Apartment living social anxiety ?

Hi all, I moved into a large apartment complex a couple of years ago, i live alone in a 1 bedroom apartment & i don't work at the moment due to my social anxiety & depression etc.. these apartments are new build & very poorly constructed & i have people living above me that stomp around day & night, dropping heavy items day & night, moving furniture day & night & its so stressful for me & im constantly on edge.

I have been to see them before about the stomping etc & i think they saw me as some kind of soft pushover as i was obviously anxious & not overly assertive, my SA mind works overtime in this situation i wander if i am hyper sensitive to noise & i question what is deemed acceptable living noise etc.. my life is stressful enough & all i want is a little peace at home without all the random bumps & bangs & stomping around,

Also we have long hallways with people living either side, we have shared garbage stores & when i open my door & walk down the hallways with my garbage bags im very anxious worrying if i will bump into any other neighbours & if i hear a door open or footsteps down the hall i get all jumpy & i worry that neighbours will start to think...damn what the hell is wrong with that guy, i don't want to be known as the loner neighbour that acts socially awkward, apartment living is hell when you suffer from social anxiety as i live in a huge building surrounded by lots of people/neighbours, does anyone else suffer with this kinda thing regarding SA ?

This is the Story of my life for roughly 2 years. When I was living in the apartments, I was very anxious about the neighbors. I scheduled my activities to avoid bumping into them, such as waking up extra early to shop or do laundry or coming home at night.

When I lived downstairs, I had neighbors who had no respect for me. They party and blast music at night into the early mornings. They also seem to hate me for whatever reason.

When I lived upstairs, I was afraid of walking too much or too heavily because I didn't want to draw unnecessary attention to myself. I tiptoed a lot and wore bunny shoes. I was also afraid of talking out loud, my brother too (who also has SA). In fact he told me when we first moved in that we should be as quiet as possible. Basically we had to be ninjas.

I gained about 20 pounds from living in the apartments. There was no way I could exercise without making noise, especially when living upstairs. I had to go out to the park and run, but on certain days it's so hot (100 deg plus) that I couldn't do it.

Apt living sucks. Now I live in a house and I can exercise, run around, talk as loudly as I want.

Thanks for the reply jaim38 i wish i could afford a house with my own front door & driveway & have some privacy without having to share everything with other neighbours, there is no respect in apartment living, people do as they please & they don't care about the effect its having on neighbours around or below them, i don't work at the moment due to my SA & i have no money to move into a house so i am basically screwed & thats a horrible feeling!

Have you tried contacting the landlord? You don't have to talk to your neighbors face-to-face. My neighbors have no trouble telling my landlords about my dog barking but they don't say it to my face.

I can understand this.

I live with roommates, which might be even worse, but atleast the building itself is solid concrete so it's not that noisy. I used to live in an apartment by myself and the floor was made of wood and I had this annoying pedantic jerk living under me constantly complaining about stuff.

Looking at your story, and having been in a similar situation being avoidant of roomates/neighbours, I think what's most important is to get out of your home for a few hours a day, because sitting at home all day likely just increases your anxiety and depression. Living in your own head the whole day in the small confines of your apartment isn't good for your mental health. Create some space, and you will find that dealing with neighbours and roommates becomes easier as well as many other departments of your life. I know you feel unable to work, but you should just try it anyway, and if you can't, go exercise, to a library, see a friend/relative, do something other then sitting at home.

I understand what you feel. Especially your neighbors seeing you as a pushover. I live in a one bedroom by myself too and have to put up with similar issues. One neighbor Is good... but the other, I feel gets a power trip on harassing me. Don't let them push you around... they'll only get as far as you allow them. Definitely let your landlord know....

Hmmm, no. I guess I'm lucky. The only thing I hear of my neighbours is once a week some laughter, and once every two or three days someone playing piano.