The Lifeworks Group, Inc.

 By: Brian Murray, LMHC, NCC Social Anxiety Disorder is a diagnosable mental health condition where the person suffering from it has a strong fear of other people and social interactions. Those with the disorder during social interactions, such as those at work, home and among friends, can be severe enough to cause job performance loss, avoidance of gatherings and isolation. Even doing simple everyday tasks such as going to the grocery store can create a strong anxiety or panic reaction. The underlying fear of social anxiety is the perception of scrutiny by others. This same behavior is also seen in those with low self-esteem often remaining silent in social situations. Low self-esteem is a major contributor to social anxiety disorder. Internal psychological pressure occurs when they feel like they are being observed by others. They literally fear what others might possibly be thinking about them in a negative manner. This can happen when eating, speaking in front of others, ...

 By: Brian Murray, LMHC, NCC   Covid has created a psychological mind storm since breaking out nearly a year ago. Counseling for anxiety searches on Google tripled in just one-month last March and continues to dominate as one of the leading mental health searches. Anxiety is closely followed by depression as a mental health concern. It shows that after Covid arrived in the United States there was an upheaval in people trying to get a handle on anxiety. Anxiety is a natural response our mind produces that basically gives us two choices which is fight or flight. When we feel cornered and there is no escape, we tend to fight. If we have options to escape, we tend to flee. Panic which is also a form of anxiety is when we feel like we can do neither and feel trapped with no way out. Covid has certainly created all three of these types of anxiety scenarios. If we are to flee then we isolate and avoid others and try to shrink ourselves to the threat. To fight may mean we jo...

By: Dwight Bain, LMHC, NCC Acceptance may be the solution   “Unprecedented” is how many describe COVID-19 because our culture has nothing to compare with the devastating levels of fear and change. The coronavirus crisis is different from other community crisis events like hurricanes, economic recessions, or mass shootings like the Pulse massacre because it just goes on and on. This prolonged exposure to uncertainty, fears of being laid-off, coupled with trying to home school while working from home or searching for toilet paper and hand sanitizer can be mentally numbing. Not to mention the very real risk of a disease described by Surgeon General Jerome Adams as "ten times more contagious than the flu" The traumatic stress of coronavirus and the extended lockdown can be emotionally overwhelming to many, especially the aged, children and those over-exposed to negative media. This pandemic has been one of the most stressful experiences many Americans have ex...