THE FEAR OF PUBLIC SPEAKING?

Some fear it more than death ... How do we deal with public speaking?



Fear of public speaking is one of the most difficult fears, to the degree that for some people it exceeds their fear of death. This heavy-handed phobia never comes alone, rather it is accompanied by several symptoms that make talking to those around you even a whisper heavier on yourself than walking on coals, from slight anxiety and chest tightness to successive panic attacks that make your head turn against it, and prompt you to think deeply about Negative thoughts that make their way into your mind at the speed of sound, forgetting your next words that you have prepared well, speaking in a faint voice tinged with fear, wandering and hesitation. 

The above is not an exaggeration to the emotional experience experienced by anyone suffering from a phobia of public speaking, for these words, despite the ease of writing them, their severe impact, with its prolonged effects, cannot describe the experience of those who suffer from this phobia. Each person's experience differs from the other in their fear, some feel a slight tingling or slight tension when thinking about speaking in front of an audience, while others experience panic and fear every time they think of standing in front of an audience. But why does this fear occur? Is it possible to get rid of it?

What is the phobia of public speaking?

Fear of speaking in front of the public is a social phobia, and one of the manifestations of performance anxiety with which a person feels very anxious about his appearance clearly disturbed when standing in front of the audience, whether this audience is a small few or large crowds. This phobia is the most common of all other phobias, as some experts estimate that up to 75% of the population suffers from this phobia in its various levels, from slight stress that is easy to control to unexplained levels of fear that affect severely. Cajole on work, study and social life.



“Fear of public speaking is more common in younger patients than in others, and it may be more prevalent in females than males,” says physician Jeffrey Straw, who is an associate professor of psychiatry and director of the Anxiety Disorders Research Program in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine at the University of Cincinnati. He adds: This fear is often present in individuals suffering from social anxiety disorder in which abstract daily interactions lead to extreme anxiety, fear, and unjustified embarrassment. However, it should be noted that not all those who suffer from a phobia of public speaking have a disorder Social anxiety.

To be a good speaker, able to speak in front of crowds brilliantly in the era of human development and the motivational lectures that we are living in, as you are like someone who has "Solomon's seal". This skill, which has become a major gateway to the job of the unemployed, is already considered an essential element for success at all levels, whether academic or professional, or even at the level of social and personal life. Your ability to speak effectively in front of an audience enables you to brilliantly promote your ideas and communicate them clearly to your listeners, helping you advance your career, grow your business, and form strong relationships.

Quite the opposite, fear of public speaking can prevent you from risking sharing your thoughts and opinions, talking about your business and providing solutions to problems you face, which directly affects the amount of your personal and professional growth. With the passage of time, you try to protect yourself by avoiding situations that require standing in front of the public at any cost. This price may be very expensive in many cases to the extent that some students may move to choose classes or majors other than what they want, and some graduates work in Jobs that do not suit their aspirations, and some employees overlook promotions and avoid meetings, all in order to avoid public speaking.

Why are we afraid of public speaking?

There are many reasons why people are afraid to speak in front of the public or in public places, and are often linked to the combination of several factors, including what is genetic, biological, environmental and psychological, the most prominent and logical of these reasons is that the fear of speaking in front of the public is not related to the quality of speech or the strength of speech. As far as how a speaker feels, thinks and acts when speaking in front of an audience, we as humans are programmed to worry about reputations, and speaking in front of an audience might threaten it. 

So before you speak in front of the audience, yourself talk to you and ask again and again; What if everyone rejects me or does not pay attention to my talk? What if they think I'm boring or stupid, or think I'm a bad speaker? This is what goes on in the mind of anyone suffering from a phobia of public speaking, as it is not all about how good and rational the speech is when it comes to reputation and the fear of rejection and rejection. For people to see you as boring or stupid is a direct threat that your brain deals with like any other threat that may affect your life, so the autonomic nervous system is triggered to respond to this potential threat, and many vital processes take place quickly before your limb turns back to you.

Between the convolutions of your brain, the hypothalamus stimulates the pituitary gland to secrete adrenal-directed hormone, which in turn stimulates the thyroid gland, which in turn releases adrenaline into your blood. Your body begins to prepare physiologically for the battle in which there is no enemy or weapon, so your legs and hands tremble, the rate of sweating increases, the rate of blood pressure rises, your abdominal muscles contract, and the digestion process stops until additional amounts of oxygen are available to be pumped into the vital organs, which leads to dry throat and widening your pupils, so it comes out Your fear of control and your ability to perform well in front of an audience diminishes. 

      

Dr. Geoffrey Straw comments on that, saying: The fear of public speaking may be related to previous experiences, as a person who has a bad experience with public speaking may fear repeating this experience again when trying to speak in front of the public. He adds: People who are afraid to speak in front of the public are afraid to feel embarrassed or rejected, so if someone is asked to speak to a group of people immediately without any opportunity for prior preparation, and the conversation does not go through as required, it is very likely that this person begins to fear of Speak in front of the public for the rest of his life.

Therefore, like any other phobia, previous experiences and experiences related to public speaking play a pivotal role in reinforcing or discouraging this fear, but the matter extends deeper than that in the case of negative experiences in which a person is exposed to ostracism or ridicule, bullying and other negative feelings, as These experiences in themselves are persistent obstacles that are difficult to remove and dispose of easily. In addition to the previous reasons, there are many additional variable factors - easy to control - that contribute in one way or another to the occurrence of fear of speaking in front of the public, such as: lack of experience and skills.



 

As with any other skill, experience and good experience enhance your abilities to perform well and highlight your competence in public speaking. Increased efficiency leads inevitably to increased confidence, which is considered an effective antidote to public speaking phobia, and therefore lack of experience and lack of skill and practice are real obstacles that reflect negatively on Your ability to speak in front of the public and double the amount of fear of it. Also, in some cases, speaking in front of people of a higher status than him, such as his bosses at work or others, may enhance this fear.