Research+Paper

[|Research Paper, The Blush of Rosacea and Social Anxiety Disorder.doc]

Paper Reflection: a.) I am happy with my paper because I found interesting information and spent a lot of time structuring/organizing my information in the most effective way that I could. b.) I wish I would have changed the researching process because I ended up getting too much information that did not fit into my thesis. c.) I recommend to all future seniors of Senior Seminar that they should research a bit every night and take notes to make their lives easier and develop a quality research paper. d.) Going forward with my project and presentation, I have to keep in mind that I will have to continue with my habits of chopping away at some work each night because it will make my information thorough.

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A. Break my paragraphs up (Kira) B. Add transitions (Kira) C. Clarify 8th paragraph, because it does not link directly to the thesis (Brad) D. Type out numbers (Kellie)

[|Morgan Lester, Kellie O'Donnell.doc], [|Morgan Lester, Brad Riddle.doc], [|Morgan Lester, Kira Fallon.docx.doc] [|Senior Seminar Paper.doc]

A minimum of 2 total pages due: Monday, March 15, 2010

If one were to type the word "Rosacea" into a Microsoft Word document, a red highlight would immediately appear beneath the entry, indicating a word unrecognized by Word's massive dictionary. Clippit, Microsoft's friendly computerized office assistant, will then suggest other words that one may have meant, the first two suggestions being “Resaca” and “Rosales”. Two Spanish words are proposed before rosacea, which is one of the most common skin disorders in the United States of America. I thought this perfectly reflected the mystery that comes along with this word. First of all, most people have never heard of it, and many who have it are not always aware of their condition. Most importantly, others do not realize the emotional aspect of rosacea that is caused by the physical symptoms. It can be very detrimental to one’s social life if it is not treated. Rosacea can lead to social anxiety if the psychological symptoms are not properly treated. Rosacea is a skin disorder that includes the reddening of the skin and other harsh symptoms such as burning, swelling, pimples, and visible blood vessels, but the severity of rosacea varies greatly. It is more frequently seen in women, but men tend to get more severe symptoms, like rhinophyma, a condition where the nose gets swollen and bumpy. Flare ups start occurring in one’s 30s, which is the skin’s reaction to environmental and emotional triggers. There are definite genetic ties to rosacea, because “40 percent of rosacea patients surveyed by the National Rosacea Society said they could name a relative who had similar symptoms" ( Frequently Asked Questions). However, many people dismiss the symptoms as just the type of skin that runs in their family, or they are diagnosed as another disorder. A person who has many bumps on their face is commonly given medicine for acne vulgaris, but this worsens their condition ( Acne Rosacea Misconception) . It is estimated that 1 out of every 20 people in the United States of America has rosacea, yet millions who suffer from it may not even know they have it. A study conducted by Gallup “found that 78 percent of Americans have no knowledge of this condition, including how to recognize it and what to do about it” (What is Rosacea?). There is no cure, but there is some research being done on what exactly causes rosacea. Prerosacea can start as early as the teenage years, and the major symptom seems to be excessive blushing ( Stages and Subtypes of Rosacea). Blushing is a normal reaction of the sympathetic nervous system. When an external stimuli cause an organism to feel undesired social attention, adrenaline is produced as neurons communicate with the spinal cord. The adrenaline gets the body ready to attack or run away, hence the fight-or-flight response, by increasing one’s heart rate and blood pressure. Therefore, the capillaries underneath the facial skin become dilated and more blood flows through them than usual (Clark). Those with prerosacea tend to have fair skin, which causes them to blush more vividly because the blood is very visible through the lack of pigment. Obviously, blushing is both a psychological and physical problem. However, scientists are not exactly sure what the evolutionary purpose of blushing is. Darwin, the father of evolution, said that "blushing is the most peculiar and the most human of all expressions" (Darwin). Humans are the only organisms that blush and it begins to occur around the time that school starts, which means it has ties to self-awareness. Some studies have found that evolution favors blushing because it could be a sign of submitting to authority, and convinces others to appease the blusher’s wrongdoings (Clark). Other theories suggest that an intense blush shows romantic interest in a mate, along with sexual maturity, while a pale complexion may be a sign of an illness (Darwin). Some women even use blush makeup because they believe it gives them a healthy glow (Blush Makeup Powders). However, this is ironic, because many women with rosacea feel less inclined to engage in sexual activity ( Whitlock).

