Featured books

Distancing: Avoidant Personality Disorder

Disorders of Personality: DSM and Beyond, 2nd edition

Dialectical Behavior Therapy in Clinical Practice

Mindfulness and Acceptance

Transforming Anxiety, Transcending Shame

A Guide to Rational Living

Party of One

The Highly Sensitive Person

The Introvert Advantage

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Name:     Simba
State:       India

Story:

I am not doing too bad. I have a job, wife and two healthy, intelligent daughters, neither yet "shy", and about 10 or less good friends whom I can rely on.

This ..in a nut shell is me. And what follows is my life..

0. Dad believed in "Spare the rod, .spoil the child" and also criticized me a lot.

1. I was called "shy" by my kindergarten teacher.

2. Then until adolescence it was not too bad. Actually I wasn't shy but very talkative.
But I missed many social gatherings and was awfully hurt when rejected. In fact, I went to great lengths to avoid rejection.

3. At 18 I had the horrid delusion that people were actually "spitting"  on me when they cleared their throats or coughed up sputum! It did not take off all the way to Schizophrenia though!

4. I can talk to anyone, speak publicly if needed (I will not invite this) etc.

5. But, I spend most of the time indoors except for shopping and going to work.

6. While I can do a lot and have won awards from my company, topped the state in exams etc. I still believe I am a "good for nothing" idiot. So much so that I wouldn't like to meet anyone new!

It was ONLY last month that I came to know "AVOIDANTS" was a kind of people and I was one of them.
So to my brother and sister avoidants. don't let being an AVOIDANT bog you down. Do something about it. It's like being blind (in this case to your own worth as a person)...so learn BRAILLE! LOL!
 

Go on. I'm going to do the same!
 

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