In social anxiety, is protection the real problem?

“Protection is the problem.” In social anxiety, the anxiety itself is not the problem. The protections we put up—our defenses, safety behaviors, avoidance, ways of hiding who we are, not saying what we think, etc—are the problem. The things we do to protect ourselves from feared outcomes make us more anxious over time AND they push others away and make us hard to connect with. We'll talk about: 0:00 - Intro 0:35 - PROTECTION is the problem, not anxiety 0:55 - Common types of protection 1:12 - How to change 2:34 - Why we have these protections 3:36 - Don’t control, discover if there is a fit 4:52 - The secret to true connection 5:11 - The importance of lifelong growth I'm Dr. Thomas Smithyman, a clinical psychologist making videos to help people overcome social anxiety. ⚡Do People Hate Me Because I'm Socially Anxious?    • Do People Hate Me Because I'm Socially Anx...   ⚡ How We Think About Our Flaws Creates Social Anxiety    • How We Think About Our Flaws Creates Socia...   QUESTION — Have a question about anything related to social anxiety? Post in the comments section of this video. MY BOOK ...coming May 2022. Subscribe to my newsletter here to get an advance chapter from my book as soon it’s released. https://thomassmithyman.com/subscribe/ ONLINE THERAPY I'm not currently accepting new patients for online therapy. PODCASTS 📱 Subscribe and Listen to the Anxious in Austin Podcast HERE:: Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast... Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4xUWe9A... Subscribe to my channel Here:    / @drthomassmithyman   My mission here is to use video to help people overcome social anxiety. Most people with social anxiety never seek help, and those who do usually wait 16 years! Treatment is effective but people don't know about it. I'd like that to change, and I'd really appreciate any help. PLEASE READ If you or someone you know is in immediate danger, please call a local emergency telephone number or go immediately to the nearest emergency room.