Anxious when socialising

Post Reply New Topic

I am 25 years old and my girlfriend is 36. She is extremely outgoing and confident and demands that I take the lead in all of our social endevours.

I have Aspergers syndrome and despite overcoming a lot of my other shortfalls I still suffer from mild anxiety when in new social situations.

I was wondering if anybody here can maybe offer some tips or even list some medication that may help manage social anxiety.

Many thanks.

Welcome, david-uk. I've heard of people (well, one or two, anyway ) who found that a social drink helped ease their anxiety in social situations. But for me, alcohol was always more of a curse than a blessing. I suppose your strategy would depend on what sort of occasion it is: a casual after-work get-together, a formal event, etc.

In case you get really uncomfortable, it is helpful to prepare a backup plan that will allow you to make your excuses and leave early.

I won't socialize unless it's paired up with a project I'm working on. I hate open ended socialization. That being said, I usually take something strange with me, like those snake egg magnet things. Then I have something to play with, that distracts me from anxiety and also helps me socialize because other people love weird toys like those snake egg things. It gives you something to enjoy together and be social.

My psychiatrist gave me propranolol for public speaking and any other situation which might make me excessively nervous.

Honestly I think you should consider having a heart to heart talk with her first.

What happens when you find some situations just too stressful? Does she give you the option to bow out gracefully or are you still required to assume command?

I used to drink sometimes to get through it, was prescribed different meds over the years none of which unfortunately helped all the time though. Their were still many days when I just couldn't do it.

Hi,

I looked up Propranolol on wikipedia and it said that it was a beta blocker used for hypertension, I couldn't find any reference to it being prescribed for social anxiety.

Are you sure it's this?

In the section called Clinical Use under Indication, toward the bottom, you'll find stage fright.

I happen to be a grad student in medical pharmacology and was taking a course where the instructor told us that it could be used for giving speeches. He said he didn't use but knew of colleagues of his that did.

From what I know it makes sense. When you get scared, nervous, or whatever, your body releases epinephrine a.k.a. adrenaline (among other things). Adrenaline does its thing by interacting with a beta adrenergic receptor. Propranolol blocks adrenaline's interaction with its receptor. Therefore it can not work as effectively. This translates to keeping your heart from pumping too hard, your hands from sweating too much, your gut slowing down, etc.

The dose you'll be taking will probably be lower than what hypertensives and most other types of patients would take. Obviously a psychiatrist would know better.

I was given 10 mg tablets.