Social Anxiety Dating - Dealing With Fear

If you suffer social anxiety then you know what it feels to be left out of many things because of fear, one of the hardest things for social anxiety sufferers is dating. If you have SA and you’re looking for tips on how to get dates then you might want some ideas from this post.
Finding relationships

The hardest part is probably getting dates, this is probably harder for males because it’s a tradition that men ask women out. This is why males with social anxiety tend to get married much later then people without SA.

Truth is that there is actually no special method for people with social anxiety get dates, but there are some situations when it can be easier.

Having mutual hobbies is definitely one of the best ways to get dates. While doing something you like with someone you will probably feel more comfortable and it’s a great situation to develop relationships.

Another good situation is studying for a test in groups or other kinds of group work. Of course this can be very hard for SA sufferers, because being surrounded by people is usually very uncomfortable for people with social anxiety. So you should try this only if you feel comfortable around these people you’re going to work with.

And the third good situation for finding relationships is volunteering, pick something you really believe in and by doing work and being around people who believe in the same thing can easily develop into a relationship.
Rejection

Most likely the biggest thing that is holding SA sufferers back is fear of getting rejected. This is something that everyone are dealing with, but for people with SA it’s much bigger problem and in many cases only thing that is holding them back.

Don’t take it personally

First step you have to do is not taking things personally, getting rejected is totally common, even most outgoing people get rejected. Just don’t think you got rejected because you’re suffering SA and most definitely don’t give up.

It’s common that people prepare themselves for failure, this is definitely a wrong thing to do, it will make approaching much harder.

Relief for fear and anxiety

Now what you’re probably really afraid of is negative result, what if you knew that it would go well – would you still be afraid ? Probably not or maybe a little. Well you can’t be sure that the result will be positive, but what you can do is not to think about result, just go and don’t try to imagine in your head that you’re going to fail – you can’t know that, this is why it’s good not to think about negative outcome.

Positive result

And the last social anxiety dating tip I want to give you for dealing with rejection is quite simple, but effective. Just play this scenario through in your head and imagine that everything went well and you got what you went after for. It might feel like you’re trying to lie to yourself, but it’s really very effective as it can decrease your fear.