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(719) 319-4999 Verify InsuranceFeeling nervous before dinner with new people is common. Dreading it for days, or rearranging your week to avoid it, is something else. Drift Behavioral Health offers social anxiety treatment in Colorado Springs for adults, in person or by video. We begin by asking which situations feel hardest, and your family is welcome to take part. Social anxiety is a treatable condition.
Social anxiety disorder is marked by a powerful, ongoing fear of being judged, embarrassed, or watched. Blushing and a shaky voice are two symptoms people fear most. Each one loudly proclaims your fear to everyone around you. Clinicians also describe these disorders as involving safety behaviors. These are little habits that make you feel protected, such as avoiding eye contact or carrying your cell phone. They provide brief comfort. Long-term, they maintain the fear because you never find out what would have happened anyway.
Ordinary nerves fade once an event begins. In social anxiety, the worst of it often comes before and after. Clinicians call the first part anticipatory anxiety, and it can start days ahead. The second part is called post-event processing: replaying a conversation for hours to look for mistakes.
Social anxiety is one of several anxiety conditions, and the lines between them matter for treatment. Generalized anxiety disorder spreads across many topics, while social anxiety stays tied to being observed. Panic disorder centers on sudden panic attacks. The different types of anxiety disorders explain how each one differs in triggers and duration.
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Social anxiety rarely remains isolated to one environment. Worries that begin at work haunt you in class and at family functions. Life shifts slowly one missed party at a time. Individuals often don't realize how restricted they've become until much later.
A meeting with round-robin sharing can take over an hour before it even starts. You practice two sentences, only to forget both of them when asked to speak. Phone calls become emails you rewrite five times before sending. Turning down an opportunity to be a team lead because it involves presenting is normal, and your coworkers will read your decline as disinterest.
Participation grades and oral presentations really sting. Students deliberately choose classes based on whether or not they have to speak. Others hide behind a desk in the back row and avoid office hours. Grades suffer even with quality work if you don't participate in the course. Some students drop a class after their first group project experience.
Friendships dwindle first. Invitations get declined so often that they stop being made. One partner ends up making all the calls and reservations. Dating itself is nerve-wracking because it's two hours of being judged across a table. Social isolation can lead to depression on top of anxiety.
Social anxiety disorder treatment at Drift combines skills practice with a medical review. In sessions, you face feared situations in small, planned steps and review how each one went. Individual therapy, group therapy, and a psychiatric evaluation can all be part of your plan. Your clinician sets the mix after your assessment.
CBT, or cognitive behavioral therapy, is Drift's foundation for social anxiety treatment. Cognitive therapy begins with predictions ("everyone will notice me shaking"). You test each prediction against reality. One kind of CBT used at Drift is exposure therapy. You and your therapist create a "ladder" of situations. Your first step may be low-stress, like saying hi to a neighbor. Progressing steps may be more difficult, like speaking up in a meeting. Repeat each step until you master it before moving up.
Group therapy is what it sounds like at Drift. You meet in small groups with clinicians and peers who get fearful. Groups provide what one-on-one therapy doesn't: An audience of people who get it. If you answer a question or politely disagree, that's exposure work. Hearing another member share about a racing heart you've experienced demystifies fear. Group facilitators guide the conversation and keep things moving at a comfortable pace.
Individual therapy is where you practice things you aren't ready to attempt in front of the group. The therapist helps you create concrete goals like ordering coffee without scripting out the sentence. You evaluate your attempt vs. your prediction after each try. The therapist charts your progress versus goals you set initially.
A psychiatric evaluation with one of our nurse practitioners begins with a history of the situations that frighten you most. It also checks your symptoms against DSM-5 criteria. Mention any alcohol or other substance use at this visit, because it affects medication choices. Drinking before social events is one common pattern, and dual diagnosis care treats both conditions together. If medication fits, you'll hear about the benefits and side effects before deciding. Follow-up visits track how it is working, and your provider adjusts the plan with you.
An intensive outpatient program (IOP) suits most adults with social anxiety. Plan on three to four hours per session, three to five days a week. Morning, afternoon, and evening blocks make it easier to schedule around work or class. Virtual care follows the same hours and can be your first step. Joining from home removes the drive and the waiting room. Your clinical team recommends where to start after your evaluation.
If you are reading this for your teenager, Drift has a separate adolescent program for ages 13 to 17. It offers its own PHP, IOP, and virtual care, and parents take part in sessions. Our adult programs serve ages 18 and older. Call our team if you are unsure which fits your family.