At least 2 additional pages (minimum of 4 pages total) due: Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Social anxiety disorder involves "paralyzing fear of humiliation or being judged negatively,” and is the third most common mental disorder in the United States of America ( Shulman) . Students become hesitant to raise their hand in class, which detracts from their learning. Public speaking also ties into this condition, and there are even groups, such as Toastmasters, that help improve one’s techniques for giving speeches. Although it only becomes apparent in social situations, people with this disorder will completely avoid interactions with others. The physical symptoms can worsen one’s phobia, especially sweating and blushing ( Chakraburtty) . People may bring attention to these symptoms and cause one to be even more self-conscious. One may wonder, what direct connection does rosacea and blushing have with social phobia? Stress is the second most common trigger of rosacea, since 79% of 1,066 patients claimed to have their face aggravated by it (Rosacea Triggers Survey). When someone develops social anxiety because of their appearance, it may cause enough stress for a cycle of flare ups to begin. It is important that one begins looking out for rosacea early in life so that major flare ups can be prevented and the psychological pain can be treated, since social phobia usually shows up in adolescence. A National Rosacea Society survey shows that “more than 76 percent of rosacea patients said their condition had lowered their self-confidence” and 41 percent said that it has “caused them to avoid public contact” (What Is Rosacea?). Rosacea can even interfere with one’s finances, because “70 percent said the disorder had adversely affected their professional interactions, and nearly 30 percent said they had even missed work because of their condition” (What Is Rosacea?). People who have rosacea may turn down job promotions that could add thousands of dollars to their salary, just because they cannot handle the increase of social interactions. Also, as much as 58% “said that they had suffered rudeness such as stares, comments, and jokes from others in response to their reddish faces” (Saunders). Although blushing happens to everyone, it can be much more noticeable in those with prerosacea. If someone turns vibrant red with embarrassment, another person may point this out and even joke about it. Especially in teenage years, when young adults are not fully matured yet, they may make fun of someone’s face without realizing how self conscious it is making the blusher ( Blushing). In many cases, this will cause people who blush vibrantly to constantly worry about blushing again. The more someone thinks they are going to blush, the more likely it is going to happen, which mirrors the same vicious cycle of stress in rosacea. For example, researchers asked 56 female undergraduates to sing "I Will Survive." They told half the volunteers that they were blushing, and the other half that they didn't. After being told they were blushing, the first group blushed even more ( Don't Spare the Blushes). The fear of blushing is common and severe enough that it can be diagnosed as erythrophobia ( Rosacea and Anxiety). Also, blushing seems to occur when a person has broken a social normality, but people who begin to develop a phobia may blush in situations where there is no real reason to blush, even though people may still think they did something wrong. The person may lose their confidence and may wish they were invisible to the crowd, and therefore could develop social phobia. The low self esteem that manifested itself in their teenage years could get worse as the rosacea fully develops, because the symptoms usually increase in severity.

At least 2 additional pages (minimum of 6 pages total) due: Wednesday, March 17, 2010

One cannot deny the evidence that shows how harmful chronic blushing can be on the psyche. In one study, 107 severe blushers completed the Self-Consciousness Scale (SCS) and the Social Avoidance and Distress Scale (SADS). The SADS scores in the study were similar to those obtained during studies recorded in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders III of socially phobic patients. There was also a positive correlation between the severity of blushing and two subscales of the SCS, which were Public and Private Self-Consciousness and Social Anxiety ( Edelmann). A quote from Alexander L. Gerlach, a “research scholar in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Stanford University School of Medicine,” backs up this study by stating his theory that there is a strong connection between social anxiety disorder and blushing:

"Blushing becomes a psychological problem, however, when a frequent blusher becomes socially phobic (intensely fearful) about blushing. People with fear of blushing experience the blush as exceptionally distressing and anxiety provoking. Out of fear of blushing, they avoid social situations and are willing to accept severe negative consequences of that avoidance. Others experience very high discomfort in normally enjoyable situations” (Gerlach).

During Corine Dijk's study, there were 50 participants that were blushing-phobic whereas the other 50 were non-phobic. The task was to make conversation for five minutes with two strangers. Half of the people were given feedback by a vibrating device on their finger that was supposed to inform them when they were blushing. Instead, the vibrations were fixed in advance. The participants that received false feedback caused them to blush more, whether they were phobic or not, and they all believed that they would be rated negatively by the strangers they conversed with. At the end, the strangers’ opinions of the people who were given the false feedback were much more negative than those that were not given feedback. However, the blushing-phobic people completely overestimated the amount of negativity the strangers felt towards them. The researchers concluded that the awareness of one's blushing made them behave awkwardly, therefore giving them a lower rating ( Jarrett). Dijk’s group also asked 130 students from to read a series of brief stories about female characters. Participants were told that the woman in the story had either just committed a “social transgression” or was involved in an “embarrassing mishap.” Half of the students read stories about twelve social transgression stories, while the others read twelve embarrassing mishaps. Imbedded in each story was a color picture of a different woman, which they were told was the main character. After reading the stories, the students rated each woman based on likeability. The researchers found the results between the ratings of the social transgression group and embarrassing mishap group showed no difference. Instead, the surveys showed that no matter what the facial expression was, “whether the lady in the image was smiling or gazing downward in shame,” the students preferred the ones who were blushing over the ones that were not ( Bering).

