- Published: September 21, 2022
- Updated: September 21, 2022
- University / College: Cardiff University
- Level: Undergraduate
- Language: English
- Downloads: 11
Public Speaking Public Speaking Public speaking is recognized as the most common form of social phobia. This issue is experienced by people because they perceive that something negative is going to arise if they speak in public, and to avoid experiencing embarrassment, they fear to speak in front of the public (Spitzer, 2002, p. 164). When an individual who fears to speak in public experiences anxiety, his body enters the fight or flight mode and in response the heart beat increases along with an increase in blood pressure, and this results in the shallowness of breathing ability (Weissman, 2009, p. XXII). The best way to overcome fear of public speaking is deep breathing as it will help in regaining control over emotions (Brooks, 2012, p. 126).
During class presentations, I always had a fear that I would say something that will make people laugh at me and I will feel inferior, and the laughter will become a moment of embarrassment for me. Due to this I used to avoid those courses and those teachers who used to give preference to presentations in class over other course work. Due to my fear of public speaking, I used to stammer a lot and the entire class used to laugh and make fun of me. Once my teacher came to me and told me that I should stop fearing the public while speaking and this would solve my issue of fear of public speaking. She said that all I had to do was to take a deep breath and wait for a few seconds, and soon I would start feeling calm and would deliver my speech easily.
References
Brooks, D. (2012). Fear, phobias and freedom: Discovering the key to living fearlessly free. S. l.: Balboa Pr.
Spitzer, R. L. (2002). DSM-IV-TR casebook. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Pub.
Weissman, J. (2009). The power presenter: Technique, style, and strategy from Americas top speaking coach. Hoboken, N. J.: John Wiley & Sons.
