Cure for Social Phobia: Will There Be One?
There just might be a cure on the horizon. Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), normally used only for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), has shown promise for treating Social Anxiety.While I wouldn’t call it a “cure” yet, this treatment might yield the best and longest lasting results.But first, let’s start by asking this question…What is Social Phobia?Social phobia is an extremely debilitating condition where an individual has a strong, overpowering fear of people, crowds and social places (APA, 1994). If you have it, you know what I mean. It can be so bad that you will find yourself missing out on almost everything in life.People with social phobia see the world like walking through a minefield. Over time, social phobia will eventually lead to other disorders (like itself wasn’t enough) such as: depression, anxiety and even panic attacks.In the past, people have used standard therapy to treat this condition along with medication management. Prozac, Xanax, and the like are often prescribed for this condition. While medications help minimize the symptoms, they seldom work in the long run without some form of counseling.So What Causes Social Phobia?This condition usually occurs as a result of some type of childhood trauma, but it can also be hereditary. Some individuals are naturally timid because they have an oversensitive nervous system. But most people develop this condition as a result of recurring traumatic experiences that involve ridicule and humiliation, either by peers or by an autocratic figure.Tell Me More…People with this condition need plenty of support and understanding. Again, it is difficult to establish trust with people if they have been extremely judgmental or have hurt their self esteem in other ways.While one can say that this condition involves irrational fears, one thing is for sure: there are people who will try to bring you down or hurt you, especially if they know that you are emotionally vulnerable. There aren’t a lot of these individuals, but they do exist and unfortunately, they will destroy your self-esteem so they can enhance their own.Social phobia is your body’s way of protecting you from these people or anyone who might criticize or ridicule you. It is basically an over protective defense mechanism engineered by your mind.Back to EMDR Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a form of therapy that has been used almost exclusively to treat individuals with PTSD such as those exposed directly to military combat or victims of abuse or trauma (e.g., rape).EMDR was first discovered back in 1987 by Dr. Francine Shapiro, a clinical psychologist in the state of California. She noticed that particular eye movements appeared to reduce the influence of distressing memories.After several scientific studies, EMDR is now regarded as the most effective therapy for treating PTSD.EMDR therapy uses right-left eye stimulation, as well as touch stimulation, which engages the parts of the brain involved in the trauma. This method helps the brain and the body process the trauma more efficiently and allows the mind to heal.Given that many people with social anxiety have been victims of some form of mental or physical abuse, EMDR should be an effective treatment. As mentioned earlier, recent studies have shown promising results that EMDR might be another powerful weapon in the treatment, and possible cure, of social phobia.Social-Phobia: Clinical TrialsIf you want to find more information about the latest studies regarding social phobia, or if you’d like to volunteer for a study, follow the link below and type “social phobia” in the keyword search.http://www.clinicaltrials.govFinal NoteEMDR definitely is showing promise for the treatment of this debilitating condition (EMDR, 2011).While EMDR is a powerful tool, results will be far greater if used in combination with other forms of therapy, such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT).In the end, you might find that whatever treatment you chose, you are and will always be the captain of your ship. Your boat might not be shaped like others, and it might take a few hits, but since you’ve read this article, then you are on your way, sailing towards a full recovery.Never give up!ReferencesAmerican Psychiatric Association (1994). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders: DSM-IV. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association.EMDR Institute (2011). Retrieved from: http://www.emdr.com/general-information/phobia-and-panic-disorder-studies.html
Getting Started With an Online Business Idea
In the past, creating a new business to generate extra income involved setting up a ‘bricks and mortar’ outlet with stock, rent, staff and all the other associated business headaches. Now, with the internet, setting up your own work from home business is much more efficient.In this current economy more people are starting to look at different ways that they can earn some extra income. All too many of us are working longer hours and earning less money than we did a few years ago.The fall and decline of some of the high street names has made some people think that the whole business world is collapsing. But, for an online business idea, the digital world of the internet, business is booming! The “digital economy”, is showing a trend of people shifting their focus to creating their own businesses online instead of working for someone else in a ‘traditional business’.When it comes to an online business idea, one of the easiest and most profitable methods is through affiliate marketing. This is because becoming an affiliate marketer requires no experience, no stock and simple promotional techniques that will convert prospective buyers into customers.It is quite a simple online business idea – you promote products and services of other vendors and when they are sold, you make a commission.It takes some basic things to be successful at affiliate marketing:
Staying focused.
