Life's too fuckin' short!

[Vancouver]

Happy Halloween, yo! A perfect day to 'take off the mask'...?

You know why I couldn't sleep last night? I was coming to a stunning realization about SA and shyness. I was thinking: Us so-called 'sufferers' tend to over-analyze a lot in our life. Our emotions, our fears, our possible rejection-scenarios... we're so weighed-down. We focus all too much on the negatives.

Yeah, I know you're probably thinking "NO SHIT!", but when you really think about it all, it makes you realize just how much faith we put into our emotions, and how much unnecessary attention and power we give them. You don't need to be a rocket scientist in order to break free from it all, and there's probably a billion ways to do so. But this seems closer to a 'magic bullet' (even if no such thing exists) than anything else.

So I thought: why not live a little lighter? Practice not getting so attached to the negatives, and maybe cling on to the positives? If you're doing the exact opposite right now, then it's absolutely reversible, by choice. Life's just too short to let these feelings keep you from not having a good time, not falling in love, not... ____________________(fill in the blank).

And so what if you fall on your face every once in a while? It's bound to happen. Take off your mask and live! That way, if you do fall down, somebody else is bound to help you back up. Even if that person is yourself.

 

[Damn]

Take off your mask and live! That way, if you do fall down, somebody else is bound to help you back up. Even if that person is yourself.

That's what I need to tape to my wall! Sometimes I get all pumped up and think I can handle this and that and overcome the anxiety, but as soon as something bad happens I'm back to being a bloody wussy.. I have to learn to help myself back up, not cry because there's no one else to. It's all in the mind (I keep telling myself that, I will someday convince myself of it!)

 

[Tryin]

Standing ovations for Vancouver! You are SO right. Life is way too fucking short and it already started (!) so we all better catch up pretty quickly.

 

[coriander1992]

woooo go vancouver!!
You are totally right, very inspiring stuff there!!

 

[ljwwriter]

Life really is too short, but personally I've found few positives to focus on. When you've never been in a romantic relationship, don't have any friends to hang out with, can't help but feel like a freak in public and even amongst your family, and are weighed down by crushing anxiety day in and day out it's difficult to find a positive beyond the simple (and overpraised) phenomenon of waking up in the morning.

Sometimes, in all honesty, I think that maybe life's not too short...but too long.

But alas, there goes my pessimism again.

 

[Vancouver]

Life really is too short, but personally I've found few positives to focus on. When you've never been in a romantic relationship, don't have any friends to hang out with, can't help but feel like a freak in public and even amongst your family, and are weighed down by crushing anxiety day in and day out it's difficult to find a positive beyond the simple (and overpraised) phenomenon of waking up in the morning.

Sometimes, in all honesty, I think that maybe life's not too short...but too long.

But alas, there goes my pessimism again.

I've never been in a real relationship. I've pushed my friends away because I've been too afraid to even hang out with them at times. I've felt like a completely nervous wreck in public - my family, friends... everyone.

Dude, this is every SA/shy person's story, believe it or not. I used to get really down about it too, but somehow I've been changing it all little by little. And let me tell you, it's never something you'll regret. The more you force yourself into uncomfortable positions, the better you'll feel. Don't ask me why it works that way, but it does. Fear and accomplishment are two sides to the same coin.

Plus, if you ever feel so trapped that you'd rather feel anything besides the depression of being SA/shy, that's when you know it's time to branch out. Even if you fuck up in conversation, or people know you're shy - at least you'll be 2 steps ahead of where you were before. Just know that you're never alone in it all, and there's always a way out - and that way is straight through.

 

[ljwwriter]

Life really is too short, but personally I've found few positives to focus on. When you've never been in a romantic relationship, don't have any friends to hang out with, can't help but feel like a freak in public and even amongst your family, and are weighed down by crushing anxiety day in and day out it's difficult to find a positive beyond the simple (and overpraised) phenomenon of waking up in the morning.

Sometimes, in all honesty, I think that maybe life's not too short...but too long.

But alas, there goes my pessimism again.

I've never been in a real relationship. I've pushed my friends away because I've been too afraid to even hang out with them at times. I've felt like a completely nervous wreck in public - my family, friends... everyone.

Dude, this is every SA/shy person's story, believe it or not. I used to get really down about it too, but somehow I've been changing it all little by little. And let me tell you, it's never something you'll regret. The more you force yourself into uncomfortable positions, the better you'll feel. Don't ask me why it works that way, but it does. Fear and accomplishment are two sides to the same coin.

Plus, if you ever feel so trapped that you'd rather feel anything besides the depression of being SA/shy, that's when you know it's time to branch out. Even if you fuck up in conversation, or people know you're shy - at least you'll be 2 steps ahead of where you were before. Just know that you're never alone in it all, and there's always a way out - and that way is straight through.

I agree with what you say. I've put myself out there constantly whether I wanted to or not. Fortunately I'm not completely homebound. The thing is I find myself wondering if any of it is really worth it. I mean you can push yourself to meet new people and chat it up with them all you want...but at the end of the day it seems you will inevitably find yourself going back to that lonely shell you call home. I suppose the interaction you have with people is the important thing, but after years of forcing myself to do that I've not seen it amount to much more beyond a reminder of the kind of life I don't have.
I guess putting myself in uncomfortable social situations hasn't really done much for me personally. The progress just isn't there.

 

[Vancouver]

Life really is too short, but personally I've found few positives to focus on. When you've never been in a romantic relationship, don't have any friends to hang out with, can't help but feel like a freak in public and even amongst your family, and are weighed down by crushing anxiety day in and day out it's difficult to find a positive beyond the simple (and overpraised) phenomenon of waking up in the morning.

Sometimes, in all honesty, I think that maybe life's not too short...but too long.

But alas, there goes my pessimism again.

I've never been in a real relationship. I've pushed my friends away because I've been too afraid to even hang out with them at times. I've felt like a completely nervous wreck in public - my family, friends... everyone.

Dude, this is every SA/shy person's story, believe it or not. I used to get really down about it too, but somehow I've been changing it all little by little. And let me tell you, it's never something you'll regret. The more you force yourself into uncomfortable positions, the better you'll feel. Don't ask me why it works that way, but it does. Fear and accomplishment are two sides to the same coin.

Plus, if you ever feel so trapped that you'd rather feel anything besides the depression of being SA/shy, that's when you know it's time to branch out. Even if you fuck up in conversation, or people know you're shy - at least you'll be 2 steps ahead of where you were before. Just know that you're never alone in it all, and there's always a way out - and that way is straight through.

I agree with what you say. I've put myself out there constantly whether I wanted to or not. Fortunately I'm not completely homebound. The thing is I find myself wondering if any of it is really worth it. I mean you can push yourself to meet new people and chat it up with them all you want...but at the end of the day it seems you will inevitably find yourself going back to that lonely shell you call home. I suppose the interaction you have with people is the important thing, but after years of forcing myself to do that I've not seen it amount to much more beyond a reminder of the kind of life I don't have.
I guess putting myself in uncomfortable social situations hasn't really done much for me personally. The progress just isn't there.

Yeah man (or chick), I hear you out on that one. What I'm learning how to do is make that home-shell a more comfortable place... if you get what I'm saying. I'm starting to realize how no matter what - no person, no place, no amount of success or money, no possession, no significant other - will ever be able to make you happy. We can only do so for ourselves. And I realized the only way for me to ever feel like this life is worth it, is to just accept, love, and be myself. And trust me, if the stubborn, thick-headed person I am can do it, I'm pretty sure it's possible for anyone and everyone. In fact, I'm completely sure