Hello Everyone

JP2006 · Newbie User Joined: Nov 06, 2006 Posts: 2

Hello Everyone,

I am not only new to this web site but also to Social Anxiety. I have always thought something was not right in my life, but couldn't quite get a grasp of it until tonight. I was taking shower and thinking, there has to be something mentally wrong me, because my life is going no where and I am just a big coward. As soon as I hopped out of the shower, I began searching for mental disorders. After reading each disorder, Social Phobia, is what best described my "condition". It matched all of my problems that I have been having since childhood.

To put things in simple terms -- I have always been too self-conscious and always feared how people felt or would feel about me and what I do. My problems have kept me from developing a successful life with myself and others. The best way for me to describe my problem is by creating a list and then answering any questions concerning the items on this list.

Problems Affecting My Life:

- Overly Self-Conscious with myself and what I do.
- Always wondering how people think of me.
- Always wondering if I am being watched or talked about.
- Can't stand to be hated or disliked.
- No social life.
- Have my drivers license, but rely on others to take me places.
- I am always finding excuses not to go anywhere with friends.
- I cancel dates at the last minute and worry about what others think.
- I am a perfectionist when doing something.
- When I do something for someone, I don't stop until it's completed correctly.
- I am 26 and still live with my parents with no desire to move out.
- I rely way too much on my parents.
- I still feel like a kid and not an adult.
- I stay in my bedroom almost 24/7.
- Like being alone and not bothered. People call me a hermit crab.
- Have a cell phone but hardly ever answer the phone or call any one.
- Have a lot of knowledge under my belt, mainly from "mail-order" schooling.
- Got out of a 5 year relationship in 2003.
- Have denied several relationships since 2003, don't care to be in one.
- No physical problems with my body. Been called cute, handsome, and the like.
- Can't keep job longer than 3 months, had 4 jobs since High School.
- Have been unemployed for about a year now.
- I am absolutely terrified of interviews. I worry for weeks before and after.
- I won't use a public restroom if there is anyone besides close family in there.
- I have problems eating around people I don't know.
- I stumble upon answers when asked questions from whom I don't know.
- I dread anything that places attention on myself.
- I don't see a future in my current situation.

There is a lot more that I could probably list here, but I have a feeling that a lot of people here already can relate to my problems. I am just glad I can put a word with what I am experiencing and that I am not alone in this adventure.

paranoid_android · Newbie User Joined: Oct 16, 2006 Posts: 51

Welcome, JP2006!

I had the same thoughts. I had been thinking to myself that if being normal was feeling the way I did, then I had no interest in going on. After some research and some doctors, I found something was wrong with me. You won't find the solution in here, but you can find some support and people that feel the same and not just some mere intelectual curiosity.

JP2006 · Newbie User Joined: Nov 06, 2006 Posts: 2

Thanks for the welcome paranoid_android. This looks like a great place and definitely filled with a lot of useful information. A very friendly atmosphere too. Very Happy