Exposing him to social situations could also make the child turn more introvert and prefer to stay away from even the smallest crowd.

The best choice when having to deal with children suffering from social phobia is take him to a licensed physiatrist or psychologist for consultation. At this age, social phobia can be prevented from developing into a major problem.

One major problem a school age child may have because of social anxiety disorder is voluntary mutism. This means to avoid being a situation where he has to talk in front or around other children, he will opt to be quiet and refuse to talk.

While pulling him out of school is a drastic and unnecessary move, the parents and teachers must work together to help the child. In conjunction with this, a doctor should be at the helm to guide all the concerned adults how to handle the child.

Today, there are many schools that do not enforce traditional teaching methods, and this might be a better alternative than putting in a school that makes demands without concern for the psychological welfare of the child.

Pulling together to help the child is the best way to deal with the situation. Parents can offer moral support, schools and teachers can offer a safe haven, while the doctor can recommend a specific treatment. This three dimensional method will ensure that all the needs of the child are met.

Naturally, you cannot avoid being around people, and this is something the child must accept. However, if a parent keeps the process of getting to know people and places slowly,

Another support group you can seek is an association or church. However, there is one thing a parent must realize, and that is there are people who will not understand or want to understand your child’s condition, and will make judgment calls about him. The parents can try to shield the child, but there is no foolproof way of doing this.  

One method some parents have done is to find a friend in every place the child normally goes to. For instance, at school, he can run to his teacher or even a janitor who he can consider his friend. In the supermarket, the parent might befriend one cashier and keep going to that person every time. Eventually, this could be the friend of your child in case he gets lost or confused while inside the supermarket. The list could go on and include the church, post office, police station, an employee in the parent’s office, and a neighbor.

This is one way to help the child start to feel like he is part of a community of caring adults who will look at for him as he grows up.

A person can actually live his entire life with this condition, and not know it. This is because it is possible to avoid situations where one has to appear before an audience, or talk in front of a small group of people simply by being innovative.

As adults, one can find a job working alone, or in a company that provides him with limited access to social events and situations. In fact, many people will just assume that he is shy and an introvert, and leave him alone. Family members too can fall into that trap and assume that he is a loner.

To understand social anxiety disorder, you must realize that there are three levels, and, depending on the level one finds himself in, everyday life can be completely tolerable, and may not need continuous treatment and medication at all.

The first level is Performance Anxiety. This is when a person has a phobia about speaking, acting, singing, or just being in front of a group of people. This is not the same as plain nervousness. It is more like anxiety that can be seen through physical signs of profuse sweating, rapid heartbeat, stuttering, and nausea.

Having this degree of social anxiety disorder is easy to circumvent by avoiding situations that require one to be in front of other people. If diagnosed with this level of social anxiety disorder, simple counseling and proper guidance can help ease the situation. Doctors usually do not even recommend medication for people with social anxiety disorder in this level.

The second level of social anxiety disorder is the Generalized Social Anxiety Disorder. This level is the most common,  and it targets people who fear any kind of confrontation such as being in a gathering or social setting that requires conversation, however casual, or in an office meeting or conference. We can see signs of this kind of social phobia in our everyday lives, and most often do nothing to help that person, mainly because it is considered normal to fear facing a superior or a group of happy, boisterous people. Many people simply attribute people who show this kind of phobia as shy.

The third level of social anxiety disorder is called Avoidant Personality Disorder. This is the most serious kind of social phobia. Most often it starts at an early age, and gradually worsens, especially if not detected by a parent or guardian. Teenagers who have a difficult time facing others – whether peers or older people – will tend to shut themselves out from anyone.

It can get a little difficult to think that a teenager is suffering from this condition because teenagers are usually moody, emotional, and hard to talk to.
If it continues up to adulthood, this person may have a difficult time finding long lasting relationships, much more marriage.

All three levels can be treated and people with this condition and live a normal life without fear of any social activity. Aside from counseling, there are drugs and therapy that can be implemented.

A doctor will usually require medical history to help him in his evaluation, as well as performing a physical examination. There are several tests he can do, including blood and urine tests to find out if there is anything physically wrong like hyperthyroidism.

