Public Speaking Anxiety & Fear of Being Noticeably Nervous: Mind Surgery for High Performers

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EPISODE

Depression and Social Anxiety: A Christian Perspective

Joe, a stockbroker, describes his progress from long-term depression and social avoidance toward healing from a Christian perspective. He shares how his faith informed his understanding of his emotional struggles and became part of his journey toward overcoming social anxiety, isolation, and depression.

Episode Overview

What This Episode Is About

“Joe,” from Alabama, discusses his progress from long-term depression, social withdrawal, and avoidance toward greater emotional and spiritual well-being. By the time he sought help, he describes having reached one of the lowest points of his life. Over several years he had gradually withdrawn from family, friends, church activities, civic organizations, clubs, and other areas in which he had once been actively involved. Staying home became increasingly comfortable, while going to work and interacting with others became something he dreaded. Searching online for information about social anxiety eventually led him to treatment. Joe discusses his recovery partly through the framework of his Christian faith and describes reconnecting with aspects of himself and his life that had gradually disappeared as avoidance increased. His experience illustrates how social anxiety and depression can quietly narrow an individual’s world over time and how emotional insight, behavioral change, treatment, and personal faith can all become meaningful components of the healing process.

At a Glance

This podcast is best for:

CEOs, executives, clinicians, attorneys, students and performers whose careers depend on speaking — and who have found that competence alone did not resolve the fear.

Episode Details:

min,

sec

April 30, 2026

Full Transcript

This episode's transcript:

[00:00:00]

I’m on the phone with Joe from Alabama, who’s got an interesting story to share with us. Joe, thank you for being involved with this. Sure, glad to be a part of it. Okay, could you please describe your problem when you first came into the program? Well, I was at a state of mind where I was just kind of in depression, kind of at the very lowest. I look back on it, it was kind of a gradual thing that had been going on for probably a few years prior to that, but it just kind of hit it at its lowest point by the time I touched base with you. I was just kind of out of touch with people, not as involved with family and friends.

[00:00:56]

Before, I’d been very involved in church and civic organizations and clubs, and I just found myself getting withdrawn from that and just kind of not being involved with anyone. I probably got to the point where I could easily stay at home and not being involved and dreading going to work and that sort of thing. When you went searching for help, I do believe you referenced the term social anxiety on the Internet, is that correct? Yes, I did.

[00:01:49]

Before, I had always been involved in activities with social gatherings and the sort. I found myself off in the corner by myself, not really wanting to be around anybody, not engaging in conversations. I noticed people were not as receptive to me as they had once used to be, and striking up conversations is not something I would go after. Where once people would be kind of wanting to get to know me. How did you know to search for social anxiety? How did you know that’s part of what you had? Well, it was so different. I could just tell. When it got to being around my closest family, when I started noticing a change in me, I said, well, there’s obviously something going on there.

[00:02:48]

So I started kind of going within and started being more observant to the activities and how I had changed over the years and was no longer involved in things. I would find myself just not avoiding people to one point, even at work, getting involved with projects and team effort things. Whereas I would be in the forefront of leading things, I was always starting out to take the back seat to things, not offering my opinion to the issues. Were you aware of the term social anxiety yourself? No, not really. In my search on the Internet, I was throwing out words of depression, anxiety, and I had not really heard that term, social anxiety, and it wasn’t until I read your writing that I seemed to fit the profile of that. It’s always worth looking into.

[00:03:50]

Okay. Now, if I may ask, you reference yourself as a Christian. Can you just explain really briefly what that means? Really, the drawing on the spiritual side of my personality, your whole demeanor of things, your perception of outlook of things, the way you look within to find confidence. I was raised in a Christian heritage from childhood and really was involved in church, and it really meant a lot in my raising. It became a very instrumental part all through life, and I’d gotten sidetracked, really kind of put that on the back burner and was no longer involved in things like choirs and other ministry activities involved in the church.

