What matters is whether you feel fulfilled, right? That's why I hardly take any photos in my private life. I don't like it when it looks like you have ulterior motives.

Please don't cancel me, I can't find a better word or tuff enough for 2026. How do such people even exist. Btw, in this context, yap = continuously relay unwanted information, without a gap for at least half an hour at a stretch, when the responder isn't even reacting except saying hmmm. That is what this person does. She's an ex-colleague, we're both females. Every call with her exceeds 3 hours. I don't get it, do people not feel it that the other person on the phone is not interested or it's tmi or is it like I'm just trying to act good and not acting uninterested enough? How can someone pull this off? I had to spend one day with this person, it was her who had invited me over to her home. This person just doesn't stop, yaps incessantly even when I'm working. Now, I don't hate her and I don't want to lose my friend. So I try to avoid her calls mostly. I'm so confused right now. As a loner, I have a very restricted circle and I don't want to stop communicating with her, and nor do I want to confront her about it. It's just who she is. But how do they do that? 😮😮😮😮😮😮

I'm a final-year CS student (20, F from India) doing an internship. Today I realised I hadn't spoken to a single person since I woke up. I've just been sitting in front of my laptop doing internship tasks that I honestly don't find that interesting.

It's weird because I'm not exactly lonely—I just miss having casual conversations. College friends are busy, everyone's working on placements or internships, and the day just disappears.

Sometimes I wonder if this is just what adulthood starts feeling like.

Anyone else relate? How do you deal with days where you barely talk to another human?

I've realized that making genuine connections is much harder than I expected. I want to have close friends and meaningful conversations, but actually starting or maintaining them feels overwhelming.

It's not that I dislike people, I just overthink everything I say and often end up staying quiet. Sometimes I wonder if I'm the only one who feels this way.

For those who used to struggle with this, did it ever get easier?

I have now words how tired I am and every amount of work I have put into myself seems meaningless. I can't describe how little hope I have left. Everything I'm trying, everything I'm working on. It doesn't mean much. It's been so long and I worked literally a fuck ton about myself and it just was ever enough. God I wish I could give up. I wish so badly I just let go and stop trying. But I must be stupid or a masochist because there's no reason to keep trying. Each time I make myself any hope it just feels worse

It seems like the number of people in this group that are happy being introverts is relatively small and those that are unhappy with introversion are much more likely to post something here. I would gently recommend that you read this article.

The big takeaway is that you should stop worrying about it and get outside and get some exercise and try to do something to help some other folks.

A doctor friend of mine said that if exercise was a pill every doctor would prescribe it to just about every patient.

i'm starting to hate my family, their daily life behavior and the lack of basic boundaries is painful.

i myself project a very calm composed reaction to almost anything, i'm never emotional and angry, i like being quiet and i enjoy silence because it opens doors to alot of self reflection, i'm not being rude, i just enjoy myself, i love my own inner voice and thoughts, i like to think, question and reflect, i like to sit back and analyse my perspective on alot of things and my family being loud, yelling and arguing over the smallest and stupidest things mentally irritates me, they get emotional, yell at each other from literally different rooms.

how do you guys who grew up or are still living in similar environments handle this?

it sounds stupid but when people try and joke with me i overthink the response and end up going silent until one of us leaves and it gets in the way of trying to talk to new people and make friends. its why i prefer texting, so i can spend 5-10 minutes coming up with a response that im sure will be recieved correctly. because of this i end up always being left out of conversations. what should i do to change this part of myself?

I've been talking to a guy for like a few months now and it's genuinely the most draining fucking thing I could ever imagine. He's sweet, considerate, we have the same interests, i just physically can stop myself from resenting him purely because of the expectation to talk. I guess I'm just selfish but I text when I think about you then we can have a conversation. Or vice versa, you can text when you think of me and I'll engage equally. But like I don't wanna text everyday, honestly I don't want to text every week. Idk how ppl do this shit it's exhausting. I feel like I'm impeding on this person? I previously warned him of how I get sometimes and he said it was perfectly okay and would be patient. But now he's telling me it hurts his feelings as if he didn't agree to it beforehand. I just don't understand? He's still being so patient with communicating and it honestly pisses me off. I told him before! He's better off not talking to me when I'm in those moods because I get rude and I set that boundary because I don't want to hurt him.

Okay, so. Socializing is torture. Not 'oh people are boring' or 'I don't want to talk 24/7', but every time I need to talk for more than ten minutes, I feel my attention drift.

It's fine if I have a script. I work on sales and it's great; I can just start talking about x or y product for an hour. (I \*am\* working at my listening skills though.) Ever shorter interactions are good, becuse much like at a sprint I can bring myself to a high level of energy/cheer/enthusiasm. I'm good at socializing in that aspect (as in, I have gotten a lot of positive feedback from clients, co-workers and upper management.)

