What is Stage Fright?
When I ask bank presidents and vice-presidents to define what stage fright is to them – what they actually feel before a presentation – the symptoms include those mentioned above, plus “pounding heart, feeling hot, blushing, an inability to concentrate, afraid of people looking at me,” etc. And how do they feel after the speech? “Physically exhausted, drained, just relieved that it’s over, a sense of looking a little foolish, feeling that I have failed and that the audience thinks I’m terrible.” Speech anxiety is real. It is a specific kind of fear accompanied by physical symptoms which are the result of your body pumping out far too much adrenaline. Experienced before, during, or following a speech, it can be beaten once you recognize the source of these anxieties. So, let’s take a look at what 40% of Americans have in common. A completely inaccurate perception “They will just think that I’m stupid,” was the answer given by a 35 year old vice-president of correspondent banking from De
You’re about to perform for the first time. Your knees are trembling, you feel like you’re going to throw up, and your heart is pounding in your chest. These are symptoms of stage fright, known scientifically as topophobia or more generally known as performance anxiety. Stage fright is a real phenomenon, affecting both new and seasoned performers, not only on stage but in a variety of performance venues. Dancers, musicians, and actors may all fall victims to this fear that comes with performance, even in front of a camera or in a recording studio, instead of on stage. For many people, performance is tinged with anxiety, since it means you are being judged by an audience. Even when the “others” are not present, such as the audience for a movie you’re filming, you’re still going to eventually be evaluated on your performance. This can create mild to severe anxiety, or what is called a “fight or flight” reaction. When we are in situations that create this reaction, the body chemically rea
The cause of stage fright [from the rec.juggling post:”>fiblBOApIS87EwVt@lair.demon.co.uk] As far as I can tell, the physical symptoms of “stage fright” are caused by the release of adrenaline (a.k.a. epinephrine), which is a hormone associated with the “fight/flight” reaction. When the body-mind feels that it’s in a stressful situation, the sympathetic nervous system dominates the parasympathetic system and physiologically: • the pupils of the eyes dilate • heart-rate and force of cardiac contractions increase • blood vessels of non-essential organs (e.g. kidneys and digestive organs) contract • other processes that are not immediately essential (e.g. peristalsis in the gut) slow down or even stop • blood vessels in the skeletal and cardiac muscles, and in the liver, dilate • the rate and depth of breathing increase • blood glucose level rises as glycogen in the liver is converted to glucose • the medullae of the adrenal glands are stimulated (by the hypothalamus in the brain) to prod
That is because they have the feelings. Their feelings are up to the surface where they can be used to make genuine connection with audiences, groups and listeners. Genuine connection is the key to brilliant performances and presentations. If you have stage fright or fear of public speaking, it is a sign that you are highly sensitive. You probably already sense that you have more passion than you allow yourself to express when you speak, present, communicate or perform. Because you have stagefright, your passion is so strong that you do not know how to let it flow through your body when you are the center of attention. This public speaking anxiety causes you to shut down the flow of emotion when you are in front of others. Stage fright makes you tighten your body from the neck down and go into your head, sometimes even feeling “out of body.” The solution for stage fright and public speaking anxeity is presence – to learn to stay present in your body, in the moment and to allow your pas
