Saturday, July 5, 2008

Your online source for social anxiety stories, news, and whatever else we feel like putting on here.

Relaxation Visualization

submitted by Embers

Imagine you have a lemon. How yellow is it? How ripe? Are the dimples deep or is it more smooth? Whats the temperature? Has it been in the fridge or has it been on the counter? How round is it, is it more oval? Now imagine cutting into that lemon. What sound does the knife make when it slices through? Can you hear the juice squirt out? Can you see it? Where does it go? Can you feel it? What color is it? Now pick up one half of the sliced lemon and put it to your nose, what does it smell like? Squeeze a little into the palm of your hand and taste the juice...is your mouth watering yet?

Michael Liebowitz
Michael Liebowitz is a prominent researcher on social anxiety.
Take the Leibowitz Social Anxiety Test

Becky's Story

By Becky

July 10, 2007, 05:37 PM

Four years ago I read a small article in my local paper about social anxiety. It sounded so much like what I suffered from that felt I needed to get more information. I got online and found SAS and joined. It was the first time in my life that I didn't feel like a freak. There were actually other people out there who were going through the same thing. It was a great feeling knowing that I wasn't alone.

Everyone was really kind and very supportive of my efforts to see the doctor about it. I was put on Paxil. It seemed to work well at first, but after about 6 month it was to the point that all I ever did was sleep. I told my doctor about it and he switched me to Lexapro. The Lexapro seemed to be the same as Paxil for me. Next I tried Wellbutrin. That caused my anxiety to come back. After that was Effexor, Cymbalta, and Zoloft. All three of those caused me some bad side effects that I couldn't handle. The last thing I tried was Prozac. My anxiety and my depression were both helped. The Prozac seem to help me a lot without any bad side effects.

While I was on medication I also did some CBT (cognitive behavior therapy) with a psychologist, and on my own. I think the combination of CBT and medication was more helpful than either would have been alone.

SAS Magazine

The SAS Magazine replaced the SAS Newsletter. All SAS members are welcome to submit any non-controversial, original material, whether it's poetry, personal stories, photos, drawings, writings, or videos. Check back often as the magazine evolves!

Send your submissions to: reyopo@gmail.com

Maslow's World
Buddhism: The Eightfold Path

Speak Easy
Effexor: The Great Earthly Antidepressant Hope?

Albert Bandura
Albert Bandura (born December 4, 1925 in Mundare, Canada) is a psychologist famous for his work on social learning theory and, more recently, social cognitive theory and self efficacy. He is generally acknowledged as America's greatest living psychologist.