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Social Anxiety in the Classroom

Hannah Denlinger

Sinclair Community College

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Social Anxiety is a very real disorder and a scary one for many students that enter a school or

classroom. Social Anxiety can have a major impact on a student’s life and how they perform in the

classroom. In addition, anxiety is a very normal and common emotion that everyone goes through

whether they’re young or old. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 7.1% (4.4

million) of children aged 3-17 years have diagnosed anxiety.(CDC, 2021) Moreover the CDC states,

“Having another disorder is most common in children with depression: about 3 in 4 children aged 3-17

years with depression also have anxiety (73.8%), and almost 1 in 2 have behavior problems (47.2%).

(CDC, 2021) Social Anxiety is often also referred to as social phobia and this causes things such

as,”significant anxiety, fear, self-consciousness and embarrassment because you fear being scrutinized or

judged by others.”(Mayo Clinic, 2017) Constantly having Social Anxiety can cause major stress for a

student in and outside of school.

There are many different aspects to social anxiety such as the symptoms, causes, risk factors and

the ways to prevent it. There are quite a few different types of symptoms associated with Social Anxiety.

The first symptoms are the emotional and behavioral symptoms and these can be, “Fear of situations in

which you may be judged, Worrying about embarrassing or humiliating yourself, Intense fear of

interacting or talking with strangers, Fear that others will notice that you look anxious, Fear of physical

symptoms that may cause you embarrassment, such as blushing, sweating, trembling or having a shaky

voice, and Avoiding doing things or speaking to people out of fear of embarrassment, etc.”(Mayo Clinic,

2017) Another type of symptom one with Social Anxiety may have are the physical symptoms. The

physical symptoms may include, “Blushing, fast heartbeat, trembling, sweating, upset stomach or nausea,

trouble catching your breath, dizziness or lightheadedness, feeling that your mind has gone blank or

muscle tension.(Mayo Clinic, 2017) There are a few causes of why one may have Social Anxiety. One

major cause is that it may run in the family. It’s very common for a child to develop social anxiety if

someone they’re related to also has the same condition. Another cause of Social Anxiety is a negative

experience a student had that now makes them more reserved. A few experiences that may have caused

this are, “teasing, bullying, rejection, ridicule or humiliation may be more prone to social anxiety
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disorder. In addition, other negative events in life, such as family conflict, trauma or abuse, may be

associated with social anxiety disorder.(Mayo Clinic, 2017) A major cause of social anxiety is the

environment a student is in and the unfamiliarity of the school. Many children get scared to leave their

house where they feel safe and secure and are scared to be separated from their family during the day. A

lot of the times it’s scary for the students to be away from the parents/guardians. Lastly, a student’s brain

structure may have a lot to do with why they developed a social phobia. Mayo Clinic tells us, “ structure

in the brain called the amygdala may play a role in controlling the fear response. People who have an

overactive amygdala may have a heightened fear response, causing increased anxiety in social situations.

(Mayo Clinic, 2017) There are many ways a person can try and prevent or reduce the impact of Social

Anxiety but the best one is to try and get help as soon as one sees symptoms of Social Anxiety.

Social Anxiety is very common when it comes to school or a student being in a classroom. Social

Anxiety can have a major impact on how a student is performing in school. Social anxiety can cause

students to have, “high absenteeism rates, difficulty processing and retrieving information, sleep

deprivation, distributive behaviors in class, fractured relationships with peers and teachers, irregular

homework completion and classroom participation, and complaints of physical ailments.”(Stack, 2018) It

isn’t unlikely that a student may do poorly with their work and participation when struggling with anxiety

and most of the time it’s expected. It’s hard for a student to feel motivated when they’re not comfortable

with their environment they are in. Students that have social anxiety may,”feel self-conscious and

uncomfortable in social situations, avoid school or participating in class, feel embarrassed, lonely,

disappointed, or withdrawn, have physical symptoms such as sweating, shaking, stomach pains, nausea,

and a racing heart beat, need intervention with a school counselor or therapist to help them handle social

situations and be targeted by bullies.”(Hasan, 2018) Social Anxiety can cause a lot of stress on a student

because their main fear is embarrassment.

