Stress Center Peer Support

Hi,

My name is rocky. I had social anxiety and depression. I was a very shy person. I am a good looking man but I still had no serious dating experience yet. I am now 30.

I purchased the program in Oct of 2007. I started the program immediately. I worked in a retail shop starting from April in 2008. I had to sell products to different people. Because of my hard work and the help of the program, I become the top sales of the shop. I felt very confident and I lead over 10 people to run 2 retail shops. I started to chase girls and I had a very short relationship with a girl. I felt I have totally overcome the problem.

Since I became very confident about my presentation skill and my business skill, I quit my job in the retail shop. I work at my home writing business proposal because I want to start my business. However, when I don't need to talk to people frequently everyday, I feel depress again. My symptoms comes back and I cannot concentrate on conversation with other people. I really don't know what to do now.

I really feel disappointed. I lose my confident to chase girls again. What should I do? Sometimes, we need to work alone to prepare for your business. I know that my anxiety will go away again if I go back to the previous job, however, that's not what I want.

Could someone give me some advice? I really feel desperate.

Hi Rocky!

Congratulations on your success! Could your returning depression be related to a sudden (and pretty major) change in your daily life? I know that I feel more anxious when my schedule changes drastically. I'm a teacher, and the first few weeks of summer vacation are always difficult for me. Not having the job that you went to every day for years is something that can take a lot of time to adjust to.

What was it about your previous job that helped you feel confident? Obviously your confidence came from within you, but there must have been something about your work environment that really encouraged it. If it was just being around people in general, you might want to try doing some volunteer work at a homeless shelter, or looking into the possibility of serving as a mentor for a child in a local school. If it was your co-workers specifically, try giving them a call and getting together for dinner or something.

I know that these are not especially original suggestions, but they're at least something to consider. I wish you the best of luck! Remember that anxiety is not something that goes away completely or that you can be "cured" of, but rather something that you learn to manage more successfully. You know that you are capable of managing it, and if you try to use some of the strategies you used before, I'm sure your confidence will eventually begin to come back.

Good luck to you!!