6 - Feeling Anxious Around Other People

Summary

Being pregnant and having a new baby attracts lots of attention and usually involves meeting a range of new people from professionals to other parents. This can be difficult if you experience social anxiety; the postnatal period can be a particularly challenging time as fears of being judged for how you are going about things are very common. Furthermore, it is easy to fall into self-criticism and self-judgements that we are not doing things well enough and that other parents are doing things better than we are. This chapter will help you understand the particular processes that keep social anxiety going and will help you develop alternative strategies that you can use to change your experience of social situations. The chapter will also help you understand the difference between high standards and unhelpful perfectionism, and what you can do to live more comfortably in your own skin as a parent and support yourself through this challenging time to become the parent you want to be.