About the Founder

Hi, I’m Martin Stork. I founded Conquer Social Anxiety to make evidence-based information about social anxiety easier to find, easier to understand, and easier to apply in real life.

My background is in psychology and adult psychotherapy. I earned a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology (clinical emphasis) from EAFIT University (Medellín, Colombia) and a Master’s in Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy for Adults from the University of Minho (Braga, Portugal). My research and professional interests focus on social anxiety — especially meaningful subtypes and how to translate research into practical, evidence-informed digital tools and learning resources. Earlier in my career, I also trained and worked as a physical therapist, which shaped how I think about mental health in the context of everyday functioning, habits, and overall well-being.

I’m a Certified Metacognitive Therapy Practitioner and a Certified Mindfulness & Meditation Instructor. Before launching this website, I started and led in-person social anxiety groups—community-based meetings focused on psychoeducation, support, and guided exposure practice.

Over the years, I’ve also created educational content about social anxiety in collaboration with mental health organizations and communities. Some of my materials have been used in professional training contexts (for example, as teaching resources for therapists). Broadly speaking, I’ve spent the last several years focused on social anxiety work across psychoeducation, group facilitation, and research.

On the research side, I’ve published work on social anxiety subtypes and mechanisms such as anxiety sensitivity and experiential avoidance. My current projects focus on clinically meaningful differences in how social anxiety presents — including externalizing presentations, internalized anger processes, and data-driven subtype models aimed at improving assessment and treatment matching. I’m always open to thoughtful collaborations that improve assessment, treatment, or access to high-quality information.

Why I built Conquer Social Anxiety

When I first started writing about social anxiety, I found that a lot of information online was either overly vague, overly confident without evidence, or hard to translate into practical next steps. I wanted to build a resource that stays grounded in reputable research, speaks in plain language, and helps people make informed decisions—whether that means starting therapy, understanding treatment options, trying evidence-based self-help strategies, or simply feeling less alone with the problem.

What my role is here

I’m the main author and editor of Conquer Social Anxiety. That means I’m responsible for the accuracy, tone, and boundaries of what gets published. I aim to be clear about what is well-established versus what is still emerging, and I update content when new evidence matters or when something could be misunderstood. If the site recommends a product or service, I aim to explain the reasoning and disclose any affiliate relationship.

A quick boundary note

This website (and any educational products offered through it, including the online psychoeducation course) is not psychotherapy and does not replace professional diagnosis or treatment. If social anxiety is seriously impacting your life, working with a qualified professional is often the most effective next step.

A bit more personal

Personally, I love running and sports, especially basketball. I also love learning languages, which comes in handy when running a multilingual website. I’m blessed with a happy and open-minded spirit and usually have an easy time opening up and connecting with others, something I’m eager to help our website visitors with.

Martin Stork, Founder

Profiles on Research Platforms

My ResearchGate Profile
My ORCID Profile

Also: You can contact me through email at martin@conquersocialanxiety.com, and I’ll be happy to help you in any way I can. However, please be patient and keep in mind that I may occasionally require a reminder due to high volumes of messages.