Phobias

Sometimes social phobias are mistaken for shyness, but the two are very different. Shy people may feel anxious about the same things as phobic people, but they don't feel paralyzed (unable to move) and terrified. They may not enjoy going to parties or speaking in public, but they don't completely rearrange their lives to avoid those things. A shy person may feel self-conscious making a class presentation or playing a sport. A person with a social phobia would drop the class to avoid the presentation or quit the team to avoid being watched by spectators. Weeks and even months before the presentation or the big game, the phobic person would already be worried and afraid.