What's the difference between shy, introvert and social anxiety?
- Mohammed Maxwel Hasan
- Jan 9, 2023
- 1 min read
Here's a simple way to define them. Let's also look at Prophet Musa (AS)'s story to see it in action. 👇
😳 Shy: Physical reaction during social interactions
😫 Introvert: Energy drained after social interactions
😵💫 Social Anxiety: Fear of social interactions
Prophet Musa (AS) story
😳 Shy
فَجَآءَتْهُ إِحْدَىٰهُمَا تَمْشِى عَلَى ٱسْتِحْيَآءٍۢ
"Then one of the two women came to [Musa], walking bashfully..." [Quran 28:25]
➡️The woman was in love with Musa (AS) without saying anything. Her shyness manifested in her walk, which is a physical action.
😫 Introvert
وَإِذْ وَٰعَدْنَا مُوسَىٰٓ أَرْبَعِينَ لَيْلَةًۭ
"And ˹remember˺ when We appointed forty nights for Moses..." [Quran 2:51]
➡️After Musa (AS) went through draining trials with his nation, Allah (SWT) appointed a special time away from the people to recharge his energy to receive revelation.
😵💫 Social Anxiety
٢٤ اذْهَبْ إِلَىٰ فِرْعَوْنَ إِنَّهُ طَغَىٰ
٢٥ قَالَ رَبِّ اشْرَحْ لِي صَدْرِي
٢٦ وَيَسِّرْ لِي أَمْرِي
٢٧ وَاحْلُلْ عُقْدَةً مِنْ لِسَانِي
٢٨ يَفْقَهُوا قَوْلِي
"Go to Pharaoh, for he has truly transgressed ˹all bounds˺.” Moses prayed, “My Lord! Uplift my heart for me, and make my task easy, and remove the impediment from my tongue so people may understand my speech..." [Quran 20:24-28]
➡️ Although Musa (AS) wasn't afraid of Pharoah, he was worried about the interaction not going as intended because of his speech impediment.
To recap:
😳 Shy: Physical reaction during social interactions
😫 Introvert: Energy drained after social interactions
😵💫 Social Anxiety: Fear of social interactions
Do you agree with these definitions? Happy to hear your thoughts in the comments!
Comments