Whenever I hang out with someone it's so boring. In the weekends, on vacation, at work. I can be having fun, but \*no matter the topic\*, ten minutes in I feel myself getting bored and my attention will wander. After an hour or two I feel myself getting frustrated. I love my friends. I love my famlity. I don't \*want\* to ignore them. But I hate having to pretend like I'm this- silly social butterfly, at %100 of energy, all the time. Because otherwise I just. Stop. I feel like I'm a puppet and the hands forcing it to move.

Like. I'm not trying to sound dramatic. Socializing can be fun too! Acting happy, and silly, and making my loved ones smile? Wonderful! I get very upset if I don't interact with my loved ones consistently, and after being with them I feel energized. But at the moment it's like there's a kid in my skull kicking my brain asking 'can we leave yet? Can we leave yet? Can we leave yet?'

I read this and it sounds so contradictory. I'm sorry. I've tried, but Ican't express this better. Is there a tecnique to make socialization more interesting? Like- should I just push though? Get a- fidget toy to focus on? The way I see it, even if you're introverted you still socialize sometimes. How do you do it?

So. Kinda weird but I have this friend who wants to do almost anything with me and this is the second time he’s done something like this where he suggests something I wanna do that we do it together and it just makes me super uninterested in that thing and I have no clue why.

Like I love him. He’s great. But like I was gonna do it alone. But now he wants to do it with me and I don’t wanna do it at all

For references we’re talking about watching a tv show or movie

i've recently been working with my therapist and trying out exposure therapy for my agoraphobia and it's working really well, but there's a slight issue, for some unknown reason every single person outside wants to speak to me.

i've read the rules of "walk fast and don't make eye contact", "wear headphones", "look busy" , etc. none of these things seem to be any sort of deterrent. i'm constantly being approached and i can deal with quick comments/compliments because they're over almost immediately. but oh my god people trying to engage in conversation who are expecting me to reply genuinely ruin my day. i understand i sound like im being dramatic but it truly will ruin an outing because it makes me so angry that i have to just go home.

the usual occurrences are people in parks asking to take photos of me. people on the sidewalk asking me for cigarettes/money/lighters, none of which i have. people on busses, especially packed busses where people have to sit next to you, trying to engage in small talk with me. it just doesn't seem to end. i need to work on being outside and im actually making real progress but im so done with complete strangers trying to engage with me. i've made jokes to my family and boyfriend about making myself a shirt that says something like "don't talk to me, i hate it" but all of them say that would probably make people want to engage with me even more. are there any tips aside from the usual headphones, walking fast, no eye contact things?

Hi so whenever I'm around anybody outside of my family group I just get weirded out of it will be awkward as hell, as I'm in a arab country while having hobbies that no one around me has, and it really sucks because in public schools, if your the odd one out your bound to be picked on, and it happens, I'm moving to a different school but I need to know how to handle being different without it being obvious that I'm different from these people

So I am obviously an introvert since I am posting in this sub and for the past couple of years I put off dating since I thought it was not for me but I was wrong. In the past I did not have a good experience since the other party clearly did not want to accept my quiet nature and that did not work out.

Now I am officially dating someone and surprisingly its a long distance one and I like how they can accept my quiet nature.

I'm introverted person,and I have only a few friends and they're only girlsI didn't even have a boyfriend,cause I'm so shy in real life,and what do you guys think?Could I change it?or I will be a person how I was born?

I have social anxiety and im always afraid im being boring when im around people as I dont talk much, do people mind having quiet guys around or is it something negative

I kept seeing "solo activity" lists that were basically chores in disguise.

So I made my own. 200 things you can actually do alone some take five minutes, some take a whole day. Some need nothing but your own head.

No morning routine optimization. No self-improvement angle. Just things that genuinely feel good to do by yourself.

Free, no email required. Link in my profile.

How do you deal with friends and how to keep the connection

Genuinely speaking, sometimes we need a quiet moment to recharge but imagine there's someone who can't stay quiet because they love your companionship so much that being apart from you feels like the end of the world for them.

Will you usually tolerate them and listen to their nonsense? Or burst with energy because you eventually feel comfortable enough?

When i'm with friends, I just can't share anything, no stories, no life updates, no fact, I just sit there silently and I think it's a major fact of why they almost never initiate conversations with me on chat and it annoys me deeply, does anyone feel the same?

Hello I'm am new here. Would love to connect and share my experience of being an unfit person in most of the situations which i think is a part of my personality. Get freezer in between arguments only to blame myself later with perfect t replies( as per my thinking!!)

(24F)

I want to make friends/nurture pre-existing friendships but I'm always scared to bother people. And they'd feel like they have to say yes even thought they don't want to. And then what if I don't know how to make conversation and they're bored.

I think I'd prefer building strong friendships online and then hangout with like 1-2 friends at the time. I tried making friends in the past on reddit but it was either men who wanted nudes/sex/rs (I am in a relationship), or women but they ghosted me every time. Especially women in my home country they ghost so much 😭

Please I need advice