Anxiety can negatively affect relationships and the way people interact with others. Anxiety can cause people to shy away from social engagements. The Anxiety Disorders Association of America, or ADAA, reports that anxiety disorders can make it hard for some people to deal with and interact with others on a daily basis. Anxiety also increases the chances that people will avoid relationships with friends, family members and even intimate relationships, according to the ADAA.
Avoiding Relationships
More than 15 million Americas are afflicted with anxiety problems and 36 percent of those people put off seeking help for more than 10 years, according to a Harris Interactive study commissioned by the ADAA. People who experience these untreated anxiety disorders can have persistent fears about being scrutinized and/or humiliated in relationships, notes the ADAA. This can result, for some, in a decade or more of isolation from relationships.
Problems in Relationships
The ADAA-commissioned study found that 77 percent of people with social anxiety have reported that their disorder has impacted romantic relationships in negative ways. Also, the study found that 34 percent of people with social anxiety reported arguments with their significant other as a result of their anxiety.
Symptoms
Anxiety can manifest in symptoms that are hard for others to deal with, which can prevent some relationships from developing or cause other relationships to end early. These symptoms include intense headaches, insomnia, restlessness, irritability, inability to concentrate, intense and constant worry and invalidated concerns about being rejected, according to the website Help Guide.
Consequences
Anxiety can result in feelings of low self-esteem, lack of assertiveness, poor social skills, isolating behaviors, negative self-talk and sensitivity to criticism, according to the Mayo Clinic. When these consequences of anxiety occur, they make it hard for a person to maintain healthy and successful relationships.
Also, fear about maintaining relationships and being a good friend or partner will only intensify these negative feelings and low-self esteem. This perpetuates a person's anxiety and creates a cycle of anxiety in relationships. ADAA president Jerry Ross reports that people who cannot connect with others will begin to isolate themselves, which will result in more problems throughout their life.
Treatment
To decrease the negative consequences anxiety has on a person's relationships or to challenge the anxiety that is produced in relationships, treatment is needed. The ADAA reports that cognitive-behavioral therapy helps change a person's negative thought patterns about herself and others. It also helps her learn to think more realistically and challenge unrealistic thoughts, enables her to gain control of her life and teaches her ways to relax and cope with stresses and anxieties.
