Public Speaking Anxiety Therapy

More About Public Speaking Anxiety From My Blog

Public Speaking Fear Therapy Example 1

The following is a fictional example of public speaking anxiety therapy. Of course, all clients are different, and this example is designed to give a general idea of what public speaking fear therapy would be like, even though your own therapy might be different.

Jim came looking for public speaking fear treatment because he had to give a weekly seminar at his work in front of anywhere from 5-20 people. He knows he is well-regarded at work, and is confident in his job performance, but he still has been experiencing these fears for some time. His anxiety manifests in both physical symptoms, such as shortness of breath and rapid heartbeat, plus psychological symptoms, such as anticipatory anxiety and extreme self-consciousness.

Public Speaking Anxiety Therapy Initial Steps

We start by working to identify the specific aspects that make Jim anxious. For him, it is a fear of being judged or making mistakes. We start to challenge those fears with reality – does he have any evidence that people are actually judging him harshly or unfairly, or that he’s prone to making mistakes? These types of challenges to his irrational and exaggerated thoughts will become a cornerstone of our work together.

We also instituted a plan by which he will practice a little more when in front of others. Practice is key to building confidence. He had realized that, as opposed to when he was in college and could basically talk off the cuff, the high-level professional atmosphere puts more pressure in place, and he might do well to become more familiar with his material.

Finally, we worked on having him imagine himself giving a successful and well-received speech. Visualization helped reframe his mindset and created positive associations.

Public Speaking Fear Treatment in the Moment

While we worked on all of the above to try to reduce the intensity of Jim’s anticipatory anxiety and make sure he was well-prepared and more confident, we also worked on ways he could make the actual experience better. Jim worked to learn effective deep breathing exercises that can help calm his nerves, focusing on slow, deep breaths to regulate his anxiety.

He also followed on the CBT techniques noted above by challenging negative thoughts he had right before and even during his engagement. Looking for irrational and exaggerated thoughts that are the cornerstone of public speaking anxiety therapy and labeling them as such was key.  He reminded himself of his strengths and past successes. He replaced thoughts like “I’ll mess up” with “I am well-prepared, and I can do this.”

Finally, he learned that instead of worrying about how he is perceived, he would shift his focus to the message he wanted to convey. Concentrating on providing value to his audience took his mind off of his own performance. These initial steps in public speaking anxiety treatment proved powerful and effective.

Advanced Steps

 As Jim started to experience success with these techniques, he wanted to speed the process and get even closer to overcoming public speaking anxiety. He found ways to work his way up to larger audiences and found that each successful experience built his confidence for more challenging situations. Joining a Toastamsters group helped him gain confidence by knowing that he was presenting well. He started to mix in humor and visual aids that helped him bring even more value to his audience, which, in turn, gave him more confidence.

Public speaking anxiety treatment produces small steps, and this worked well for Jim, continually giving him confidence along the way. With persistence and practice, he built the confidence he needed to become a more effective and comfortable public speaker, successfully overcoming public speaking anxiety.

Public Speaking Anxiety Therapy, Example 2

Here is another example of a client overcoming public speaking anxiety with details about the process. Your journey to overcoming public speaking anxiety will be unique, so this example is given here to give you an idea of how public speaking fear treatment generally works. We will devise a specific plan to address your unique fears and their etiologies. Also, note that this example is sped up – while public speaking anxiety therapy does not take too long. Public speaking fear therapy is usually time-limited and effective, and you will see meaningful and powerful results.

Please feel free to contact me anytime or schedule a consultation to discuss therapy for overcoming public speaking anxiety.

Public Speaking Fear Therapy Techniques

I run an integrated psychological practice, which means that I am trained in a variety of techniques designed to help you get the results you are looking for. We will review the possibilities during our first few sessions and devise a plan that fits your needs. I often use cognitive-behavioral treatment (CBT) as a cornerstone public speaking feat therapy, but we can also borrow from Exposure-response prevention (ERP) where you challenge yourself gradually at a pace you are comfortable with to confront your fears. We can also use some narrative techniques and psychodynamic approaches to understand where your fears originated.

An example is a good way to explain how public speaking fear therapy works. Thus, the following is an overview of fictitious public speaking fear treatment. Your treatment will be individually and uniquely designed, of course, but this example shows the steps and possibilities.

Public Speaking Anxiety Therapy

Jenn came to therapy to overcome her fears because her job requires her to speak in front of her team at weekly meetings, with larger public speaking engagements for clients every month. She is knowledgeable and good at her job but has developed speech anxiety, including severe anticipatory stress and anxiety during her talks. Her heart races, and she feels that her voice quivers in a way people can perceive.

She also feels like she cannot get the right words out, especially at the beginning of each talk when she is most anxious. She is frustrated because otherwise, she enjoys her job and feels great in many aspects of her life, but the worries dominate her thoughts. Jenn was very motivated for public speaking anxiety treatment.

Initial Assessment

I explained to Jenn that overcoming public speaking anxiety was very possible. Together, we noticed the irrational and exaggerated thoughts were causing much of her anxiety before and during her public speaking experiences. We also discussed how her physical symptoms added to the anxiety, making her self-aware and concerned. Jenn said she experienced some relief just from hearing all of that. She said the analysis and understanding helped her develop optimism about her public speaking fear treatment.

