The average age of someone having depressions is thirty-two years old. But about 3.3% of thirteen to eighteen-year-olds will experience depression. ("Depression"). Comparing social anxiety and depression we can see that they have a connection with one another. "Persons with social anxiety disorder with an anxious attachment style have negative beliefs about the self and the dependability and trustworthiness of others, which may affect functioning and predispose the person to feelings of hopelessness and, ultimately, to depression." (25 Eng, Winnie 2001).
Social anxiety can be an underlining issue that leads to the depression. The anxiety impairs an individual 's self-esteem and trust in others, therefore heightening the individual 's anxiety. This in turn becomes a downward spiral. The individual will feel like they can no longer cope with the situation and depression sets

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    In the United States, roughly around 20 million people suffer from depression every year. Yet the most common mental illness in the U.S. is affecting around 40 million adults age 18 and older, is anxiety. Even though depression and anxiety have many similarities in the symptoms there are also many differences between the two. Depression and Anxiety greatly influence people’s life on a daily basis. Having the depression disorder and anxiety disorder often make life which is already complicated enough exceedingly dreadful.…

    • 734 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Social Anxiety is a fear of speaking in public, fear of interacting with people, and extreme nervousness at being the center of attention. Everyday there are people living with this fear, avoidance, pain and doubt. They are afraid that they will make mistakes in which they will be embarrassed or humiliated by others. Social anxiety is very common since many people struggle with these fears, but situations that trigger these symptoms can be different. The articles and Ted Talks I chose to watch illustrate these symptoms and how they vary. Most importantly, the articles and Ted Talks also give different perspectives as far as possible causes and how to deal with having social anxiety.…

    • 1705 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD) refers to extraordinarily intensive fear and anxiety about one or more social situations, which cause clinically significant distress and lead individuals to persistently avoid from essential social interactions such as meeting unfamiliar people, eating among people, performing in front of people (DSM-5, 2013). SAD’s lifetime prevalence is 12.1% and twelve-month prevalence is 6.8%, which is the third most common mental health disorders in the US (http://www.nimh.nih.gov). Along side of its prevalence, its negative impact on individual’s interpersonal and intrapersonal life is huge. Individuals with SAD are at substantial risk of impairments in social and professional functioning such as, loosing status, isolation, and social rejection (Cain, Pincus and Holtforth, 2010 art7). According to Wong, Gordon, Heimberg (2014), in comparison with other anxiety…

    • 606 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Depression In Hamlet

    • 993 Words
    • 4 Pages

    According to an article on depression by Anita Skinner, “depression is a common health disorder that impairs normal functioning, causes distress and has an adverse effect on an individual’s quality of life” (Skinner 1). Just by the definition it is easy to tell that depression can have a huge effect on someone’s life. Anxiety and panic are common components of severe depression, often predisposing an individual to suicide. Depression can be classified as mild, moderate or severe (Scot 61). Anxiety and depression tend to link together, when people have depression normally anxiety is something they have or experience as well. It can make people feel even worse about themselves and lose a lot of their self-confidence or have major break downs depending on the severity. This is why people need to start paying more attention to it and taking depression…

    • 993 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    is Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD) in which fifteen million Americans struggle with (“Social Anxiety”). SAD affects 6.8% of the Americans and is “equally common among men and women . . .” (“Facts”). Social Anxiety Disorder “refers to the fear of being humiliated, embarrassed, negatively evaluated, or rejected in social situations” (“Social Anxiety Disorder”). Some people who struggle with SAD feel disturbed when it comes to public speech while others fear “. . . any situation in which other people are present” (“Social Anxiety”). Suffering from SAD means that patients are suffering from: “Extreme uneasiness, self-consciousness, . . . fear of embarrassment in ordinary social situations, avoidance of parties and social gatherings, blushing, sweating, trembling, nausea, and difficulty talking in social situations . . .” (“Types” 17). In order for Social Anxiety Disorder’s patients to improve, mental health institutions can help them change their ideas, manners, and associations. Therapy can be a useful method for those who suffer from SAD. A therapy might include exposure, deep breathing, and cognitive techniques. Exposure means that patients can be introduced steadily “to situations that frighten them” in order for them to accustom to their fears. Another technique is deep breathing in which a therapist teaches the patients how to control their unreasonable horrors. In using the cognitive techniques, patients can…

    • 1099 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Lamanda Psychology

    • 555 Words
    • 3 Pages

    People who have been diagnosed with any of the depression disorders, 70% of them also have some type of psychological disorder. Depression is a disorder involving one’s mood that causes a relentless feeling of sadness and loss of interest in daily activities. Since people that experience depression also experienced psychological disorders, a National Survey for social fears gives results that show 38.6% of people today experience any kind of social fear in their lifetime. Social anxiety disorder is when an individual experiences intense fear of public humiliation or rejection and therefore tends to avoid social situations. Depression and anxiety disorders can be incredibly difficult to deal with and understanding the origins of the symptoms…

