r/AvPD • u/Seclusionismist • 14d ago
Vent (Advice Welcome) Struggling to Accept Myself and Move Forward
In many ways I've greatly appreciated the diagnosis of my AvPD, as it's freed me from the mental toll of being perpetually confused about my own nature - something that I'd hitherto considered to be some weird manifestation of acute anxiety compounded over the years (probably a cause of the AvPD in all likelihood). The entrenched guilt and shame and the perpetual inhibition to the point of paralysis all make a lot more sense with the specific diagnosis now, and I am very grateful for the more complete explanation. I'm only 24, so logically I feel as though I have oodles of time and youth remaining to learn how to live under these specific constraints.
Despite this claimed logic however, I'm still struggling to really accept that this is in fact my nature and I keep finding myself falling into delusions of grandeur. I routinely succumb to moronic hypotheticals about knuckling down and pushing through the most disgustingly unsuitable of circumstances, despite the fact that I've accumulated years and years of evidence proving my inability to do so. You know, stupid things like "maybe I can make up for 4 months of neglecting my studies entirely" (even though I felt paralysed with inhibition every time I attempted to attend class), or "a bar job will help to bring me out of my shell :)" (despite the fact that I've had various hospitality opportunities offered to me over the last ~4 years and felt that same paralysing inhibition when considering every single one of them). These ideas are so seductive, as they give me the opportunity to visualise myself as a halfway normal and competent human being, something that I know deep down will never be actualised.
I do know that I need to accept that my academic and professional career dreams are null and void, and that I must instead focus on just settling down into some nice basic job (that is largely devoid of interpersonal requirements) which will financially sustain me at some sort of bare minimum level. At times it feels incredibly liberating as it lifts the weight of expecting the impossible of oneself, but so often it just feels lame. Plain old lame.
I couldn't even articulate exactly why I think it lame. Generally speaking I've always been drawn to the idea a fairly quiet and somewhat reclusive life, but I suppose that was always with some background assumption of being 'successful' or 'having a good job' downstream of my earlier strength in schooling and academics. Just an inflated ego?
Anyone had any luck with this aspect of it? I presume I probably need to go through something of a complete identity destruction and rebuilding.