anxiety

[jennilei]

I have always been a very shy and self-consious person.  Lately I feel like everyone is watching every move I make.  When I am at work and put on the spot my face turns bright red. It is so embarrasing.  I have had panic attacks before.  What causes a person to turn bright red even when someone is just talking to them

[RubyWitch]

Some attribute blushing to social phobia, tho it differs in that it is not accompanied by a change in our pulse or blood pressure. Blushing is generally thought to be a response to embarrassment, but is the emotion that riggers blushing as broad and general as "embarrassment?" Or are there more nuances to the emotional cause of what Darwin termed "the  most peculiar and most human of all expressions"?

Is the propensity to blush directly linked to one's sensitivity to the opinion of others? A source of negative self-attention? Do we feel we've made ourselves vulnerable to the criticisms of others?

Idiopathic Craniofacial Erythema is the medical term for this condition. If you feel this is truely interferring with your life, talk to your doctor. There are meds that can help control this, as can talk therapy.
There is also a really good book out there called "The Hidden Face of Shyness," written by Franklin Schneier and Lawrence Weikowitz. This book helped a good friend of mine make incredible strides in dealing with her "debilitating" (her term) blushing after reading this. Might be worth a look?
Many people I know find blushing "charming." But then, THEY aren't the ones doing the blushing, are they?
I wish you luck!
Peace
Greenlydia