Social Phobia
The term “social phobia” (fear of social situations) was initially introduced by Pierre Janet in 1903 to describe the patients who were afraid when speaking in front of an audience, playing the piano or writing. The symptoms of shame, social anxiety and social avoidance have already been described by Hippocrates, who mentions the case of a person who didn’t leave his house because of his shyness, suspiciousness and his fearfulness, he didn’t dare to interact with others due to his fear of being humiliated, while he also thought that everyone was watching him.
People with Social Anxiety Disorder have an intense fear or anxiety for one or more social situations. Such situations could be eating or writing in front of other people, starting and/or continuing a discussion, meeting with a stranger, going to a party, flirting, going on a date with a person they are interested in, interacting with authority figures, speaking in front of an audience. Speaking in front of an audience is the most demanding situation for a person with social anxiety disorder and is the most common in its appearance. People with Social Anxiety Disorder worry that their anxiety emotions will be seen by others, they will be humiliated and rejected, that they will be negatively judged as worried, weak, crazy, stupid, boring, fearful, dirty or unwanted. In addition they worry that they will blush, sweat, stutter or that their behavior in general will provoke the disapproval of others.
In children, anxiety or fear usually concern situations in which they interact with their peers and not adults and it can be expressed through crying, outbursts of anger, freeze, attachment to a familiar person or curling up.
Social Anxiety Disorder is also occurs in relation to performance. People in this category have fear of performance which usually concerns their professional life or roles that demand speaking in front of an audience in general. Performance anxiety may also affect school or other academic environments where presenting oneself in front of others is necessary.
She has specialized in Cognitive Behavioral Psychotherapy at the Hellenic Association of Behavioral Research which is accredited by the European Association of Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies (EABCT).
Furthermore, she has attended specialist seminars on Family Therapy, Parent Counseling and Eating Disorders.
She is licensed to practice psychology as a specialist in School/Educational Psychology (Ref. No.: 359).