Medications for Social Anxiety and Social Anxiety Disorder
95UÊSome medications (in particular, monoamine oxidase inhibitors) require a 
restricted diet. CBT does not require any food restrictions.
UÊMany medications must be either used with caution or avoided completely 
during pregnancy or if you are breastfeeding. CBT can be used safely in 
either of these situations.
In deciding whether to try medications, you should consult with your doctor. Keep 
in mind, however, that your doctor’s advice regarding this issue is likely to be inﬂuenced 
by his or her own expertise and preferences (for example, family doctors are often much 
less familiar with research on CBT than with medication options). In reality, it’s very 
difﬁcult to predict who is most likely to respond to CBT or vs. medication, vs. a combi -
nation of these two approaches. We generally recommend that people try CBT initially, 
if it is available, because the beneﬁts tend to be longer lasting than those of medication. 
In cases where CBT alone is not effective or is only partially effective, the addition of 
medications can be considered.
CHOOSING AMONG MEDICATIONS
If you decide to try medications, there are two general classes of drugs that have been 
found to be effective for social anxiety: antidepressant and anti-anxiety medications. 
There is also evidence that beta-adrenergic blockers (also called “beta-blockers”) may 
help with focused performance fears (for example, fears of public speaking), as well 
as some preliminary research supporting the use of certain anticonvulsant medications 
(these are drugs that are usually used to treat seizures). We will discuss each of these