At least 2 additional pages (minimum of 8 pages total) due: Thursday, March 18, 2010

From the first study, it is obvious that blushing can lower one’s self esteem, because the blushers thought that the strangers would rate them negatively. However, the blushing-phobic people thought this because they believe that people will look down upon them, and they imagine that the person they are talking to thinks they have committed an unacceptable action. The strangers actually gave them low ratings because of the strange behavior they displayed after losing confidence in themselves and wanting to escape the situation. As shown in the second study, where just pictures of the faces were given, the ones who blushed were highly rated. Therefore, the act of blushing itself is actually preferred by people. As noted before, blushing shows that a person feels bad about what they have done, and the observers are more likely to accept that person, as long as the blusher maintains a cool state of mind. If those who are self conscious about blushing learn this information, they could very well be convinced that there is no reason to fear blushing at all. Treating the physical symptoms of rosacea will help with the uncomfortable stinging and heat that they often feel on their face. However, those who develop social anxiety disorder have a psychological disorder that can only be overcome by treatment on the mind. Attempting to cover it up with makeup and trying different topical treatment does not go to the core of the problem. Therefore, a combination of therapy and medicine should be used to gain back one's confidence. Successful therapy options include cognitive-behavioral therapy and hypnotherapy, and beta-blockers and clonidine have been proven to work. They require much time and money to be useful, but if blushing becomes an unbearable symptom of a rosacea patient’s social phobia, then it will be worth it. Cognitive-behavioral therapy is “very effective in reducing distress and anxiety, as well as blushing itself” (Gerlach). Instead of trying to control the external triggers of blushing, it changes the negative thoughts that cause the chronic blusher’s fear. A major part of this treatment is confronting the frightening situation head on. If one takes the time to work on their behavior at home also, they will learn how to replace their anxiety with other reactions, and the blushing will subside after this is achieved (Gerlach). Hypnotherapy is different because it works by going into one’s unconscious mind to change one’s reactions to blushing. An embarrassing experience may have triggered the blushing, and hypnosis may be able to separate the memory from the mind. Also, being in a trance has a calming effect that will decrease the amount of anxiety ( Hypnosis Can Help You To Stop Blushing). Beta-blockers can provide vasoconstriction to ease blushing, and are also used to reduce the intensity of social anxiety disorder by blocking receptors that bind adrenaline. They "can be helpful when blushing occurs in very specific situations” ( Miranda). When someone has a presentation to give, it would be the perfect circumstance to ingest a beta-blocker a few hours beforehand. However, “if blushing could occur at any given moment,” such as when raising one’s hand in class, beta-blockers will not be very effective ( Miranda) . For spontaneous blushers, clonidine may be a viable option, because it “works by changing the body’s response to naturally occurring chemicals, such as noradrenaline, that control the dilation and constriction of blood vessels” ( Blushing Explained). Rosacea patients can see their red complexions as a curse. As one clever mind points out, “red” really is rooted in words with unpleasant connotations, such as “’redcoat’ (British soldier in the American Revolution), ‘red’ (synonym for "communist")…‘redeye’ (an overnight air flight), ‘caught red-handed’…‘red-herring’ (a deceptive tactic), "red ink" (a financial loss) and ‘seeing red’ (angry)" ( Definition of Fear of Blushing). Those who develop social anxiety disorder are upset by their appearance, and “much like crying… blushing serves to signal the actor’s genuine regret or remorse over a wrongdoing" ( Bering ). Although the rosacea awareness has somewhat increased, since “sales of anti-redness facial care products grew by 35 percent from 2002 to 2007,” the effectiveness of these products is not reliable. More attention should be brought to rosacea so that funds can be generated to find a cure (Sweeney). Instead of trying every product on the shelf, one should trust a true doctor for treatment. Neither rosacea nor social anxiety disorder is curable, but with determination, those who suffer from both can gain their life back and fulfill the natural human inclination to socialize.