    • 555 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    As we grow in life, we are all exposed to undesirable circumstances, worries about the future, or stressful situations. We may be anxious about them for a while, or maybe even fret over them for the rest of the day. However, what happens when a person begins to lose control over their life because of constant unreasonable worries? Such a problem has become widespread in the U.S and other western countries. In fact, anxiety disorders have become the most common form of mental illness in the U.S, at a whopping 18%. Social anxiety is one of the many types of anxiety disorders and surveys show that up to 7.4% of people in the U.S. or western areas suffer from it in any given year (Comer, 2015).…

    • 938 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    As a result, I was diagnosed last year with severe Social Anxiety Disorder. My reluctance and apprehension in regards to social interaction during my childhood, as well as intense psychological damage, led to a social phobia. The constant scrutiny I received in my youth over weight, grades, and various other attributes translated into a debilitating mental illness that dropped my self-confidence and stunted my ability socialize. A mild feeling of dread accompanied everyday. In addition, the disorder caused frequent anxiety attacks whenever stress built up, which was frequently given the…

    • 1126 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Great Essays

    According to The Social Anxiety Association, social anxiety disorder (SAD) is defined as having a fear of social situations that involve interaction(s) with other people. People with social anxiety fear being negatively judged and evaluated by other people. They often have a misperception of themselves, including their appearance and self-worth (Richards 2013). Social anxiety is the third largest mental health care problem in the world, effecting about 7% of the population (Richards 2013).…

    • 1214 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Great Essays

    Some other ways that social anxiety disorder can effect a person’s social functioning is by making it almost impossible for them to engage in activities that promote the making of friends or being able to attend social functions because of the anxiety and distress that often comes with such an endeavor. This can cause the individual to feel shame or guilt or become ostracized by their peers because of the lack of understanding. Not having the mental ability to give a large presentation to secure a promotion is an example of a way that this disorder can have a profound impact on a person professional life as well (Creswell et al, 2014).…

    • 1655 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Burstein Social Anxiety

    • 617 Words
    • 3 Pages

    In this article titled “When to get anxious about Social Anxiety Disorder”, the author Marcy Burstein begins by explaining what social anxiety is and why it generally hits the adolescent population the hardest. Adolescence can be a very difficult transitioning time for most teens. They have to learn to adjust to the increased amount of academic pressures, new peers, increased responsibilities and navigating through new romantic relationships. With this many potential stressors it is not surprising that many have difficulty adjusting and as a result avoid any situations that may cause them discomfort such as social gatherings, parties, class discussions, etc. This type of behavior can eventually lead to preventing certain social developmental milestones from being reached. Burstein then goes on to…

    • 617 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Social anxiety is one of the most common mental illnesses, although it is poorly understood outside of the scientific circle. In fact, social anxiety is the most common anxiety among all other anxiety disorders, Ie. generalized anxiety, panic disorder, and specific phobias. 13 out of 100 people will meet the standards for being diagnosed with social anxiety. Anxiety itself is relatively normal, but when it causes a significant amount of distress and hardship, it becomes a concern. Social anxiety is defined as the fear that you will not be accepted into a group or social setting, fear of social groups, and interaction with other people. It is the fear of being negatively looked at from others in your peer…

    • 374 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Social Anxiety Disorder or (Social Phobia) is an anxiety disorder in which an individual has a fear of embarrassing situations in public. Getting nervous in certain situations is a usually common occurrence like stage fright or preparing for a job interview but people with social anxiety disorder it is more than being shy or nervous it is a burden that disrupts your life. Individuals that have Social Phobia anxiety is so severe that they tend to avoid any and every situation that may elicit a possible uncomfortable situation. These situations can be very fear-provoking for individuals with this disorder to the point that they can become anxious just thinking about them. An individual with this anxiety disorder display shortness of breath, shakiness,…

    • 300 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Brilliant Essays

    Social Phobia And Performance Anxiety

    • 2931 Words
    • 12 Pages
    • 13 Works Cited

    The behaviors of someone with social phobia are quite different than those without the disorder. Social phobia as found by J.J Russell et al. was associated less with dominance and more with submission especially in situations that are high in anxiety. Evolutionary perspectives say that individuals are more submissive and less dominant because it could offer protection from others who are dominant. People with social anxiety disorder are likely to see themselves as more subordinate and therefore be more submissive and show more submissive behaviors when they feel at risk…

    • 2931 Words
    • 12 Pages
    • 13 Works Cited
    Brilliant Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Anxiety disorders are becoming increasingly common in society, and are characterized by common symptoms of fear over future events or the consequences of current ones. This fear is often debilitating in the afflicted person, and is a hindrance to normative behaviour. Certain anxiety disorders originate in childhood and adolescence, and they may persist into adulthood without treatment. One anxiety disorder with particularly negative implications is social anxiety disorder. Social anxiety disorders in children occur when a child exhibits an intense fear to situations where they may be perceived to be inadequate in the presence of others. This disorder, also known as social phobia, often leads to severe impairment and disruption of daily life…

    • 2031 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Superior Essays