Did you know that 7 to 13 percent of the population suffers from a disorder that can turn a public pool into a frightening hazard? It's called Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD), SAD is a condition that makes þeople feel humiliated around other people. SAD sufferers often feel like they're being judged by their peers. They can also have physical symptoms, like accelerated heartbeat, blushing, and trembling. Sometimes, a SAD sufferer will even break out in a fit of excessive sweating. Wait... doesn't that sound like a lot of people? All of us get nervous in social situations, so who can say when such a common problem becomes an actual disorder? The experts will claim that the intensity of SAD symptoms greatly varies. Some SAD sufferers have a very subtle problem, like a tendency to sweat when they give a report at a business meeting. Others can't lead normal lives due to an intense fear of social situations. But could it be that these people just have quirky personalities? Maybe SAD isn't much of a disorder at all. The most common treatment for SAD is called "cognitive-behavioral therapy." It's based on breaking the patient's mental associations, like associating using a public toilet with being embarrassed, and replacing them with more rational thoughts. After all of these associations have been broken, SAD sufferers will often be able to do all of the social activities they previously 20 avoided, like speak in public, swim in a public pool, take a cooking class, or simply go out for a meal with friends. If they're still not cured after cognitive- behavioral therapy, the person in question might simply be a loser. 4 Some people will tell you that SAD is the third biggest mental health problem in the United States behind depression and alcoholism, but that seems a bit excessive. The older generation had a 30 different term for SAD. They called it "being shy." After all, who's to say that SAD sufferers wouldn't achieve the same results as cognitive-behavioral therapy if they just went out and faced all of their social fears head-on? Maybe it would help them stop being so strange all the time!