Social Anxiety Therapy in NYC

If you’re looking for social anxiety therapy in NYC, you’re not alone. Social anxiety can make everyday situations—like conversations, meetings, dating, or speaking up—feel overwhelming. The good news is that social anxiety is highly treatable with the right approach.

At Manhattan CBT, we specialize in cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for social anxiety, helping clients reduce fear, build confidence, and feel more comfortable in social and professional situations. Our office is located in Midtown Manhattan, and we also offer teletherapy throughout New York.

Evidence-Based Treatment for Social Anxiety in New York City

CBT is considered one of the most effective treatments for social anxiety disorder. Rather than just managing symptoms, therapy focuses on helping you gradually face feared situations and change the thought patterns that keep anxiety going.

Treatment is practical, structured, and tailored to the goals that you and your therapist identify. Whether you struggle with public speaking, meeting new people, or fear of being judged, CBT therapy can help you make meaningful, lasting changes.

Work with a Social Anxiety Therapist in NYC

Our therapists specialize in cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for anxiety disorders, with a particular focus on social anxiety. Treatment is evidence-based and tailored to the specific situations that trigger your anxiety—whether that’s conversations, dating, public speaking, or workplace interactions.

We work with professionals, students, and individuals across New York City who feel held back socially or at work, and we help them develop a clear, practical plan for making meaningful progress. Therapy is available in-person in our Manhattan office and via telehealth throughout New York.

Why Choose Manhattan CBT for Social Anxiety Therapy in NYC?

Our therapists specialize in cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for anxiety disorders. Treatment is evidence-based and tailored to the specific situations that trigger your anxiety — whether that’s conversations, dating, public speaking, or workplace interactions.

Clients choose our practice because:

Our therapists are primarily doctoral-level psychologists, and all of us have specialized training in CBT
We focus on practical strategies that lead to real-world change
CBT is our specialty – it’s all we do
Treatment is goal-oriented and typically short-term
We have extensive experience working with professionals and college students in NYC
We offer both in-person sessions in Midtown Manhattan and teletherapy throughout New York and New Jersey

Our goal is not just to help you manage anxiety, but to help you feel genuinely more confident in social situations.

CBT Treatment for Social Anxiety

The gold standard treatment for social anxiety is cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). It focuses on two key changes:

1) reducing the number of situations that are avoided and

2) changing the anxious thinking that typically occurs in these situations.

Reducing Avoidance

Reducing the number of situations avoided is a key part of what it takes to overcome social anxiety. How does CBT help people do that? In part, it accomplishes that by using a technique called situational exposure. Exposure typically involves working with your CBT therapist to find a social situation that is challenging for you, but not overwhelming. Using the skills you have learned in treatment, you then willingly enter this situation. These skills will help you manage anxiety in a healthy way.
Over time, exposure lowers the anxiety you have in situations you used to avoid. The situations gradually become less and less daunting.

Changing Anxious Thinking

Social anxiety is largely driven by beliefs and thought patterns about how one will be perceived by others. As long as this thinking persists, the anxiety will continue to be a problem.

The most common thought pattern found in sufferers of social anxiety is when we make assumptions about how others are thinking and feeling. For example: let’s say you ask someone which way 39th street is. If you assume she thinks you’re an idiot for asking, you will likely experience some anxiety. Typically for those with social anxiety, that assumption is not a conscious choice. Rather, it’s an implicit part of how they think about other people. These assumptions are hard to change unless you learn to examine them and evaluate them. CBT strives to help people do just that. This is part of what makes CBT effective in this type of anxiety.
CBT is the treatment of choice for social anxiety disorder. Some medications can also be helpful, but CBT is the preferred first treatment for social anxiety because:

Research shows it to be highly effective for this disorder
It has no risk of side effects like SSRIs, the most commonly prescribed type of medication for social anxiety (common side effects of SSRIs include nausea, weight gain, and sexual difficulties);
CBT teaches you skills that last beyond the end of the treatment. This represents an advantage over medications, which only help while you’re taking them;
CBT is time-limited — typical treatment lasts 12 to 25 sessions.

Social Anxiety Symptoms

Discomfort at the idea that others think poorly of you
Fear of embarrassment or humiliation
Fear that others will notice you’re anxious
Feeling anxious while eating or drinking in front of others
Anxiety when the focus of attention in a group
Anxiety when anticipating any of the above situations happening
Preoccupation with concerns about being negatively evaluated by others
Racing heart or shortness of breath, sweating, blushing in any of the above situations
Discomfort with eye contact in feared social situations

What Is Social Anxiety?

Social anxiety disorder, also known as social phobia, is a psychological condition in which certain social situations become the cause of significant anxiety. These situations often have to do with performance. Typical examples include speaking with an authority figure, with a potential romantic partner, with strangers, or in front of an audience.

Some people with social anxiety think of themselves as being “just shy,” and surely for some people, that’s true. However, shyness, when it becomes more pronounced, can turn into a real problem. That’s when it turns into social anxiety disorder. The disorder is relatively common, affecting approximately 4% of the population at any given time. This makes it the third most common mental health disorder.

A fear of public speaking is a common problem for those with this disorder. Many people feel uncomfortable or anxious in certain social or interpersonal situations — this is normal. However, a person with social anxiety disorder will experience certain social situations to be so anxiety-provoking that they either avoid them or endure them with significant distress. This avoidance or distress becomes a significant issue in that person’s life. The COVID pandemic has made it easier for us to avoid social situations (like speaking in front of groups). This has made social anxiety a bigger problem for some people.

Social Anxiety in Teens

For children and teenagers, social anxiety is largely similar to how it presents in adults. There are a few differences. For one, teens and kids will often have difficulty recognizing that their fears are not reasonable; adults typically do recognize this. Additionally, younger children will often have physical symptoms that can mimic illness such as stomachaches and headaches when they are feeling anxious. These are much less common in adults. Social anxiety is treatable in kids and teens, just as it is for adults, although the therapy is somewhat different.

Start Social Anxiety Therapy in NYC

If you’re ready to feel more comfortable in social situations, contact us today to schedule an appointment. Most of our CBT therapists are doctoral-level psychologists. We also have student therapists who offer reduced-fee services. Our offices are in midtown Manhattan, but we offer teletherapy services to people elsewhere in New York State and some other states.

Last updated: April 27, 2026