Social Anxiety Skills That Actually Help w/ Dr. Deborah Dobson

Therapy in a Nutshell

Therapy in a Nutshell -Emma McAdam

Mental Health, Health & Fitness, Education, Health & Fitness:mental Health, Self-improvement

4.8 • 657 Ratings

🗓️ 27 March 2026

⏱️ 47 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Social Anxiety Explained with Dr. Deborah Dobson: Why Social Anxiety Feels So Intense and the Skills That Actually Help Learn the skills to Regulate your Emotions, join the membership: https://courses.therapyinanutshell.com/membership Dr. Dobson's Book: Living Well with Social Anxiety: https://a.co/d/jgOGAHL My exposure therapy video: https://youtu.be/TYQ2qWgVJrY In this conversation, Emma McAdam and Deb Dobson explore the complexities of social anxiety, its prevalence, and the impact of avoidance on mental health. They discuss common cognitive distortions associated with social anxiety, the importance of self-compassion, and practical strategies for managing anxiety in social situations. Deb emphasizes the value of small, consistent exposure to challenging situations and the need to reframe negative thoughts. The conversation highlights the significance of recognizing one's progress and being kind to oneself throughout the journey of overcoming social anxiety. Looking for affordable online counseling? My sponsor, BetterHelp, connects you to a licensed professional from the comfort of your own home. Try it now for 10% off your first month: https://betterhelp.com/therapyinanutshell Learn more in one of my in-depth mental health courses: https://courses.therapyinanutshell.com Support my mission on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/therapyinanutshell Sign up for my newsletter: https://www.therapyinanutshell.com Check out my favorite self-help books: https://kit.co/TherapyinaNutshell/best-self-help-books Therapy in a Nutshell and the information provided by Emma McAdam are solely intended for informational and entertainment purposes and are not a substitute for advice, diagnosis, or treatment regarding medical or mental health conditions. Although Emma McAdam is a licensed marriage and family therapist, the views expressed on this site or any related content should not be taken for medical or psychiatric advice. Always consult your physician before making any decisions related to your physical or mental health. In therapy I use a combination of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Systems Theory, positive psychology, and a bio-psycho-social approach to treating mental illness and other challenges we all face in life. The ideas from my videos are frequently adapted from multiple sources. Many of them come from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, especially the work of Steven Hayes, Jason Luoma, and Russ Harris. The sections on stress and the mind-body connection derive from the work of Stephen Porges (the Polyvagal theory), Peter Levine (Somatic Experiencing) Francine Shapiro (EMDR), and Bessel Van Der Kolk. I also rely heavily on the work of the Arbinger Institute for my overall understanding of our ability to choose our life's direction. And deeper than all of that, the Gospel of Jesus Christ orients my personal worldview and sense of security, peace, hope, and love https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/comeuntochrist/believe If you are in crisis, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org or 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or your local emergency services. Copyright Therapy in a Nutshell, LLC

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome back to another episode of the Therapy in a Nutshell podcast. I'm Emma McAdam and I'm a licensed marriage and family therapist.
0:07.0	And this podcast is all about taking the life-changing, but usually kind of complicated topics of therapy and boiling them down into simple, easy to understand concepts that you can use in your daily life.
0:19.0	If you find today's episode as helpful to you, please pass it on to someone else who could benefit from it as well.
0:23.6	Each podcast episode comes from a corresponding video you can find on the Therapy in a Nutshell YouTube channel.
0:28.6	Also, these podcasts are educational and don't replace the advice or direction you may be receiving
0:33.6	from a therapist or other health professionals. Now please, enjoy the episode.
0:38.8	If you have social anxiety, you might struggle to talk to people, especially small talk.
0:43.4	You might struggle to do public presentations or share your ideas.
0:46.7	You might struggle to go places where you have to be around people, or you might feel awkward or weird.
0:53.8	Today, I'm really excited to have a special guest, Dr. Deborah Dobson.
0:59.0	She is a specialist in social anxiety.
1:03.0	She just wrote the book Living Well with Social Anxiety.
1:06.0	And I loved our conversation.
1:09.0	I learned a ton from her about these really practically, easily
1:13.1	approachable ways to work through social anxiety. So I'm so much for joining us today.
1:30.0	I'm so excited to talk about social anxiety.
1:32.3	I feel like it's such a common situation that a lot of people deal with.
1:36.5	So I'm really grateful to have you here.
1:38.7	Oh, thanks, Emma.
1:39.4	I'm really happy to be here today because this is one of my favorite topics to talk about social anxiety and also
1:45.6	kind of related to social anxiety, simply old shyness. Lots and lots of people are shy. Lots of people are
1:53.6	socially anxious. It's a really, really common problem, you know, affecting closing in on 8 to 10% of the
	...

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