If it is any conciliation I have been diagnosed as having social anxiety. Me! motor mouth that I am. There was a point where I could interact quite well with people and could spend hours showing or explaining things, but I still was most comfortable by myself. I was a feller, and loved it. The only social activity I had was at lunch time other wise the rest of the time I was on my own and enjoyed it. I am not shy, but I certainly am cautious around people I do not know. There are a lot of us that don't fit the profiles by more than 50%.
Does it matter? The cure is still the same. The program will give you the skills and knowledge to put panic and anxiety back to normal levels. As for dealing with social anxiety that is just one more step which will be much easier to manage once you have the skills. It will teach you how to build confidence and self esteem so you can do and be anything you want to be. And go anywhere you want to.
If you take agoraphobia as being a fear of having no control over the situation. Then it would appear that is more likely what you have. Running rapids you are in charge, Lecturing, you are in charge. But going through the university doors you have rules and other people to deal with. You are giving over control of your life. There is an answer and cure for this called perception.
I, like a lot of people have agoraphobia or one of its sub phobias. It covers a lot of ground.
"Hadn't got over it yet" sounds like you had something traumatic happen that was out of your control. Does this sound like agoraphobia to you? It does to me.
I can't agree or disagree with your doctor's diagnosis, but in my experience there are some doctors that are far better equipped to help you cope with anxiety disorders than others. For instance, I had a doctor who advised me to quit Paxil cold turkey. Turns out that was not in my interest at all! It has taken me several tries but I have now found a doctor who will work with me in a method I am comfortable with to overcome my anxiety disorder. If you didn't feel this type of connection with your doctor, you may want to try another. It's frustrating, but it's worth it. Compassion and sound advice from a medical professional you trust is hugely important.
An accurate, pin-point diagnosis might not be so important right now (and I'm neither agreeing or disagreeing with your new docctor). However, your energy might be better used in working towards a solution to whatever the type of anxiety it is. Have you been using the program? The readings and activities are very helpful. You can become one of the success stories too! You sound like a bright and insightful young woman, and being determined to improve your situation is a huge factor in success.
I saw my new doctor today, just for a regular physcial, going over records, etc. She seems really great, but she disagrees with the anxiety diagnosis I was given over the years (social anxiety, etc). She kept saying I didn't fit the "profile", because I wasn't the "typical shy person".
I'm not actually shy. I can be very outgoing and boisterous. A good part of my current job is giving public presentations- from 5 to 500 people- and this has never bothered me. I actually enjoy giving them. I can face all kinds of scary situations with a certain amount of aplomb: I was a canoe guide for several years, but charging moose, widowmakers and canoe-eating rapids don't cause me the same panic as simply walking through a university door. Apparently because of this, she said I don't have social anxiety. She said social anxiety suffererers were "just extremely shy" and "avoided stimulating experiences", so I didn't fit the bill. I asked her what she thought my issue was then, after discussing the event that lead to much of my anxiety issues, and she said that I just "hadn't got over it yet".
This doesn't seem right to me. Why do I feel sometimes so horribly afraid then?
