KA’s Story

Social Anxiety Help

Larry Cohen, LICSW

KA’s Story

(audio & written, created 24 years after her social anxiety CBT group)
43-year-old white female; Philadelphia

“I now trust that I can navigate the interactions I encounter in life with ease, as long as I use the tools and support that are available to me.”

Click below to listen to the audio recording of KA’s personal change story:

When I was 18, about 25 years ago, I started college at a prestigious Ivy League institution but I quickly had to leave due to my intense social anxiety. The constant social situations with new and unfamiliar faces were overwhelming.

Dropping out of college was devastating, and made me spiral into a depression for over a year. I started therapy and my new therapist suggested I join a social anxiety group led by Larry Cohen. Joining this group was a transformative experience. I’d been introduced to CBT, but in the group I had the support of others to look at my thoughts and behaviors in a structured way. It supported me in connecting with people outside of my comfort zone.

I’d had so much fear and assumptions in my thinking around friends, acquaintances, and even strangers or the cashier at the store. The exercises helped me question those assumptions and broaden my horizons in a way that was uncomfortable at times, but doable, and got easier.

I soon returned to college, where I thrived socially and academically (at another great school, closer to home).

I’m now in my 40s and continue to live a full life surrounded by new and old friends as well as many professional and personal acquaintances. I even got into improv and stand-up in my 30s! I remember, many years before I started performing on stage, attending an improv show, and leaving the audience early, terrified at the thought of being asked to speak, much less getting up on stage.

I can still get anxious sometimes, in and outside of social settings, and I’ve explored various modalities over the years. But I’m forever grateful that I got help for my social anxiety with CBT early on in my therapy journey, so that I could build a foundation of growth. I now trust that I can navigate the interactions I encounter in life with ease, as long as I use the tools and support that are available to me.

More Personal Change Stories

KA’s Story

(audio & written, created 24 years after her social anxiety CBT group)
43-year-old white female Philadelphia

“I now trust that I can navigate the interactions I encounter in life with ease, as long as I use the tools and support that are available to me.”

M’s Story

(video)
31-year-old gay, white man Washington, DC

“I can just be me…. I moved forward. I took a risk, and the result has paid itself out so many times!”

T1’s Story

(video)
33-year-old African American female Washington, DC

“I needed to present this facade of perfection. I didn’t want to be another stereotype. For me, I was representing my entire race at such a young age, at 14.”

K’s Story

(video)
33-year-old married, white woman Maryland, suburban DC

“I felt like I didn’t really fit in with most people… I felt like I was just bad at having conversations, that I never knew what to say.”

R1’s Story

(written)
30-year-old African-American woman Washington, DC

“I was bullied by all of my classmates…. I am a good person. No one can ever make fun of that.”

Liz’s Story

(audio & written)
27-year-old Hispanic woman Maryland, suburban DC (immigrant from Peru)

“People are finally starting to see me differently. I’m pretty confident that there are going to be more great things along the way that are still there for me to discover later. Social anxiety therapy has really changed my life.”

D’s Story

(written)
37-year-old white, male writer Colombia, South America (formerly of Washington, DC)

“I struggled with shyness and low self-esteem, specifically with regard to my physical appearance and feelings of attractiveness.”

S’s Story

(written)
44-year-old single, female nurse Washington, DC

“My life is different now. I feel like I can be who I always was inside.”

I’s Story

(audio and written)
56-year-old gay male, retired investment banker Washington, DC

“It is possible to find personal strength and happiness.”

Mike’s Story

(written)
34-year-old Jewish man Costa Rica, Central America (formerly of Maryland, suburban DC)

“I finally had the courage to do things I’d always hoped I’d be able to do”

C’s Story

(written)
33-year-old transgender, white woman Maryland, suburban DC

“I fell into a core belief that I’m fundamentally different and defective and that I have nothing in common with those I perceive to be ‘normal.'”

R2’s Story

(written)
26-year-old African American woman Washington, DC

“I was living too much in my head, instead of being mindful and in the moment in social situations.”

J’s Story

(written)
24-year-old gay man Washington, DC

“Did I fit in? Was I gay enough?”

T2’s Story

(written)
29-year-old South Asian man Washington, DC

“Would people notice my nervousness? Would I say something dumb?”

Judy’s Story

(National Public Radio audio broadcast)
57-year-old white lesbian Washington, DC

“Now it just seems like the experiments I did in the very beginning look so easy to me, that I could do it without even thinking or without becoming at all nervous.”

Justin’s Story

(written)
25-year-old white man Washington, DC

“Just having any person stopping by my cubicle at work would bring feelings of trembling, blushing, sweating, and extreme tension.”

N’s Story

(written)
36-year-old African-Caribbean female Washington, DC

“I felt tense, self-conscious, and paralyzed by the fear that others would notice my anxiety and ridicule or think less of me. I feared that asserting myself would erode my relationships and alienate cherished family and friends.”

 

If you have any questions or comments, please email Larry Cohen, LICSW, with offices in Washington, DC.

Social Anxiety Help is a founding regional clinic of the National Social Anxiety Center (NSAC): nationalsocialanxietycenter.com