Often, as college students, people typically figure that we have a carefree, good-time filled life where we have few responsibilities. But, for many of us, that statement holds little truth. Young adults around the world are all battling one common enemy: anxiety. It is not a disorder that you can see on one's skin, or hear in their voice. It is an insidious disorder that often times cripples its victims and secludes them from the people they love.There are certain triggers that may present themselves and cause anxiety, whereas others may not experience any identifiable triggers at all. That seem to me to be the most frightening part of the disorder. One never really knows when they'll start to feel anxious, or to what degree they will feel it. Factor that in with the common stressors of college, and you're asking for an unpleasant, but tolerable, experience.
For me personally, I never knew of the magnitude of anxiety until I got to college. I came from a relatively small town and an even smaller high school. When I arrived at Winthrop University, I was now in a population of students that was nearly ten times the population of my high school and two times the size of the total population of my hometown. Not knowing more than ten people on campus when I first arrived, I felt relatively disconnected from my peers. Although I had "friends" we really didn't know each other that well. I ended up spending much of my first few weeks in my room, not going out much at all.
This went on a for a while, but once I had found a group of friends who tried to get me out of my room, I'd realize how nervous I felt going out to social events. I would often just sit in a corner just trying to figure out what I was doing here, and why I wasn't enjoying myself. The biggest misconception of social anxiety is that it is just not wanting to around people, but it is really wanting to go be social, but something within is holding you back from taking the first step. Posts like the one below perfectly sum up how my anxiety often affects me:
Yes, I literally have to prepare myself, mentally, to go everywhere. Whether it is to class, work, a meeting, church or party; I have to take the time to mentally prepare myself to deal with new and familiar people and environments. This is the reason I like routines and structure, rather than spur of the moment events. From the outside, anxiety often makes one look like a "loner" or someone that just doesn't like people. But this is not true. We, those who suffer from social anxiety, just have to take time to ourselves to recharge after social situations. Much like introverts, this is just our nature.
In college, you're often placed in situations filled with strangers. After countless interviews, panels, and presentations, I have learned to just fake it. Yes, fake it. I often times treat social situations as if I am playing the role of myself in a movie. But when I come back to my room, I must shed the mask and deal with the realities of what I feel. Coping exercises like this help me to continue healthy relationships with the people around me. Depending on your diet, many people use B-12 vitamin supplements to cope with anxiety. When I was going through a high-stress point of my life, I began taking B-12's and it has helped with my anxiety. It is a substitute for a medical prescription or proven treatment, but it works for some people due to a B-12 deficiency they may have.
I say all this to say that some people are battling disorders that you cannot see. These disorders may appear to character flaws or attitudes. Be kind, be understanding, be aware.
