So you just got the Facebook event request to attend a Halloween party next month. The party is at a friends’ house where so far there have been 154 people invited and 56… no 57 people are set to attend.
There are so many people that are going, oh look, Billy is going, it shouldn’t be awkward. We only went out on three dates. Maybe I can just hang out in Liz’s room and not have to see too many people.
This is the social anxiety that so many people have and discover once faced with social interaction after social interaction. People discover this avoidance social interaction when they are often found sitting on the outskirts of a room, or when they avoid meetings or sometimes conversations with others. This avoidance of interaction is an early sign of one of many different defined social interactions.
It just happens to begin with making the decision about whether you will attend a costume party and socially interact with others. If you go to one, you might go to more, you might not even realize the awkwardness that exists until later, but eventually someone will nudge you to talk a little bit more. Someone will nudge you and ask why you aren’t hanging out with the rest of the people, or even why you aren’t dancing with your friends.
But most importantly, it is all about how you change yourself for the better. How you let these situations affect you. Will you slide into them better and easier next time, or will you not let what people say affect you. Just because you have a social anxiety disorder does not mean that something is wrong with you. You are just fine, and fun by yourself.
Don’t worry about that party. Worry about what you are going to do after that party.