Is social anxiety inherent in AS, or merely a consequence?

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That's something I've had since I can remember... now, since the diagnosis it kind of makes sense how it could develop (due to miscommunication etc.) but I'm not sure if it's directly linked to it (see example at bottom).

On a related note, has anyone found any solutions (besides simply brute forcing one's way into it) that might mitigate it? Chemically, I found that entactogens work brilliantly... but these aren't by prescription, and so could be unstable. The only thing a psychiatrist seemed to know about when I asked about social anxiety is beta-blockers which are, at best, very subtle. Nothing in comparison to the aforementioned... once, on those, I was able to go to some stranger's room which contained about four more strangers and I talked like I never talked before, with not an instance of hesitation. But, yes... it's not something I'd be able to consistently do. Consistency is always the problem, as the default in my life seems to be anxiety...

There are some people I notice... in fact, this one guy who weirdly says he's AS (mainly ends up offending everyone) who's incredibly extroverted and outspoken. Pretty sure he doesn't do it by just brute force, and I wish I had his formula...

I am quite sure it is a consequence--something you learn, rather than something innate. Here's why:

1. There are many, many autistic people who have less social anxiety than NTs, or who have about the same amount.

2. Autistic people have been successfully treated for, and recovered from, social anxiety disorder without becoming any less autistic. (Typical strategies: Social skills classes, progressive desensitization, treatment of anxiety disorders or depression, education in disability identity/self-advocacy concepts.)

3. Social anxiety seems to be worse the closer you are to neurotypical. If it were an innate feature of autism, it would tend to worsen with the severity of the autism.

4. Social anxiety in autistic people follows the same patterns that it follows in non-autistic people with disabilities. That is, it's worse in those who are mainstreamed, worse for those who are closer to typical, worse for those in their teen years than at any other age, and worse for those without stable support systems.

Social anxiety is something you learn when the world rejects you; or, more precisely, it's something that you learn from repeatedly responding to rejection in a certain way. It is more likely to happen to you if you internalize the idea that normal is better, that those around you are right about your worth as a person, or that social problems are your fault (i.e., that you blame yourself for mistakes you make and others' bias against you). Since society tends to teach us those things pretty strongly, we tend to be quite vulnerable.

But I do not believe that social anxiety is an autism-related phenomenon, specifically. Exhaustion and confusion in social situations are definitely related to autism, but anxiety seems to be an emotional response that isn't wired in, just learned; and thus it can be unlearned.

I used to have a lot of Social anxiety. Most of it has gone away as my confidence has gotten stronger over the years. I still have issues with groups of people but it seems like it's as much sensory overload as social anxiety in that kind of situation. So I'd have to agree that it's something you develop.

Mine got much better with 2 things:
Finding self worth
and My wife pointing out my social faux pas

I agree and disagree.

Social anxiety can be a result of rejection, but we must ask, why is there rejection?

Often times it is due to the inability to communicate effectively, and why is this? Because AS is a communications disorder.

I think to separate the two would be counter productive. You can sedate someone to the point the anxiety goes away, but they still might not be able to communicate with people.

I think I got issues with social anxiety after the bullying from teachers and other kids started....I remember at an early age I did try interacting but apparently people found me weird and I certainly heard about it quite a lot. So it got to the point where now I am severely socially anxious. I mean I think I've always had the issue of not being able to just go up to someone I don't know and start talking to them like I've seen a lot of people do but I don't think that's the anxiety though it can cause anxiety........like when I was in college and forgot my pencil one day and the only person sitting close enough to ask was someone I never talked to before so I couldn't ask them and then I was all anxious because I really needed a pencil.

Part of being socially adjusted is learning how to voluntarily hold yourself hostage to other people's paranoia. For a while, I didn't know how to do this, so I wasn't accepted and I wasn't 'socially adjusted'. I was an outcast who didn't fit in. This gave me anxiety because I wanted to fit in. Fitting in basically means making other people feel better about their fears (at least in terms of social anxiety; there is far more to communication than learning how to be anti-social around people that want it) Once I learned this, I tried to not fit in, which is stupid since I already didn't fit in, which made me anxious again. Once I got out of high school and college, and I wasn't obligated to be part of the same social groups all the time, I learned how to manage who was worth being around and who wasn't. My anxiety goes up whenever I have to be proactively anti-social, such as applying for jobs, and it goes down when I can be social, such as talking to people. I talk to people in an anti-social manner when I need a job or a favor, and I talk to people in a social manner when I'm not worried about controlling things I can't control. I want to treat all people as equals, but I'm not always able to do that.

It must be learned because i don't have it OR the dislike i experience towards social stuff would be a very twisted way in which anxiety expresses itself, but since i know how anxiety feels i can judge the difference.

I have social anxiety and social phobia, and both describe me exactly. I know these conditions aren't a case of all or nothing, but really I have ALL of the symptoms on both of the lists. I actually think it's cruel for an Aspie to have these social anxiety/phobia disorders on top of their Asperger's, because the social anxiety/phobia makes you anxious of what you say and do and how you appear to other people, but Asperger's makes you typically socially awkward so you're more bound to say or do something odd and can appear odd to other people. So being a person who is more likely than the average to appear odd to other people, but feel anxious about it at the same time, can be so debilitating, causing huge amounts of depression and more anxiety, which is very soul-destroying. It certainly destroys your self-esteem.

i was dx with social anxiety 2yrs ago, i have a fear of people cos i cant talk or connect with them, it brings me alot of distress and anxiety because i am aware of this i feel very self concios , im scared to be in social situations cos i no i cant perform or talk and it upsets me to think people think im rude or weird , which ive been called many years

i was diagnosed with aspergers last week,, i feel my social phobic disorder actually is the result of my undiagnosed aspergers for so many years, ive always been shy but when i got to about 13-14 it became a phobia, a real intensive fear

Social anxiety is learned, but that learning is heavily influenced by how you perceive your environment and how you filter information and construct meaning out of it.

Genetic influence:
There is a strong correlation between introversion, sensitivity to outer stimuli (which largely depend on your genetic disposition) and social anxiety (but no equivalence), meaning: social anxiety isn't a consequence of autism, but it is likely more prevalent in people with autism if you assume that autistic people are also more introverted. (I'm not aware of studies linking autism directly to anxiety, but I guess they exist as well)

Environmental influence:
People with autism are more likely to unwittingly violate rules and social contracts which can lead to more negative feedback which then can excessively reinforce the normal anxiety patterns that are part of the human behavioral model.

So, in conclusion, it's possible to be autistic and have no anxiety issues, but I'm pretty sure the probability of developing social anxiety is higher if you're autistic.