Social phobia, or social anxiety disorder, affects more than 13 percent of Americans. It is a real and serious health problem that responds to treatment. The first step is seeking help. If you suspect that you might suffer from social phobia, complete the following self-test by clicking the "yes" or "no" boxes next to eachquestion, print out the test and show the results to your health care professional.


HOW CAN I TELL IF IT'S SOCIAL PHOBIA?

Are you troubled by:

1.	An intense and persistent fear of a social situation in which people might judge you?	Yes   No
2.	Fear that you will be humiliated by your actions?	Yes   No
3.	Fear that people will notice that you are blushing, sweating, trembling, or showing other signs of anxiety?	Yes   No
4.	Knowing that your fear is excessive or unreasonable?	Yes   No

Does the feared situation cause you to:

5.	Always feel anxious?	Yes   No
6.	Experience a "panic attack", during which you suddenly are overcome by intense fear or discomfort, including any of these symptoms?	Yes   No
7.	Pounding heart	Yes   No
8.	Sweating	Yes   No
9.	Trembling or shaking	Yes   No
10.	Shortness of breath	Yes   No
11.	Choking	Yes   No
12.	Chest pain	Yes   No
13.	Nausea or abdominal discomfort	Yes   No
14.	"Jelly" legs	Yes   No
15.	Dizziness	Yes   No
16.	Feelings of unreality or being detached from yourself	Yes   No
17.	Fear of losing control, "going crazy"	Yes   No
18.	Fear of dying	Yes   No
19.	Numbness or tingling sensations	Yes   No
20.	Chills or hot flashes	Yes   No
21.	Go to great lengths to avoid participating in the feared situation?	Yes   No
22.	Does all of this interfere with your daily life?	Yes   No

Having more than one illness at the same time can make it difficult to diagnose and treat the different conditions. Illnesses that sometimes complicate anxiety disorders include depression and substance abuse. With this in mind, please take a minute toanswer the following questions:

23.

Have you experienced changes in sleeping or eating habits?

Yes   No

More days than not, do you feel:

19.	Sad or depressed?	Yes   No
20.	Disinterested in life?	Yes   No
21.	Worthless or guilty?	Yes   No

During the last year, has the use of alcohol or drugs:

24.	Resulted in your failure to fulfill responsibilities with work, school, or family?	Yes   No
25.	Placed you in a dangerous situation, such as driving a car under the influence?	Yes   No
26.	Gotten you arrested?	Yes   No
27.	Continued despite causing problems for you and/or your loved ones?	Yes   No

* © 2004 Anxiety Disorders Association of America