Talking with my boyfriend's daughters and some of their friends, I discovered that their biggest fear was speaking in front of their classmates. Sometimes they would even accept a failing grade because their fear was so great of public speaking. I asked each one of them why they had such intense fear that would literally stop them from doing it at all; here are some of their answers:
1. There's a boy I like in my class and I'll be too embarrassed.
2. Way too many eyes are on me at once.
3. What if they don't understand what I'm saying?
4. What if I don't look pretty enough up there.
5. What if I don't sound smart enough?
6. I'm too shy.
7. Forget it, I have a pimple.
8. What if someone laughs at me?
9. I will be so nervous my voice will tremble and I'll sound like an idiot.
10. What if my clothes aren't nice enough.
For these teen girls these are very real, debilitating circumstances. For those who followed through they couldn’t remember a word they said. They stated they felt slightly dizzy, off balance, and very nauseous, their hearts were beating so loud that they couldn't hear themselves think. Their bodies were also shaking uncontrollably. This may not seem like a big surprise, a lot of people suffer from stage fright, but when it constantly affects you each and every time and gets worse instead of easier, leaving you feeling hopeless, discouraged and exhausted it’s time to take a look at anxiety and panic and find a way to fight back! The girls were paralyzed by feeling very anxious, their fear was so strong, they didn't even realize they were having an anxiety attack.
These panic and anxiety attacks are keeping teen girls from believing in themselves and being the confident young ladies they were created to be. I asked the girls, “If I gave you information on how to stop this fear from being so destructive and leave you feeling more relaxed and sure of yourself, would you take it?” They exclaimed, “Yes!”
I believed if the girls got a handle on their confidence and anxiety now it would only help them in the future. Their low self esteem and anxiety will only hold them back in life and will worsen as they get older. It will help them with job interviews, university and relationships.
I introduced them to Barry Joe McDonagh's Panic Awayprogram and they started reading it right away. I've checked back with them periodically and they have said that so far it is very straight forward and easy to understand. I knew that this was going to help the girls tremendously! I'm sure if they continue to practice Panic Away's One Move Technique their confidence will continue to improve and their fear of getting up in front of their peers will disappear forever.
Kirsten Young is a single mom with two children and started researching anxiety years ago to help one of her kids.
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