Get nervous before meeting a group of new people? Agonizing over that work lunch you had? Are you going over every single detail in your head about your behavior? There may be a solution for that.

Psychology Today reports the results of a new study done by University of Sydney's Matthew Modini and Maree Abbott that demonstrates a direct link between socially anxious behaviors and the thought process that leads up to the exhibition of those behaviors.

What does that mean? Modini and Abbott found that if you're doing what they refer to as "ruminating", you're more likely to guarantee anxious behaviors in social settings. Basically, if you find yourself focusing too much on how scared or uncomfortable a pending social gathering or event is going to be for you, it most definitely will be just that - an awful experience. If you're worried about spilling coffee, sounding uneducated, etc., then the likelihood of that happening is greatly increased.

The best solution? Not to think about it. No, seriously. Sounds pretty simple, right? But, think about it: if you or someone you know suffers from social anxiety, that's the first thing he or she does before an important event. You can't help but think about all the different ways the night could go wrong.

Modini and Abbott suggest that therapy should start at what even causes someone to think about what could go wrong. Finding out those triggers, they believe, could solve a lot of the problem outright.

Read more about the study HERE!

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