Public speaking anxiety symptoms are common when taking to the stage. Most are harmless, but they can interfere with a well-prepared address. Here I discuss some of the most common and offer advice on overcoming them.
Nausea
People often feel sick before speaking. Try to remember this is common and unlikely to be harmful. We will talk a lot about our “flight or fight” response during this article. The reason you feel sick may be that you are preparing for action. You have an increased adrenaline level which has side effects. One is the feeling of nausea.
Don’t worry. Try to slow your breathing; remember, it is only a speech. Keep things in perspective as much as possible. Under normal circumstances, it is not a reason to withdraw. If you have medical conditions or are part of a vulnerable group, you should seek medical advice.
Dry Mouth
There are many causes of dry mouth. Speaking will make you preoccupied. Consequentially, you may have forgotten to drink. Or, you are breathing deeply and through your mouth. If so, this can cause dehydration.
Slow your breathing down and drink plenty of water. While at the podium, I would encourage you not to drink out of habit. It takes the pace out of your speech and creates a tiny bit of dead time. If you need fluid, stop and take on some water. It is better that you drink than faint.
Sleep Loss
We have all lost sleep when anxious. Every parent alive has felt the effects of insomnia while tending to a sick child. It is natural to lie awake before addressing an audience, large or small. The more you speak, the less it will intimidate you.
Try and keep things in perspective. Prepare well. I have found that I get most nervous when I’m not sure I’m ready. If you are confident, the anxiety and the symptoms will decrease.
One of the public speaking anxiety symptoms – Shaking
Getting the shakes before or during your speech is very common. Actors get first-night nerves, and even well-seasoned politicians can have trouble under pressure. Shaking is a difficult one to combat. The more you try to stop it, the worse it gets.
Shaking usually occurs in the hands and is less common in the body. If you find yourself shaking, check you are not hyperventilating. If you are breathing too fast, slow down.
An old actor’s trick to combat shaking is to grip something. Take hold of the side if you have a podium and feel your hands are on the move. Perform the same trick with a microphone stand, a pad of paper or another prop.
Again, the more you speak, the less this will occur.
Sweaty hands
Sweaty hands are one of the classic public speaking anxiety symptoms. The moisture is pretty standard and part of this “flight and fight”. It might be an issue if everyone expects you to shake hands with them. Anyone who shakes hands with you as you enter or exit the stage will understand.
Once your speech is complete, the symptom should go away.
Shortness Of Breath
Hyperventilating is a severe symptom of anxiety, often associated with public speaking. It can render the speaker helpless, meaning they can no longer continue.
Hyperventilation is a lack of carbon dioxide in the blood. To counteract this, you need to take in less oxygen. Achieve this by reducing your oxygen level by breathing slowly. Easier said than done when you are anxious and often frightened. Hyperventilation is not in itself harmful. But the symptoms can be crippling.
Train yourself to recognise the symptoms early. Concentrate on slow regular breaths and seek help if it continues.
Forgetting what you are saying
If this happens to you, you are experiencing one of the frequent public speaking anxiety symptoms. “Drying” is the theatrical term for this. Most actors will experience this a few times in their careers. That dreadful feeling as you come out of a daze, not knowing where you are or what you are doing. It can happen when anxiety preoccupies you. This preoccupation leaves less brain power for the job at hand, speaking. Even an experienced and well-rehearsed speaker can suffer from this momentary memory lapse.
It is most important to keep calm. Try to think clearly. The pause while you gather your thoughts may seem like an eternity. But, your audience may perceive it differently. If you are reading the speech, calmly find where you left off and continue. If you are working from notes, find the following note. If speaking from memory, get back on track by discussing your main point or thesis. Once you are back in your stride, you will think again, and the words should flow.
Stumbling over your words
You will find much discussion on preparing for a speech on this website. Try to rehearse in the space where you will speak. Spend as much time as you can reciting your address. Present it to others. Stumbling over words can be down to nervousness, but it is often a lack of preparation. Remember, the pros set aside an hour per minute for rehearsals. They are not good by accident.
A breaking voice
Your voice may crack if you are nervous. This vocal symptom is almost always caused by anxiety. Try to increase your volume and steady your words. With more confidence, you should find this goes away.
Speaking too Quickly
The more nervous we are, the more likely we will speak too fast. It sounds counterintuitive, but this is a fact. As our words increase in speed, we have less control. This lack of control creates more anxiety. We find ourselves in a never-ending circle which increases our rate more and more.
Be aware of your pace, both in rehearsal and performance. Good speeches do not have to be dynamic or passionate. But they do need to be clear. If your address is not clear, you have lost. So make sure you write a clear speech and deliver it clearly.
Going off script
It is frustrating for speechwriters when their speaker deviates from the script. Donald Trump, I understand, was famous for it. There are two reasons this will occur. Nerves or the speaker loses their place and improvises. They feel the silence while finding their position is worse than improvising.
The other is arrogance.
You are unlikely to improve upon the words crafted for you in advance. There are many risks when you go off script. On one occasion, a somewhat cocky CEO went off a script I had written with him. Unfortunately, he said something he later regretted. It wasn’t quite a “Gerald Ratner” moment but close.
Train yourself to stick to what you have agreed to say. If you lose your place, try to find it again.
Conclusion
Here are a few of those irritating symptoms which rear their heads when you speak. Prepare carefully, recognise the symptoms and act quickly. Remember the more you speak the easier it becomes.
Finally, here is that famous Ratner moment. On this occasion, he may have planned to say these words. It is as easy to say something like this when speaking off the cuff.