Am I walking funny?

[Different]

Hi all, I haven't made any posts on this site for quite some time (except for replies) but I wanted to ask if anybody has problems walking when they are being stared at, I get this alot and feel as though my legs are going to get out of control. Its worse when you have people walking behind you or even when you have people standing at a bus stop for example, and you have to walk past them, you know their going to stare at you and your legs feel as though they've got a mind of their own. :?

 

[LilMissTragic]

Yeh, I usd to get that a lot, still do now and then. Feels like my legs want to go in two different directions and the more aware of it you become then the more it seems you legs are going mad. I espcially hate passing gangs of people just sitting around.

 

[Anonymous]

yeah

Yeah lately...I always feel like I'm gonna fall something...people have been laughing at me in school because of it.

 

[Anonymous]

I used to get this but somehow got over it. I now always walk briskly and positively and immediately stamp out any stupid self-concious thoughts when they enter my head. If I have to walk past a queue of people, (eg bus-stop), I just look down at the ground ahead of me and walk briskly past without even thinking about engaging in eye-contact. People might be looking at me as I walk past and it would be very easy for me to get self-concious and nervous, but rather than let it worry me I just say to myself "hey, screw them, I'm not even going to acknowledge their existence by lifting my head to look".

A large number (if not all) people with SA have problems with self-esteem, thinking that they are less worthy than others and that others will be negatively judging their every move. The trick is to just treat strangers like they're doing you harm - so if you worry that they're going to be laughing at the way you walk, just say to yourself that these bunch of fckers can kiss my beautiful ass - I owe tham nothing and can walk whatever way I bloody well want...how dare they criticise me!! Sometimes it's good to get a wee bit of anger in your mind to help reduce the feelings of unworthiness. Avoid the eye-contact too as if it just so happens that someone is looking at you, it may make you get a sudden feeling of self-conciousness, so just decide that you're not even going to lift your head as they're not worthy of your attention.

 

[felix]

yeah i get that really badly, if I have to walk past someone, esp. if theres just me and them, i just like freeze and get really scared and can't walk! whats worse is walking in front of a large group of ppl, :roll: [/code]

 

[applesewer]

Yeah I get the jelly legs thing all the time. It’s weird cause it didn’t start till I was about 19, a good few years after I got SAD. But yeah, gangs are the worst for me too! Sometimes I’ll see people coming towards me in the distance and they’ll look like rudeboy kids and I’ll start walking like Mr Softie, but then when they get close enough to see they turn out to be a coupla old ladies and suddenly I’ll walk fine again. It’s an intimidation thing I think. Or maybe it’s to do with people whose judgement I value.

Also I’ve always kind of assumed that my legs just feel weird to me and that I actually don’t walk any differently, but maybe I should get a second opinion on that. But, anyway, even if I do walk like a muppet as long as I get from A to B that’s all that matters really.

Actually, I’ve just realised that it started around about the same time I was mugged. I wonder if that was the reason?!

 

[Shadow]

I used to have that problem. I still get it occasionally but it's not too bad really. I used to have dreams about being unable to walk all the time. In the dreams I would be so so worried about people looking at me that I wouldn't be able to get my feet to move properly.

The best way to deal with it is to just think about something else. Pretend the people arn't there.

 

[GettingThere]

I used to have that problem. I still get it occasionally but it's not too bad really. I used to have dreams about being unable to walk all the time. In the dreams I would be so so worried about people looking at me that I wouldn't be able to get my feet to move properly.

The best way to deal with it is to just think about something else. Pretend the people arn't there.

Yeah, thats about the best way to go. Of course the thing with SP (and other phobias for that matter) is that the whole drama begins and ends in our minds. The act of walking is a perfect example. If the other people weren't there then walking would not be a problem.
If we can learn to control our conscious then we should [in theory] be able to block out our surrounds by focusing on something else in our minds. I've heard that some people can, with little effort, control their thoughts such that they imagine themselves somewhere else, somewhere nice and comfortable. I'm talking meditative-type thought control.
As I said, its good in theory.