Story working on socializing

[catmewomeow]

i dont have many friends because of my social awkwardness and social anxiety. i just kinda give off a vibe that i dont really want to be talked to as well. throughout the past few months ive progressively worked on it. im not necessarily on friend level with anyone new yet, but ive gotten a bit closer to a few acquaintances at work.

something else ive been working on is talking to a couple of old friends i kinda distanced myself from due to depression and telling myself that they didn't really like me. and i just felt really isolated, cause i knew my friends from a friend group who knew eachother already, and i felt like i wedged myself in and didnt fit. and im sure to most of them, it made no difference if i was there or not.

regardless, ive just been thinking about how much i enjoyed certain peoples presence and talking to them, and how happy its made me. i only talked to 1 so far, cause i couldn't justify them disliking me to any capacity. theyve always been kind and friendly to me. ive only been texting them so far, so i hope that maybe i can work my way up to asking them to hang out in person. i never hung out with anyone from the friend group 1on1, so it'll be a huge step.

 

[TransilvanianHunger]

Proud of you, Internet stranger! It can be positively terrifying to take the first step to interact with others beyond the most superficial of levels, but you're doing it anyway. Even if none of the people you're currently talking to end up becoming a life-long friend, the practice you're getting will remain with you, and with time you'll find that reaching out to others becomes easier for you.

Take it easy, step by step, find a pace you're comfortable with, and keep at it. You don't have to become a social butterfly if that's not your thing, but it's always good to have some people we can relate to, and whose company we can enjoy.

 

[Pinkliquid12]

Hey, that's pretty neat!
I remember being so socially anxious that I just didn't talk for the majority of the day. I'd notice that my lips were stuck together and my voice was all groggy from going unused. And then, because of consistently avoiding any social experience, I just got more awkward. I still have a hard time making conversation and talking about myself, so I find doing activities that don't require a lot of talking, like playing games or watching shows and movies, or resorting to asking the other person questions about themselves, and then trying to ask more questions about what they answer (ex you're into sewing? Do you ever make stuff for yourself? Did you teach yourself?), usually works for me. But don't feel pressure to keep the conversation going. Pauses are normal, especially if you're new to each other. But I'm sure you don't really need advice
I'm excited for you! Making new friends and reconnecting with old ones is really cool and fun!

 

[Frontier]

Keep it up, it's just like any other skill and will get better with practice. Just don't overthink it.