Social anxiety disorder (SAD)

There has been more research conducted on the treatment of co-occurring SAD and AOD use disorders than any other anxiety disorder, but it is nonetheless limited to a small number of studies among people with alcohol use disorders and findings have been mixed. For social anxiety as a single disorder, the RANZCP guidelines recommend a stepped-care approach that begins with psychoeducation and lifestyle advice (e.g., in relation to healthy eating, sleep, exercise patterns and limiting use of caffeine, tobacco and alcohol), followed by either CBT, pharmacotherapy (SSRIs or SNRIs) augmented with graded exposure, or a combination of CBT and pharmacotherapy as necessary, depending on the severity of symptoms [1158].