[Joshy123]

Do you believe it is acceptable to miss days of school, or work for that matter, because of your Social Anxiety?

 

[sansd]

No, but I've done it a lot.

 

[millenniumman75]

Nope - I would go anyway. Exposure therapy. Even though kids are weird, they do grow up :yes.

 

[shyvr6]

I think if it was acceptable then a lot of people would never show up, haha.

 

[CircularThinking]

I have a hard time imagining how avoidance could be a good thing.

 

[Metallic]

I hate missing class. Even if I'm sick, unless I'm going to throw up every few seconds, then I'll make myself go. No matter what, even if my SA is telling me to run away, I always make myself go to class. It's also much easier to do when teachers require attendance because that counts towards your grade.

 

[Toad Licker]

Yes, but it's certainly not the best way to deal with your SA.

 

[hyacinth_dragon]

not an option for me, 100% attendance mandatory unless you have a medical excuse

 

[Kelly]

It's never acceptable to miss anything because of SA. I'm not saying it doesn't happen, but that doesn't make it right.

Have a nice day,
Kelly

 

[anomalous]

I imagine doing it once would start me down a very slippery slope. I pretty much never missed a day in HS unless I was really sick. In college, any skipping I've done has been more out of laziness (usually coupled with the class being at a god-awful early hour like 9 or 10am, lol) than SA.

I can definitely understand why some people with SA would do it from time to time, but I'd be very worried about it quickly leading down a path to more and more withdrawal from necessarily life experiences. Then again, I have approximately zero will power and self-control, so I've come to recognize the types of things I have to keep myself from doing even once.

 

[turbo7]

Its a tricky one

At work would you rather go in and do a bad job because you feel so anxious and depressed, or would it be better to take a day or 2 off and come in feeling happier and do the job properly?

I've taken a few days off (I make up random reasons) because somtimes I just cant face the idiots I work with and having to be "fake" and "act like a normal working person" to do my job and fit in with all the crap.

 

[coldmorning]

Depends... sometimes you're not losing out on anything by skipping out. But if you're part of some group presentation and others are depending on you then it's not so good.

 

[lyssado707]

The third option. And if whatever it is is becoming too overwhelming in general, I'd say to just quit it alltogether and take baby steps.

 

[SilentLoner]

Not unless you're having a panic attack or physical symptoms like stomach pains and such.

 

[Delicate]

I missed some school because of anxiety but it wasn't intentional or avoidance. I'd get sick in the morning, feel violently ill and sometimes I threw up when I was about to leave and once in the car... I thought I was actually ill.

 

[Shauna The Dead]

Of course. Anyone who has SA should realize that.

 

[Shauna The Dead]

I got physically sick(diarrhea- and vomiting when I was younger) due to SA.
if that's not reason enough to stay home then I don't know what is.

 

[Freedom2010]

No. Running away from the situations that cause you anxiety isn't going to make the anxiety go away.

 

[saramg83]

I would miss school a lot just to avoid riding the bus. I shouldn't have, but I was always being harassed and didn't know how to ignore it

 

[millenniumman75]

Not unless you're having a panic attack.

That is where we would walk ourselves through the panic, why we are feeling this way - what is causing it, etc. Its like a status check - I had one recently, where I had to check my thinking. Am I really perceiving things the way they are or am I overreacting?