Dealing with future events that make me anxious

Feeling comfortable in public spaces is simply not in my nature. When I am actively feeling overwhelmed and anxious in public (I notice early signs such as beginning to feel fidgety, starting to be consumed by loud background noises of collective voices, feeling tense, etc.) I usually will IMMEDIATELY go to the bathroom when I feel this way. Take a moment for yourself, recollect, wash your face off. I actually just recently started carrying facial wipes with me so that I can use them in social settings just for a constant refresher and something to fidget with. If you wear makeup and don’t want to use a wipe, I recommend maybe one of those fidget cube things, it’s discrete, and you don’t have to be worried about people judging you for it. Occupying your brain by keeping your hands busy will keep you from getting in your head so much. Another thing I like to do is, before I go out with people, dedicate at least one person that you will always be with to speak to. I usually let my person know what’s going on in my head, and let them know what can help. For me, having my person talk a lot at me, forcing me to focus on their words so that everything else sort of mellows out as it should. Being very open with your thoughts will help too, just so you won’t feel so alone. If I’m feeling anxious I will simply use the bathroom, recollect, come back, and let my person know (very casually) “I feel kinda anxious”. And I instantly feel better. Your person will either engage in conversation, or even ask you to take a walk. Distracting yourself and occupying your brain is really the key point here. I hope this helps!