Social anxiety is a constant presence in people who suffer from it. It’s not uncommon to have a hard time making friends and enduring extended periods of loneliness. But it’s never too late to embrace that loneliness, which can be as helpful as it is isolating.
1. Identify your loneliness
6 Steps to Embracing Loneliness When You Have Social Anxiety
1. Identify your loneliness
Identify what your loneliness is made of: Is it shame? Is it embarrassment? Is it fear? These are symptoms of being socially anxious, but they’re merely clues and signs that something needs to be done about these feelings. If the loneliness is not related to shame, guilt, or embarrassment, it’s still worth investigating.
2. Address the issue of isolation.
Do you feel like you don’t have anyone who understands you? Are you feeling lonely because there’s no one around to understand what you’re going through? Being lonely can be debilitating because it can gets way more intense than sadness or pain, and often people are afraid even to admit that they’re alone and scared. Because of this fear and shame, they hide their emotions to avoid being judged. As a result, they are left with many unanswered questions and begin to feel so isolated that they don’t know how to cope with the problems.
3. Learn to be vulnerable.
Being vulnerable is an essential part of overcoming loneliness. You can’t overcome something that you can’t face, and you can’t face something you don’t accept and acknowledge. However, being vulnerable often is accompanied by feelings of embarrassment or self-consciousness. Sometimes people think that being vulnerable means being weak, but that’s the opposite of what it is. Being vulnerable means that you are strong enough to take the risk to share yourself with others and show them who you really are.
4. Change the way you look at things.
When your mind goes through negative thoughts, challenge these thoughts with positive affirmations. Replacing negative thoughts will help you to feel more comfortable and happy. Challenging negative thought patterns is a great way to release the anxiety that takes hold of people living with social anxiety and loneliness.
5. Identify what makes you happy or what makes you feel good.
We all have a happiness radar system, and there are things that we prefer to do when we’re feeling good. After recognizing what gives us happiness, try to find more of it in your life and make it a habit to seek these things out more often because this will help restore your esteem.
6. Seek out other people who may also be feeling like you.
Social anxiety can cause isolation, which can result in loneliness. To overcome this state of loneliness, you must try and make friends with people who are going through the same struggles as you. People who understand what you’re going through and can relate to your situation will help you cope. Seeking out other people who may feel like you is also essential. Your loneliness can also result from having people in your life who do not understand what you’re going through or are not close enough to really understand the situation.
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