It's important for the student to have options on how to reduce the impact of the social anxiety

that they are experiencing at school. To start off, there are many coping strategies that a student can learn

and develop to minimize the effects that Social Anxiety causes. The first strategy to minimize Social
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Anxiety is relaxation and a few tools of relaxation are to use deep breathing, guided imagery and

progressive muscle relaxation. Psycom tells us that, “Deep breathing is the best way to calm rapid heart

rate, shallow breathing and feeling dizzy. Teach your child to visualize blowing up a balloon while

engaging the diaphragm in deep breathing. Count your child out to help slow the breathing.(Hurley,

2018). Moreover, guided imagery is when a child, “take a relaxing adventure in her mind while engaging

in deep breathing. Tell a quick story in a low and even voice to help your child find her center.” Helping

the student find a place of calm is a great start to helping lower the anxiety. In addition Psycom also states

that, “Anxious kids tend to tense their muscles when they’re under stress. Teach your child to relax her

muscles and release tension beginning with her hands and arms. Make a fist and hold it tight for five

seconds, then slowly release. Move on to the arms, neck and shoulders, and feet and legs.”(Hurley, 2018)

It’s important for a human to be able to find coping mechanisms to release the tension in their body.

Furthermore, the student can try and use cognitive reframing and problem solving skills. According to

Psycom, “Teach your child to recognize negative thoughts and replace them with positive ones…Teach

your child to work through feelings of fear and anxiety by developing problem-solving skills.”(Hurley,

2018) There are so many things a teacher can do to help a student with social anxiety. The main thing a

teacher can do is talk about the anxiety the student is experiencing. It’s important that the teacher doesn’t

make the anxiety seem as something terrible that needs to be fixed but as something that is normal. It is

important to not make the student feel bad about the disorder that they have. A few great things a teacher

can also do are, “use structured classroom activities, small groups, or assigned partners so shy students

are not left out, assign a classroom buddy to provide support, help with social interactions and rewarding

efforts, be patient and positive as students learn new ways to cope, encourage all students in the

classroom to try relaxation techniques, encourage shy students to try to speak for themselves, when they

can, rather than speaking for them, identify a “safe place” for when a student feels overwhelmed,

encourage attendance, which may require shortened school days and modified class schedules and

collaborate with regular meeting with parents, counselors, and school staff.”(Hasan, 2018) It’s important

for the teacher to be involved and to make the student feel as comfortable as possible. The student needs
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to feel safe and secure in their environment and it’s the teachers job to try to do their best as possible to

make that happen. Moreover, it would be a great option for the student to get help from a professional to

see if there is medication or professional techniques to help them to get through the day. A great

professional option is Psychotherapy. Many professionals suggest CBT which is also called Cognitive

Behavioral Therapy. CBT according to the Help Guide may include, “Learning how to control the

physical symptoms of anxiety through relaxation techniques and breathing exercises, challenging

negative, unhelpful thoughts that trigger and fuel social anxiety, replacing them with more balanced

views, facing the social situations you fear in a gradual, systematic way, rather than avoiding them.

While you can learn and practice these exercises on your own, if you’ve had trouble with self-help, you

may benefit from the extra support and guidance a therapist brings, role-playing, social skills training, and

other CBT techniques, often as part of a therapy group. Group therapy uses acting, videotaping and

observing, mock interviews, and other exercises to work on situations that make you anxious in the real

world. As you practice and prepare for situations you’re afraid of, you will become more and more

comfortable, and your anxiety will lessen.”(Smith, 2020) Doctors may also suggest trying medication.

Some common medications used to treat anxiety are beta blockers, antidepressants, and benzodiazepines.

In the end, Social Anxiety is very common in not only the school aged children but also adults.

Every human experiences anxiety at least one time or another throughout their life. There are so many

easy and effective options out there to help someone control and cope with the anxiety they are

experiencing. In addition, no student should feel alone or bad about the disorder that they have and it’s so

important for the teachers to step in and provide some guidance at school to help the students with social

anxiety get through the day. Nowadays we realize how common and pervasive social anxiety is in schools

and if we apply this information correctly no student should have to feel overwhelmed by social anxiety.
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References

Data and statistics on children's mental health. (2021, March 22). Retrieved April 18, 2021, from

https://www.cdc.gov/childrensmentalhealth/data.html

Hasan, S. (2018, August 14). Social phobia Factsheet (for schools). Retrieved April 18, 2021, from

https://www.connecticutchildrens.org/health-library/en/parents/social-phobia-factsheet/

Hurley, K. (2018, November 25). Social anxiety in kids: Help them cope with symptoms. Retrieved April

18, 2021, from https://www.psycom.net/social-anxiety-how-to-help-kids

Smith, M., Segal, J., & Shubin, J. (2020, September). Social anxiety disorder. Retrieved April 18, 2021,

from https://www.helpguide.org/articles/anxiety/social-anxiety-disorder.htm

Social anxiety disorder (social phobia). (2017, August 29). Retrieved April 10, 2021, from

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/social-anxiety-disorder/symptoms-causes/syc-

20353561

Stack, D. E. (2018, December 12). Managing anxiety in the classroom. Retrieved April 18, 2021, from

https://mhanational.org/blog/managing-anxiety-classroom