CBT and Me

     I've stated in a previous blog (Shy or Social Anxiety? 12/4/2011) that I felt that I am more shy than I am anxious at this time in my life.  I said that I felt as though I have more control over the anxiety than the anxiety has over me.  All of this is still true.  I've made great, maybe even amazing, strides through the decades I have dealt with SAD.  Most of what I have learned about how to deal with this devastating disorder has been done on my own through trial and error.  I have a beautiful family and have had a successful career which spans 30+ years in Information Technology.  I owe a great deal of credit for my successes to the support and understanding from family, friends and coworkers.  I could easily be content living out the rest of my life being the person I am today.

     Throughout the several weeks in December and January while I was not writing but rather reading about SAD, I realized that I can still move forward from where I am today.  In the last decade I have been taking medication to help control my anxiety.  When I first learned about SAD 10 years ago I did some research on the web but I did not dig as deeply as I should have.  I was under the impression that the intense anxiety was the result of a low serotonin level in the brain.  It seemed to me that medication was the best option for me.  While digging deeper into SAD I've discovered that neuropathways in the brain affect the serotonin levels and not the other way around.  Using CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) can change the neuropathways that your brain automatically uses and therefore will change the serotonin level in the brain.

     I don't think it is any secret based on the title of this posting, "CBT and Me", that I am planning to use CBT to change my life. "I'll bet there are a few dumb-dumbs out there that couldn't figure that out" interrupts Bill's negative voice.  Bill's inner positive voice responds "Hey negative voice, the point Bill is about to make is that you are no longer welcome in his life and he plans to silence you for good".  I am going to be using the audio therapy series "Overcoming Social Anxiety: Step by Step" found on the Social Anxiety Institute (SAI) website (you can find a link to this website in the column on the right under the heading "Additional Information About SAD and SM").

I'm Baaaaaack!

     Sorry for the extended absence.  I hope many of you will return to read and recommend this blog to others.  Due to a variety of reasons, blogging during these past 7 weeks hasn't worked well with my schedule.  But the show must go on and I will not abandon the mission I set out to accomplish.

We are pleased to interrupt this blog with some important news from UNIV (United Negative Internal Voices).  It has come to the attention of the "fine" voices at UNIV that this so called blog is nothing but a hoax.  We at UNIV have been investigating this Bill guy for quite some time and have concluded that he has no clue what he is talking about.  He is "an anarchist agitator spreading false propaganda in an attempt to lead the public into false beliefs about your internal negative voice as well as the belief that intense anxiety is not a good thing".  For your own safety and that of your loved ones, please do not read any more jibberish from this person.  Leave this site and never return!!!  You'll be pleased that you listened to the truth from your own internal negative voice and will forever remain indebted to us.

Shy or Social Anxiety?

     I must admit that I needed to do a little research on the topic at hand.  I had my own thoughts on what separated a shy person from a socially anxious person.  To me “shyness” was felt in the gut, to quote a cliche “butterflies in the stomach”.  A shy person may feel uncomfortable or nervous in social situations but they can face the situation and often times start to feel comfortable over time.  For me “social anxiety” has always been felt in my head in addition to the “butterflies” a shy person feels.  I always thought of it as “brain freeze”, not like what you get when you eat ice cream too fast.  In this case the brain freezes because there is so much the brain is trying to process that one can’t think straight. 

“Bill your heart rate has increased, your breathing is becoming faster and shallower, and you’re starting to shake.  Pull it together you don’t want to look scared because someone might approach you and ask you what is wrong.  How would you answer that, tell them you are scared?  That would make you look stupid.  Don’t look too confident and self-assured either because people will see that as an invitation to talk to you.  Don’t look too nonchalant either because people will think that you are stuck up or rude.  By the way do you know what the weather is like?  What if someone tries to make small talk with