Why Do Some People Get 'Stage Fright'?

Imagine you're about to give a speech in front of your whole class. Your heart starts pounding, and suddenly it feels like everyone can hear your thoughts. That's stage fright, it happens when people feel very nervous about performing in front of others.

It all begins with the fight-or-flight response, which is how our body gets ready to face danger. When you're on stage, your brain thinks you're in a tough situation, so it sends out signals that make your heart beat faster and your hands shake. Some people feel this more than others because their brains react differently.

Test your understanding →

Examples

  1. A boy gets so nervous before his class presentation that he forgets all the words he memorized.
  2. A girl feels her heart race and hands shake when she has to sing in front of her school.
  3. A teacher’s voice becomes shaky as they start their lecture, because they’re afraid of making a mistake.

See also

Discussion

Comments (0)

Categories: Psychology · anxiety· public speaking· performance anxiety · Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.