Thoughtprovoker,
As someone who has treated many people with social phobia, let me first say that you are not alone. MANY people have SP. In fact, one element of SP (public speaking) is so common that if it’s the only situation in which one gets anxious, it’s not even considered a “disorder.”
As for its origins, some of my colleagues (psychiatrists) go the neurological route, and there ARE some differences in the brain functioning/activation of people with SP vs those without. However, this is NOT proof of an A–>B relationship, as the neruoimaging can be showing differences DUE TO SP, thus B–>A. There are numerous theories as to why someone develops SP (or any mood or anxiety disorder), and having been trained in seven different orientations, I can see validity in many different theories.
So, I would recommend that you not worry too much about HOW this SP developed, if such an origin does not come to mind. Instead, I would go about finding HELP for this. Short-term CBT is very effective to reduce or eliminate the symptoms IN THOSE FOR WHOM CBT IS EFFECTIVE (I know it sounds circular, but the fact is that the studies on effectiveness of CBT are usually conducted on ONLY THOSE WHO MEET OUR INCLUSIONARY/EXCLUSIONARY CRITERIA…thus, e.g., if 100 people apply for the study, we’ll screen out, say, 50 off the bat. Then, among the remaining 50, we may screen out 10 more. Out of the 40, 10-20 may drop out during the course of treatment (homework being the number one reason), and among the 20-30 remaining individuals, maybe 50-75% will have shown a GREAT improvement, and most of the rest will show SOME improvement. In the end, however, only the FINAL 20-30 get reported on, thus we can claim that CBT is very effective. They are trying to get researchers to report on the dropout rate and to be a bit more honest in the screening process so readers of the studies can get a better picture of what REAL percentage of people IN TOTAL benefit from CBT. But don’t expect your doctor to be as honest about everything I just wrote…
Now, when people come for CBT, they often realize that there are far more underlying issues than they had expected, and so some want to dig deeper to get at them. In short-term therapy you won’t really get to dig too deep, especially if the CBT practitioner is “old school” CBT (i.e., some of my colleagues are FINALLY accepting that CBT needs to focus more on the interpersonal and psychodynamic and TRUE emotional aspects of human functioning and not just cognitive/rational elements). However, the EXPOSURE aspects of CBT are, IMO, essential to overcoming your SP fears.
For more information, I’m sure you can google and find it, but look for OFFICIAL sites, otherwise who knows what kind of quackery you’ll find. Best of luck, and if you do seek a therapist, make sure there is a good bond between the two of you, as the therapeutic alliance is the BEST predictor of successful outcome in therapy (and you can usually tell by the 2nd or 3rd session if this alliance is “good”). Of course, depending on where you live, you may not have so much access to different therapists, and your sessions may or may not be covered…
