Are you anxious in social situations?

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For everybody on the spectrum, I'm interested in your answer to the following question.

Not taking in a situation that confuses and upsets you due to overloads or messed up routines or fear of the unknown - do you generally feel anxious in any other social situation?
Do you think that this social anxiety is your main issue or do you think that your autistic symptoms concerning your problems to interact socially with NTs hinder you more? Which of the two is worse/hinders you more?

I was wondering whether it's a true that many autistic people are anxious in social situations. I'm totally suprised by that idea, so I want to check and see how many people actually would answer positively.
I also want to know whether people think that their social anxiety is their main issue when it comes to social interaction and whether people would say that if it was removed, it would make the people able to interact successfully.

I don't have social anxiety (confirmed by a number of professionals); I don't care what people think of me other than them coming near me for I exhibit some weird motor mannerism or something, and they then move within my "bubble" of sensitivity.

I have fear of people due to the fact that they're one of my biggest causes of sensory overload; the noises and sights they exhibit, the verbal and nonverbal cues just kill my mind, and this leads to discomfort, "meltdowns", panic attacks, etcetera. I fear the people due to them overwhelming me, they don't even need to interact with me; them being them out and about literally hurts me as I walk past them, sit near them.

I don't socialize, never had an interest in such; I don't care for meeting and knowing people. I'm socially "withdrawn" now as an adult, aloof as a child (this isn't due to the above, I'm just not interested, and I never have been).

I'm anxious in social situations when my family's present, since I'm afraid that when I'll talk, they'll criticize me for things I say...

I have crippling social anxiety caused by not being able to communicate and interact socially. Which lead to being constantly criticized and ostricized for it, which caused more social anxiety. It's one of those vicious circle things.

I'm horrible in social situations, I can't function at all, its not because im scared, i just hate the feeling of too many ppl around me, the noise, lights, touching ahhh, i end up looking like im totally low functioning autistic. Thats why i hate meeting some ppl sometimes, i dont know how ill be, and some ppl will get the wrong impression.

My situation is that I inherited social anxiety from my mother and AS from my father. Actually, several years ago I thought I just had social phobia. I even went as far as founding two social anxiety groups im my area. Forming these groups and therapy assisted greatly with resolving many of my social anxiety issues, but I was still different from the people in the groups. I still had that nagging disconnect between my thought process and my ability to communicate it.

Looking back on my life, I think my AS reinforced my social phobia. However, I was able to hide my AS very successfully behind a painfully shy exterior. Most people thought of me as just shy. Now that I have reduced the impact the anxiety has played with my life, it has allowed my AS side to shine through more. In essence, in most peoples mind I have evolved from being painfully shy to a somewhat quirky quiet person.

Depends on the social situation; if I have to talk to somebody, yes. If not, no.

Not really.

Is there any other reason for feeling anxious in a social situation than those you have already excluded ?
Don't know - for me those are the main reasons why I feel anxious

I used to, but not anymore. I had to go into therapy to get over it though.

Yes, but only if, there are more than a couple people present. Places like Walmart, are anxiety provoking, and I usually avoid them. I will force myself to go, if it's necessary. Also, I find it easier to go to those places, if someone accompanies me. Like parents or friends.

Yes, extremely so. I am like a different person entirely in social situations.

For example I am a clumsy shy stuttering tool in social situations as opposed to being an alert talkative eloquent tool in comfortable situations.

Social anxiety is one of the most difficult things I deal with. I am often anxious with people I don't know and people I don't like very well. I'm not so anxious with people I know very well and with work situations where I essentially have a "script" that I follow.

I think that anxiety (basically FEAR) is, for me, a major component of my difficulties in the spectrum. If the anxiety was not there, I'd enjoy my live a whole lot more.

Z

P.S. It really SUCKS when I see others having a good time at a party and I'm getting dizzy and ready to loose the cheese and crackers I just ate. I know people are supposed to enjoy social gatherings but I often don't. It is also hard to predict when the anxiety will kick in - so I'm never sure if I will feel OK or not. AARRRRRGGGGHHHHH!

Sorry for the rant but I went to some social things lately that I wanted to enjoy and I felt like I was going to HURL after about 15 minutes.

Z

I'm not socially anxious really, unless it is an obviously anxious situation in general (such as going to an occasion where an ex-girlfriend is going to be, or going to a gathering where there are people there who don't like you).

The only times I get anxious is when I'm not expecting anything socially. Like if i see someone I know and I don't know whether to say hi or to avoid them, or if someone interrupts me whilst i'm doing something, or if someone I don't know comes up and says hi.

I do get uncomfortable though depending on the situation and my interaction with it. The power of distraction gets me through most moments where I might be anxious or uncomfortable.

Examples:
I get uncomfortable when I'm in a social situation that i'm not enjoying and I start thinking of things that I do enjoy and how I'd much rather be doing that than being here.

I get incredibly uncomfortable and frustrated when people are trying to give me advice, tell me how to do something or give me directions, or if I don't agree with what they're saying. I'll get incredibly impatient but I'll stomach it because its not worth starting a fight over something stupid about how a straight-6 car motor can't be quad cam, but the guy thinks he's being so cool with his tech-talk.

If people are talking about something I'm not interested in, I'll zone out completely and start noticing everything around me, like the trees, the style of bricks on the wall, the way the light reflects off the umbrella, the way people act at their tables, I stare and look all around. If someone involves me in the conversation I fake it and usually say "yeah", or "really", or in rare situations I might actuall say "What?" at which point everyone will laugh at me being aloof and in "Nathan's World".

I usually get around social situations by focusing. The clatter and overload of noise doesn't get to me because i'll focus on one type of noise, or simply just block the whole lot out (such as focus on a song in my head, or tap to myself)

In shopping centres or "Mall's" I like being an observer, looking at all the signs, patterns and the mannerisms of all the people.

So i'm not socially anxious, but I do get uncomfortable in social situations where i'm not in control, or if the situation is being forced on me and its not something i'm interested in.

If one has social anxiety, then I believe yes, there's a difference. These three reasons I wrote have nothing to do with social interaction per se and can cause anxiety in a situation in which there are no other people present. Social anxiety on the other hand is all about socially interacting with people, about worrying for overloads or embarrassment, but the fear of it going to happen is the main point, not the event happening itself. I guess.

I'm not anxious of meeting people and my main problem is that I just can't interact properly with them because I don't understand them all that much. Maybe I'll know people better in another 10 years, but my autistic behaviour concerning issues in social situation are my worst problem.
I'm the total opposite of worrying about social situations, I'm totally clueless about these matters unless I think hard on them, with the exception that I learned to fear bullying greatly, because I never realised that I was bullied until it was too late.

My social anxiety is due to the AS as not being good with people makes me want to avoid them.

Then again Im an anxious person anyway. If I was an NT i might develop other social insecurities, but they would be NT-style ones.