Just another hello...

[youresomodest]

Hi...

It wasn't until recently that I even considered that I might have a problem with anxiety--I'm 25 and just finished a graduate music program. It usually only surfaces in social settings where I am not with at least one close friend or family member. I have never seen a professional and I didn't even really feel panicky until graduate school.

I don't have problems speaking in front of groups of people (apparently, that's one of my greatest gifts) and as a trained classical pianist, I have been told I look confident and captivate audiences; however, put me in a party setting or in a crowded store, and I can't escape fast enough.

[shoe]

hi youresomodest,

thats pretty interesting, and its one of the odd things about anxieties and phobias. A person can be strong and confident in things which would make others scared, but yet be afraid of things most others may take as unthreatening. The mind works in interesting ways..

still, there's usually a reason somewhere that explains it in a meaningful way. alot of anxiety is about perceived lack of control.. if we can control our circumstances, the people around us, our own actions and reactions, and the way our body works, we would be pretty confident people i'd imagine. ;)