Why You Should Not Force Your Young Child to Perform
Time for a personal story. This week I am taking off my psychologist hat and thinking like a parent. This is mostly food for thought for those who have been in a similar situation. See if you can relate.
Parents with SAD Teach Their Kids How to Be Socially Anxious
If you are a mom (or dad) with social anxiety disorder (SAD) you might worry about how your behavior influences your children growing up. For instance, if you display anxiety around strangers will your child pick up on it and behave the same way? If you are reluctant in encouraging your child to engage with others will she be less likely to do so?
Could You Run 16,000 Miles for Mental Health?
It isn't every day you come across someone with the determination of Wayne Cho. Cho is completing a 16,000 mile journey around the world in an effort to increase awareness about mental illness. He began his run in Vancouver, British Columbia on January 1st, 2012.
How Not to Care: 20 Silly Things to Do in Public
Have you heard of behavioral experiments? The idea behind these little tricks is to pick something to do that would normally embarrass you or that you would try to avoid.
Start small and build up your ability to do these types of things. Do the easier ones first and the harder ones later.
Ideally these are things that make you feel a little or a lot embarrassed, but don't hurt anyone else.
For once, your goal is to become embarrassed or have others judge you! Below is a list of 20 ideas to get started.
Socially Anxious? Try Improv Training at Second City
If you live in the Chicago area you might be interested in taking part in a unique form of treatment known as "improv boot camp". Counsellor Mark Pfeffer uses Second City Improv training as one part of a three-part treatment program for anxiety disorders including social anxiety disorder (SAD).
About.com Reader's Choice Award SAD Winners for 2012
The About.com Reader's Choice Awards have come to a close and I am now announcing the winners in the social anxiety disorder category. Unfortunately, there were not even votes cast to determine a clear winner in the "Best SAD Self-Help Tool" category. While I am a little disappointed, this was the first year for the SAD categories and a chance to find out what readers are passionate about.
10 Things to Stop Doing to Improve Your Health and Well-Being
More than 30 About.com health guides collaborated to produce articles titled "10 Things to Stop Doing" in various areas of your life to improve health and well-being. I was lucky enough to be the coordinator of the project; the idea started with my own article titled "10 Things to Stop Doing to Yourself if You Have Social Anxiety Disorder". In the spirit of the new article I added "10 Things to Stop Doing if a Loved One Has SAD." Read more...
Further Reading
- 10 Things to Stop Doing to Yourself if You Have Social Anxiety Disorder
- 10 Things to Stop Doing if You Have a Loved One With Social Anxiety Disorder
- 10 Things to Stop Doing in More Than 30 Areas of Your Life
Photo © Microsoft
Fifteen Thought Provoking Questions for People With SAD
I am a fan of a little website called "Marc and Angel Hack Life". The site is filled with thought-provoking articles about things to start doing, stop doing, and think about why you are doing. In addition, the site has an article with 365 thought-provoking questions to ask yourself.
Harassed "Family Video" Employee With SAD Awarded $70,000 in Damages
If you have been harassed at work for having social anxiety disorder (SAD) or been fired from a job because you complained about the poor behavior of coworkers towards you, pay attention to this story.
Jeffrey Spoonley, a former sales associate with "Family Video" in Glenview, Illinois is being awarded $70,000 as part of a disability discrimination suit launched by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Spoonley was reportedly harassed at work because of his depression and SAD, and was later fired after he complained about the harassment.
Family Video is one of the largest retailers of movies and games in the U.S. with more than 735 stores and over 7000 employees. In addition to the settlement, the company is now being required to hire an Equal Employment Coordinator to put discrimination procedures in place, offer training, and manage complaints.
The EEOC is responsible for ensuring federal laws are enforced in cases of employment discrimation. The organization reports that it will continue to prosecute companies that discriminate by firing employees due to disabilities or in retaliation to complaints about harassment.
This comes on the heels of the case of UK resident Nathan Roberts suing Northwest Ambulance Service in Manchester for not accomodating his SAD. Roberts was part of a "hot desking" policy in which employees were required to move desks frequently; ultimately Roberts quit because of his discomfort about the inconsistent desk space.
I see a few positives about these stories:
- Social anxiety disorder is being recognized as a legitimate disability in the workplace.
- Employers are being held accountable for their discriminatory actions with respect to employees with SAD.
- Employees with SAD are standing up for themselves.
For a disorder that still walks in the shadows much of the time, these are huge steps forward. Hopefully cases like this will act as a deterrent, and more companies will institute anti-discriminiation procedures to prevent this type of harassment from happening in the first place.
Have you been harassed at work because of social anxiety? How did you handle it?
Further Reading
- Employee Sues Over Hot Desking Policy
- Should You Tell Your Employer You Have SAD?
- Coping With SAD at Work
Photo © Microsoft
Shy People Have Different Brain Response to Strangers
Do you take a long time to warm up to people?
New research suggests that people who are shy, inhibited, or suffer with social anxiety disorder may come by this trait honestly. Researchers at Vanderbilt University studied the brains of people who were inhibited and those who weren't; findings showed a difference in the way the two groups respond to new people.