CBT for social anxiety
When feeling judged makes it hard to be yourself.
What you might notice
Social anxiety involves fear of being negatively judged, embarrassed or rejected. It can affect conversations, meetings, eating in public or everyday interactions. You might rehearse what to say, monitor how you look or sound, avoid situations, or replay them afterwards.
How CBT can help
CBT looks at the predictions and self-focused attention that maintain this cycle. We plan experiments to test what you fear, practise directing attention towards the situation, and gradually reduce habits used to hide anxiety. We also work on the critical replay that can follow a social event.
General information, not a diagnosis. Your experience and goals guide our assessment and the plan we agree together.
Further reading and sourcesHow the cycle can keep going
This example shows one way the pattern can be maintained. Your own triggers and responses may look different.
Read the cycle step by step
- Trigger: Joining a group conversation
- Meaning: They’ll notice my anxiety and think badly of me.
- Feelings and attention: Anxiety and self-monitoring; words feel harder to find.
- Response: Keep quiet, rehearse replies or avoid eye contact.
- What keeps it going: Replay perceived mistakes; fear of judgement grows.
The short-term response can make the pattern more likely to repeat. This is an illustration, not a diagnosis or an individual formulation.
Which conversations or situations would you like to feel more able to take part in?
A free 5–10 minute consultation is a chance to talk about what you need and whether we could work well together.
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