Basically, a shy person is really just that; a shy person.  He or she is usually just shy; nothing more, nothing less!  Many peiple are too often too anxious to label a person as being inflicted with social anxiety.  More time than not a shy person is not socially anxious. 

Being socially anxious is a condition where the sufferer of this type of anxiety actually feels physical discomforts when he/she is` around other people in any kind of social setting.  This discomfort can range from just not rather wanting to be there to becoming physically sick when entering a crowded room.

In some socially anxious people the mere thought of going to any kind of a social event will make a him or her ill.  It is this propensity toward physical sickness that is the difference between social anxiety and shyness.

Usually, it is not a worry when physical symptoms are absent from the equation of one being upset by being around other people.  However, when becoming ill is not an issue there still is a chance a socially anxious person could develop into a recluse if the condition isn’t arrested before it progresses this far.  If a person does not become sick from being socially engaged he should force himself to attend social gatherings periodically at regular intervals.  Sometimes this will catapult the shy person into becoming comfortable with others.

photo credit: Rafael Rudolf