Caring For Those Who Suffer from Social Anxiety
By: Rev. Chad E. Wright, Associate Pastor of Christian Care & Counseling
Do you like wearing a mask? Months into the pandemic, people have seemingly broken into two camps: those who want to wear masks and those who do not. Recently, however, a subgroup has emerged: people who want to wear masks, especially because it helps with their social anxiety. The fact that wearing a mask reduces transmission of disease is an additional perk.
Experts in the study and treatment of social anxiety aren’t necessarily surprised by this development. Masks allow for a sense of anonymity, and a desire for anonymity is a coping strategy for social anxiety. David Moscovitch is a professor of psychology at the University of Waterloo. He has spent years studying the nature of social anxiety and its treatment. Currently, he and a student are working on a paper on the potential effects of mask-wearing on social anxiety. In an interview with Sarah Sloat, he said, “It is not surprising to me that people who are socially anxious would feel more comfortable wearing masks since the core problem in social anxiety is concern about self-exposure. Masks certainly help with the desire to self-conceal, particularly for those individuals who believe that masks might help to conceal their imagined flaws in physical appearance, or showing signs of anxiety to others, thereby preventing negative evaluation.”
Vaile Wright, a psychologist and the senior director of Health Care Innovation in the Practice Directorate at the American Psychological Association, says this situation is reminiscent of social media, which has been shown to actually reduce social anxiety. Like a social media profile, masks give you the option to obscure yourself. “I think [the mask] enables people to feel freer; to express themselves without that fear of being judged or criticized.”
Even when this pandemic is over, some may like these benefits of wearing a mask due to their social anxiety. Some people will probably mock them, “The pandemic’s over!” Some might glare at them disparagingly. How will we as followers of Christ handle it? Will we make them feel comfortable, criticize them or judge them? Imagine someone coming into our sanctuary when it is all over, still wearing a mask? What will we say or do?
Jesus, who died for us and made us His family, calls us to look at our neighbor with the same perspective as He sees us. I hope that you are wearing a mask now out of love for your neighbor. It is the one thing we all can do to slow and stop the spread of this virus. But what about after the pandemic is over? How will you treat someone struggling with social anxiety if they choose to keep wearing a mask? I pray that the answer is still love. “Man looks at the outward appearance but the LORD looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7) May we too look to the heart and be people whose hearts the LORD loves.
I pray that this can be helpful for you. See you next week right here at the intersection of faith and mental health.