now I don't no what social anxiety is but I'm pretty sure it means u get stressed around ppl and Im sure if that's what it is alot of ppl have it it's called being shy I tell ya a real disorder or disease to have is were u don't feel pain having to check urself every five minutes to see if ur bleeding if if u fall to check if u broke anything that's something I have deep sympathy for

#137- it's where you're constantly anxious in social settings. it's way beyond being shy. you can't help but stress over what people think of you, or basic social interactions (i.e. if someone doesn't feel like talking, a first reaction is something like "are they mad at me? did I do something? what did I do?"). it's crazy hard to deal with. not to mention having stage fright multiplied by 100. it's hard to even be out infront of large crowds. and it might seem easy to say, "oh just suck it up." it's not that easy for the person with anxiety. speaking from first person experience here, it extremely upsetting seeing other people do something and just physically not being able to. I have to go to 2 different therapists because my anxiety is so bad. it doesn't mean that I'm crazy or anything though. it's honestly helped me so much...two years ago I'd be afraid of giving a presentation infront of class. up to the point where I would get physically sick. sorry if this seems like a rant but it's so much harder than people think.

it goes WAY further than just being shy. OP, I have social anxiety too so I completely understand what ur going through

#146 I totally agree. It's hard for people to understand how crippling an anxiety disorder can be. If you have it, it's not like you can just be like "I'M SUDDENLY CURED AND AM OKAY WITH PARTYING AND I'M SUDDENLY OUTGOING." It's taken me years to work on being more comfortable in social situations, and I'm still not completely comfortable at all when I force myself to go out and be around people I don't know very well.

147 - I know where you're coming from. I work with these sort of people with these conditions, especially my mum who has had agrophobia for 15 years. and I watched her for 12 years deteririorate. it's horrible. I just wish people weren't so ignorant

#149 Oh man, that's awful... :( I really wish there were a way to educate the general population about this stuff, seriously. I feel like it would help remove some of the negative associations directed toward people with such problems.

nerds, I feel ya. But on the bright side, there's absolutely nothing inherently wrong with not being outgoing or enjoying "partying" with strangers. "Outgoing" is a relative term; you're not exactly "ingoing" on here, right? ;)

#172 Haha! That's true, Jane! I guess I'm not exactly an introvert on the internet... :P

WTF. all I said was that I swear I've seen this before. moderaters , get a ******* life . I'm free to comment whatever I want so **** off.

#152 Huh? How on earth am I a hypochondriac? Social anxiety is a real disorder, dumbass.

o lord 159 has a diffrent pic of it's dog if ur a male u r seriously lame drop the dog and get a real gf *********** is illegal in the us

159 like to put peanut butter on his slong and let his dog captin lick it off

Oh my, some of the local pond scum has emerged to greet people who can spell properly.