Overcoming Public Speaking Anxiety, First Steps

After I explained the different possible approaches to Jenn, we decided to go with one of the most proven and powerful techniques, cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). CBT will help identify and challenge her negative thoughts and beliefs contributing to her fear and anxiety and replace them with more positive and realistic ones. CBT is a cornerstone public speaking fear therapy approach.

The initial assessment included discussing, in detail, her specific fears, triggers, and types of situations she finds most difficult. We explored her history and found that the anxiety started soon after she decided that her career would be in marketing and when she got this exciting new job. Before then, she had had very little trouble with public speaking, but most of her opportunities had been back in college five years ago. She said it was confusing because she hadn’t ever had a bad experience with public speaking, so she couldn’t figure out what initially triggered her anxiety.

Overcoming Public Speaking Anxiety Treatment Plan

After we talked about her background and the etiology of her fears, we decided on three goals to help her in overcoming public speaking anxiety:

1. Public speaking fear therapy will reduce her anticipatory anxiety, both the frequency and intensity of her worries before these engagements
2. Public speaking fear therapy will help her overcome public speaking anxiety during the presentations themselves, with specific strategies to be learned
3. Public speaking fear therapy will improve her effectiveness at preparation so that she feels more confident beforehand

These goals will form the basis for our work together.

Psychoeducation 

Before diving into the public speaking anxiety treatment itself, I provided some psychoeducation, explaining the nature of anxiety, the fight-or-flight response, and how it is usually based on some threat – we would need to find out what that threat was! We also discussed the role of negative thinking patterns and how they create exaggeration and irrationality that are not based on actual danger.

I also taught her basic relaxation techniques, such as deep breathing, progressive muscle relaxation, and mindfulness exercises. These techniques can help reduce anxiety and promote a sense of calm during public speaking situations.

I also gave her homework to read resources that show how people can be successful at overcoming public speaking anxiety, such as excellent articles in Forbes Magazine and from the Mayo Clinic.

CBT for Overcoming Public Speaking Anxiety

Jenn was already relieved that her fears were not due to any actual threats and knew she had to let her natural confidence about her abilities shine through. She wasn’t sure how to do it, but she felt more optimistic. We started CBT with cognitive restructuring, which involved some homework where Jenn noticed and wrote down her specific negative thoughts before, during, and after each talk. 

In the public speaking fear treatment session, we examined the evidence for and against those thoughts and developed more balanced and rational alternatives. For example, she worries that she will look foolish or say something wrong when she gives a talk. We challenged that by looking for times outside of public speaking, such as when she talks to colleagues or makes phone calls for work when she makes these types of mistakes, and she realized how exaggerated her fear is. 

We could find several exaggerated or irrational beliefs and challenge all of them in session, but now she needed to challenge them in real time. In public speaking anxiety therapy sessions, we did some role-playing and rehearsal where we replayed actual public speaking scenarios, using her new cognitive and relaxation skills. I made sure to point out her successes with these techniques so she would see her progress and recognize her achievements.

Carrying it Forward

It was time for Jenn to practice her techniques in real situations. To provide additional support, I arranged phone calls with her before she followed small and large speech engagements. During the calls, we reviewed her techniques; I provided a positive and hopefully motivated review of her progress and reminded her of the relaxation techniques she could use.

As time passed, she became much less stressed and realized more clearly how irrational and exaggerated fears had affected her. She increasingly challenged herself to do even more talks—volunteering, for example, to give some new employee orientation talks to get more exposure.

Our final step in her path to overcoming our public speaking anxiety therapy was having her learn strategies for maintaining their progress and preventing relapse, including continued practice, ongoing use of relaxation techniques, and how she could quickly address any future challenges that arise.

Public Speaking Anxiety Add-on Methods

Jenn decided to use two additional aspects of my clinical specialties. First, she would tape her experiences so I could remind her exactly when to use her public speaking treatment techniques, have her notice that she came across much better than she thought, and help her learn to overcome any challenges in relaying information. Second, we would connect during times when she was experiencing particularly intense anticipatory fear so we could notice any irrational or exaggerated thinking patterns on the spot.

Overcoming Public Speaking Anxiety in My Practice

I offer public speaking fear therapy to a wide variety of people, including those who have to speak in front of large audiences for work, those who get nervous in social situations when they talk in a group setting, and those who have to give smaller but frequent talks for their jobs. We start by exploring when the fears started, how they progressed, and what symptoms they created. I make sure that public speaking fear treatment will help, and we can discuss whether an alternative or adjunctive public speaking fear treatment may be helpful, such as a therapeutic group or medication.

Your Public Speaking Fear Therapy

The public speaking anxiety treatment techniques we might use together may vary depending on your unique presentation and fears. We might use CBT, more specific exposure therapy, and possibly more general humanistic psychology if your fear relates to an actual event. Remember that overcoming public speaking anxiety treatment can be delivered in a traditionally scheduled once-weekly manner or as a specialty service with additional services that can be delivered at specific times.

I hope this example of public speaking fear therapy was helpful. My blog also contains self-help tips and information about the therapy process. Feel free to contact me if you think I can help you with overcoming public speaking anxiety.