Going back to school....

[risajhene]

Today was the first day of classes for me in 2 years. I'll start out by saying that my transition has played a gigantic part in me being in school because well... people. I am normally not a very talkative person in general when it comes to meeting anybody who is new because of terrible social anxiety, but I got this hunch to just not... be anxious? Not in a way that I am burying or ignoring my anxiety, but rather just telling it to hush and just act as if I am "confident" (whatever that means). I become the quiet one easily in groups, but now I feel like I want to change that and take initiative to be a talker. I ended up staying into my professor's office hours just to introduce myself and talk about my identity and it felt really good to do so, especially after I've pretty much struggled to hold a conversation with anyone for so long. I didn't feel any pressure, I just wanted to talk which is something that I haven't experienced in a long time. Of course I was shaking pretty much the entire time but baby steps, right?

[Heather Shay]

@risajhene you are doing amazing. I've studied what is called Acceptance Commitment Therapy with my Therapist and you are doing exactly what what it preaches to do. Each of us has what Dr. Stephen Hayes and Russ Harris call the dictator within. That voicethat tells you that you can't do what you are now doing. What you have to do is thank your mind and go ahead. Sounds that you are right on course. Baby steps is perfect and I congratulate you and am proud of you as you build your confidence.

[PrincipalGeek]

You have made an amazing leap, and a very good one in my opinion.   The more you put yourself out here, the easier it becomes.  if you have any theater classes in school, I'd strongly recommend giving that a try.. it's not for everyone but I know it helped me learn to interact with other freely.

[risajhene]

On 8/31/2021 at 12:04 PM, Shay said:

ve studied what is called Acceptance Commitment Therapy with my Therapist and you are doing exactly what what it preaches to do. Each of us has what Dr. Stephen Hayes and Russ Harris call the dictator within. That voicethat tells you that you can't do what you are now doing.

Advice taken, thank you so much. I am practicing this more and more as time goes on. I hear this voice often but I feel I can challenge it

[risajhene]

On 8/31/2021 at 12:57 PM, PrincipalGeek said:

You have made an amazing leap, and a very good one in my opinion.   The more you put yourself out here, the easier it becomes.  if you have any theater classes in school, I'd strongly recommend giving that a try.. it's not for everyone but I know it helped me learn to interact with other freely.

 That is reassuring to hear. I still struggle a lot with knowing what to say nowadays, just anxiety about whether or not people are judging. It's nice to know I'm not alone on this