Posted by Snowie on August 7, 2000, at 22:09:55
In reply to Re: Social anxiety vs. Avoidant personality disorder » Snowie, posted by Archangel_Michael on August 7, 2000, at 14:26:32
Angel Michael,
Glad the links I posted were helpful. FWIW, your feelings and memories are very similar to mine. Since Social Anxiety Disorder and Avoidant Personality Disorder overlap in many areas, it's difficult to find good information on the net that explains the differences between the two in detail. I did one find link that might be helpful ... see below.
http://www.lightdarkness.com/schizoid/conditions.html
Good luck!
Snowie
> Geeze Snowie, you hit the nail squarely on the head as far as one of my problems is concerned. I really do desperately want to interact with "the humans" (you see, long ago I got to the point where I began to doubt my own humanity). I crave social interaction, yet my fear is so overwhelming that I'm nearly paralyzed. My inability to overcome the fear adds to my feelings of inadequacy. I find myself in a feed-back loop which is difficult to break.
>
> Some years ago I ran into an old high school acquaintance. We had a great conversation. He said he was actually surprised by our conversation because when we were in high school, he thought I was "stuck up." My silence years ago, which he mistook as conceit, was one of the manifestations of my APD or SAD. I went home and cried about that. How many other class-mates ignored me because they thought I was "stuck up"? It still hurts when I think about the opportunities for friendships lost.
>
> I've been lurking on this board for a while. Even here, I find it extremely difficult to participate. Psycho-Babble is a very social place, and here too, I feel out of place. I mostly enjoy reading the posts of a less clinical, more personal nature. I long to join in the conversations, yet I cannot. Every now and then I suck up my courage and submit a response, but that's a rare occurrence.
>
> Thank you for the links. I book-marked them.
>
> Best regards,
> Michael (the digital wall-flower)
>
> --------------------------------------------------
>
> > Anita,
> >
> > What you describe doesn't sound at all like Social Anxiety or Avoidant Personality Disorder. People with AvPD desperately want and crave interaction with other people, but they fear it at the same time because of their hypersensitivity to criticism and fear of rejection. Below is a link that discusses the personality disorders. Only you know where you really fit, if at all. Below that is a link to an excellent presentation about AvPD.
> >
> > http://mentalhelp.net/personalitydisorders/symptom.htm - Discussion of Personality Disorders
> >
> > http://www.arts.uwaterloo.ca/~acheyne/courses/Avoidpd.html - AvPD Presentation
> >
> > Snowie
poster:Snowie
thread:42160
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20000729/msgs/42355.html