When social anxiety disorder has been established, treatment should start as soon as possible. The doctor will refer the patient to a psychologist or a psychiatrist since they are most qualified to deal with this kind of condition.

A battery of assessment tests and interviews will follow to help the psychiatrist evaluate the extent of the social phobia. This will include trying to establish the cause, environment, reactions, and intensity of every incident. 

There are several approaches to treating anxiety problems. Some people elect to do it the traditional way which is through Cognitive-Behavior Therapy (CBT). This treatment is combined with the use of drugs to help the patient control his actions and reactions.

Essentially, CBT will try to provide the patient with a pattern of rationalizing thoughts as well as confronting the trigger situations slowly. A psychiatrist will try to desensitize the assumed problem for the patient, and let him see the other side of the coin. Counseling is an important part of treatment, and communication is encouraged to bring out the fears so that they can be addressed properly.

The most common medications prescribed by a doctor would be antidepressants, beta blockers, and tranquilizers. In many cases, the doctor will prescribe the mildest drug initially to test reaction as well as side effects. There is no “better” drug, it is usually a case-to-case basis. What may work wonders for one patient may not work at all for another.

Of all the possible medications that can be prescribed, benzodiazepines tend to create a dependency that is difficult to deal with. There can be traumatic effects if after taking it regularly, the patient suddenly stops.

Other people prefer to deal with the problem through alternative ways like hypnosis. With hypnosis, there is the presumption that a past incident may have happened to cause the social anxiety disorder.

 The third treatment is called Supportive Therapy which can also be given simultaneously with CBT. Supportive therapy involves educating the patient, his family members and even friends about social anxiety disorder. The entire family is encouraged to support him by going through family therapy. Then, as an added measure, the patient is enrolled in a group therapy with other patients suffering from similar conditions. During these group therapy sessions, breathing and relaxation exercises are taught, as well a group counseling and one-on-one sessions with a trained therapist.

There are remedies to social anxiety disorder, and it is usually the first step which is the hardest to take, and that is, recognizing that there is a problem to begin with.

It takes a trained eye to see if a person is merely exhibiting nervousness, or it is a more serious condition. We all experience “butterflies in our stomach” right before critical moments in our lives, but this does not mean we have social anxiety disorder. This condition goes beyond nervousness.

To determine if a person has social anxiety disorder, you have to check for physical signs as well as the internal feelings. The physical symptoms of social anxiety disorder are sweating, upset stomach, nausea, confusion, inability to concentrate, a pounding heart, blushing, racing pulse, muscle tension, shaking, and even diarrhea.

Trying to diagnose social anxiety disorder is not as simple as seeing these symptoms in a person. There has to be a pattern of behavior before you can safely assume (not conclude) that a person may be suffering from social anxiety disorder.

In addition, it does not happen moments before the confrontation, but can manifest itself hours or even days before the person is required to do something social like a speech, a party, or a presentation.

Less obvious symptoms of social anxiety disorder is when a person constantly finds a reason to avoid being around people he is not comfortable with, or a tendency to hide in a corner when unable to escape the inevitable social gathering. For instance, a student will slouch in his seat in an effort not to be seen by the teacher, or fake a fever to avoid going to school if he is scared of having to talk in class.

A young teenager may have social anxiety disorder, and he will manifest it by clinging to his parent, having a tantrum, or crying incessantly until the threat is removed.

Since social anxiety disorder is connected to problems with interacting with other people or performing before an audience, it is possible for a person to avoid being in these kinds of situations. 
In the same manner, a person with social anxiety disorder can go through life without receiving any kind of treatment. Generally, it is not a life threatening condition unless severe depression together with other psychological problems start to set in.

In the United States alone, social anxiety disorder is considered the third most prevalent mental disorders which usually starts at the pre-teen age but it can also start at any age. Statistically, there are more women than men afflicted with this condition.  It will also explain why some people tend to be underachievers when their IQ indicates otherwise.

If you notice symptoms of social anxiety disorder in a family member or friend, or they complain of uneasy feelings of anxiousness about being around people, you could always suggest to them that seeing a physician will determine whether it is actually social anxiety disorder or not. This way treatment can start and these feelings of insecurity and inadequacies will be controlled.