Who are we?
We are a non-profit organization compassionately dedicated to improving the lives of those affected by social anxiety along with raising national awareness about social anxiety its implications and the available treatment options. We aim to help to inform those who experience social anxiety on the underlying mechanisms of the disorder, and to provide them with the tools necessary to alleviate their distress and functionally engage with life – whilst instilling hope that change is indeed possible, and providing support for their journey. To this end we provide support and active intervention group programmes for individuals experiencing social anxiety.
What is social anxiety?
Sometimes known as social phobia, social anxiety disorder (SAD) is a surprisingly common form of anxiety disorder that causes an individual to experience intense anxiety in some or all of their social interactions in everyday life. Given this, social anxiety can be defined as the persistent fear of one or more social or performance situations in which one is exposed to unfamiliar people or to possible scrutiny by others, and where exposure to such situations provokes intense anxiety.
Our objectives include:
- To develop a National Institute of Excellence for the treatment of Social Anxiety – this will be achieved through on-going research, participant feedback, and appropriate training for volunteers.
- To promote and encourage support groups for individuals with Social Anxiety, and to offer a group treatment programme to those affected by the illness – This will be achieved by the continuation of the 14 week CBT programme, and bimonthly support groups.
- To promote and encourage public awareness of Social Anxiety and to educate the public about this illness – This will be achieved through daily interaction with social media via Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn; the management of the Social Anxiety Ireland website and blog; and the organisation of public lectures on the topic of social anxiety.
- To set up a research committee, which shall oversee programmes of research into the causes and treatment of Social Anxiety.
- To act as a national organisation for all matters concerning the relief of suffers of Social Anxiety, and their families.