The signs of social anxiety

REVEALED: The signs you have ‘social anxiety’ – from being afraid to make appointments over the phone to making up scenarios in your head

  • A student doctor has revealed the signs you are suffering from social anxiety
  • Zachery Dereniowski, 27, is a Canadian medical student living in Sydney
  • He has recently released a new video showing what social anxiety actually is

A student doctor has revealed the signs you are suffering from social anxiety including counting your money ten times before paying for something and being afraid to make appointments over the phone.

Zachery Dereniowski, 27, is a Canadian motivational speaker and medical student at the University of Sydney; he specialises in mental health and has become well know for his TikTok videos on the subject.

He has recently released a new video showing what social anxiety actually is – and how to know if you or someone you love suffers from it.

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Zachery Dereniowski, 27, is a Canadian motivational speaker and medical student at the University of Sydney; he specialises in mental health and has become well know for his TikTok videos on the subject

The student has recently released a new video showing what social anxiety actually is - and how to know if you or someone you love suffers from it

Counting your money ten times before paying for something and being afraid to make appointments over the phone are all signs

The student has recently released a new video showing what social anxiety actually is – and how to know if you or someone you love suffers from it

He said wanting to hide your face or body when you are in public is a sign of social anxiety as is staying in bed to avoid people.

Making up scenarios in your head when you feel embarrassed is a sign as well as is having a panic attack in a crowded place.

He asks ‘can you relate’ at the end of the video – and hundreds of comments revealed people could relate to some if not all of the signs.

‘I feel so good with a mask now because I can hide myself,’ one person wrote on the video.

‘Exactly how I feel. I want to find a new job while it lasts so I won’t have to worry about 60percent of my face,’ said another.

‘I relate to every single one of these,’ said one person.

Others asked how they ‘get out’ of social anxiety.

He said wanting to hide your face or body when you are in public is a sign of social anxiety as is staying in bed to avoid people

Social anxiety is being afraid to pick up the phone to make an appointment

He said wanting to hide your face or body when you are in public is a sign of social anxiety as is staying in bed to avoid people

‘I just learned to accept it, I have tried everything. I just force myself to do normal things,’ one woman said.

Others said they struggle with the list every day and ‘don’t want to relate because it is true’.

‘This is 100percent. I try to explain to people but they don’t understand it,’ said another.

Dereniowski also commented on the post.

‘To whoever reads this, your life matter. No one can replace you. I’m thankful you were born. I love you so much,’ he wrote.

'I relate to every single one of these,' said one person

Social anxiety sufferers can experience all of these things, or one, or some and different levels

‘I relate to every single one of these,’ said one person

'This is 100percent. I try to explain to people but they don't understand it,'someone said on the video

‘This is 100percent. I try to explain to people but they don’t understand it,’someone said on the video

The popular TikTokker has previously given advice on how to love people with anxiety.

Dereniowski says it is important to avoid last-minute changes in plans which may trigger someone with anxiety – and to refrain from trying to ‘fix’ them.

He also says it is important to reassure the person you are dating that you love them and they are enough, and share your plans with them – this helps them ‘feel close to you and at ease’.

In a recent Instagram post he discussed how to make suicidal loved ones feel loved

In a recent Instagram post he discussed how to make suicidal loved ones feel loved

In another clip, Dereniowski, who suffers from anxiety himself, explained how the condition can impact the way that people behave, affecting everything from their eating habits to their sleeping patterns.

‘We’re suffering from a brain imbalance, not a character disorder [and] we don’t want to be a burden,’ he said.

‘Our sleep patterns are usually way off. Our eating patters are usually way off, too.’

Dereniowski added that people with anxiety find comfort in knowing that they have friends and family who will stand by their side through thick and thin.

‘Friends and family who stick by us are treasured beyond words,’ he revealed.