[00:04:57]

You know, relying on my Lord Jesus Christ as my guidance. Well, thank you. No, I think that’s very helpful to a lot of people who can relate to the same values that you’re describing. Now, going back to the problem that you were first challenged with, depression, anxiety, your mood, your lifestyle, your overall attitude and energy, on a scale of 1 to 10, you know my famous skills, if 10 is the most severe and 1 is the least, what would you say the severity of your problem was when we first met? Oh, definitely a 7.5 to 8. Definitely. Okay. Now, moving down the scale, 1 is the best total healing. Where would you say you’re at right now? Oh gosh, there’s days I feel like a 1, but I’d say around a 1 and a 2. I mean, there’s just light years difference, 180 degree direction.

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Jonathan Berent, LCSW

Psychotherapist & Author — Social Anxiety and Performance Anxiety

Jonathan Berent, L.C.S.W., A.C.S.W., is a psychotherapist who has been practicing since 1978. He has created the Berent Treatment Method for Social Anxiety, which is the result of his clinical work with thousands of individuals of all ages with social anxiety since 1978. He has extensive clinical experience with avoidance and dependance personality disorder, and is the author of Work Makes Me Nervous: Overcome Anxiety and Build the Confidence to Succeed (Wiley, 2010), Beyond Shyness: How to Conquer Social Anxieties (Simon & Schuster, 1992), and Social Anxiety: The Untold Story, which is a training course for mental health professionals in using the Berent Method to treat social anxiety. (Andrew Kukes Foundation, 2011).

SocialAnxiety.com, has served millions of unique visitors as a multimedia clearinghouse for patients, parents, and fellow mental health professionals in search of articles, educational materials, and books on social anxiety and related subjects. His library of clinical interviews appears to be the most documented clinical success with social anxiety.

Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW)
40+ years in private practice
Author of "Beyond Shyness" and "Work Makes Me Nervous"
Featured on national television and radio
Specialist in performance and social anxiety

Guest Speaker

Frequently Asked Questions

Common Questions About Social Anxiety Treatment

What is the relationship between social anxiety and public speaking anxiety?

Social anxiety is based on performance dynamics. Public speaking anxiety is a specific performance venue. Social anxiety can occur as part of a broader more pervasive pattern and can include a variety of interactive situations including fear of meetings, conversations, networking, dating, authority figures, conflict, or being observed. A thorough assessment can help determine whether the anxiety is limited to performance situations or extends into other areas of life.

Can chronic public speaking and social anxiety contribute to depression?

Chronic anxiety can significantly affect quality of life. Repeated avoidance, lost opportunities, isolation, frustration, and the feeling of being unable to overcome the problem can contribute to discouragement, burnout, depressed mood, and dysthymia. When anxiety and depression occur together, both should be considered when developing an appropriate treatment strategy.

Can avoiding public speaking make anxiety worse?

Yes. Avoidance can strengthen public speaking anxiety because the person never gets the opportunity to develop a different response to the feared situation. Each avoided presentation or meeting can reinforce the belief that anxiety is unmanageable. Gradually developing the ability to tolerate and work through anxiety is an important part of long-term improvement. Common sense will tell you that practice is required for learning anxiety control skills.

Can public speaking anxiety be overcome after having it for many years?

Of course. That said it requires hard work and a major investment in technique concurrent with deep emotional work. The length of time someone has experienced public speaking anxiety does not necessarily determine whether meaningful improvement is possible. Long-standing patterns can become deeply ingrained, but people can learn new ways of responding to adrenaline, anxiety, self-criticism, avoidance, and the fear of being evaluated by others. In most cases it requires resolving complex trauma.

Why does worrying that people will notice my anxiety make it worse?

Because it becomes an ingrained psycho-physiological (mind-body tic). When you closely monitor yourself for signs of nervousness, normal changes in heart rate, body temperature, breathing, or speech can become threatening. That perceived threat can produce additional adrenaline, which increases the very sensations you are trying to prevent. Breaking this cycle involves changing both the response to adrenaline and the underlying thoughts and emotions.

Take the Next Step

You Do Not Have to Manage This Alone

Public speaking anxiety, performance anxiety, and social anxiety respond to treatment. If this episode described your experience, a conversation is the great next step.