Picking a niche product to start with and then getting started.
Making a schedule and then sticking to it.
Be willing to learn how to successfully implement your online business idea into reality
Where do you start with your online business idea?One place to start is ClickBank, which is like an warehouse retailer of digital products. With over 10,000 digital products, it is one of the premier affiliate networks. It is easy to use, easy to join, and there are products in many different markets. You will certainly find a product that you would like to promote here.In order to earn commissions, all you need to do is create an account with an affiliate ID, find a product that you want to promote and create a link that you can send customers to.When they click on your link, it will record your commissions when they buy the product.When you are working on your online business idea and looking at ClickBank, you will see a few references to each of the products.Sale Price: This is the amount that affiliates are earning for referring customers.Percentage of Sale: This is the average percentage commissions earned per affiliate per sale.Gravity of Product: The gravity number is important because it shows the popularity of the product over time. Every time the product is sold or a new affiliate joins and uses the link, the gravity of the program will change. When you are starting out with affiliate marketing on ClickBank, ideally you want the gravity rating for the product that you want to promote to be between 20 and 100. If it is more than 100, it means that is a lot of competition selling this product. If it is less than 20, it means that there is not a lot of interest in the product.So, now you have found your products for your online business idea, you need to go out into the marketplace and find people to buy them.I will discuss how to do this in another article.If you are considering an online business idea, consider this: ComScore.com, a leader in measuring the digital world, reported that the holiday season online retail spending for 2012 was a 16-percent increase over 2011.This includes November 26 (aka Cyber Monday) which became the heaviest online spending day on record at $1.4 billion.This surge of billions and billions of online spending being transferred from brick and mortar stores to the internet has created an incredible opportunity for those have an online business idea.
Telecommunication – Connecting People
What is going to be the scenario if there would be no telecommunication in this generation? I couldn’t imagine how miserable life would be without internet, radio and television or cable networks, VoIP, mobile phones or landlines. Indeed, telecommunication plays a very vital role to connect people from around the globe in an instant and make everyday living pleasurable and productive.Regardless of the location, size, and economic condition of a certain country, telecommunication is always regarded as the most powerful tool in linking individuals. In the past, the traditional landline phone served as a very important instrument in communicating with a colleague or family member who is a million miles away. As the years go by, innovation in technology became so aggressive thereby introducing new products day after day. Though, we do not disregard the power of wired telecommunication, which is also continuously revolutionizing to have something new to offer to the public, the conceptualization of wireless technology made a great impact to the human race.Now, an individual could be linked to the World Wide Web in an instant with the use of Wi-Fi broadband internet connection. It is faster and reliable than the usual dial-up. When you want to talk to somebody else, you can do it basically anytime, anywhere using a cellular phone. If you are always on the go, mobile handset is the best one for you. You can choose from a simple mobile phone that only features talk and text or to a pricey unit called smart phone, which is now the latest trend. This invention took the world by storm because of its capability to connect online, check e-mail and enjoy social networking sites.In the early 80′s, Voice over Internet Protocol of VoIP greeted the world with a big “HELLO”. It is another genius creation that paved way to a very cheap communication rate as compared to the conventional telephone. This means that calling a family or friend who is staying abroad would no longer be expensive. These days, many people are saving a lot of bucks with the use of VoIP. If you need to make calls often for personal or business related matters, this VoIP is a must-have technologically advanced product.Wireless telecommunication has developed so quickly. There’s no doubt about it. Wired technology also does and it continues to enhance its facilities to achieve perfection. For instance, a couple of decades ago, internet started with the use of dial-up connections. The speed was so poor. Now, surfing the net is more than fun because of Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line or ADSL. With this new data communications technology, information could now be transmitted in a flash. ADSL is a form of DSL (Digital Subscriber Line) that uses copper telephone lines.Connecting with special people in our lives has never been easy until telecommunication came into reality. Now, with more sophisticated facilities and state-of-the-art technologies, the telecomm industry gives superb services, making communication between and among people worldwide, from all walks of life, economical and trouble-free.