To really hate having such an unusual name?

[Oddnameout]

Okay - this is long and ranty and probably a bit woe-is-me but here goes.

My name is very unusual. I have never met anyone else with it. A lot of people struggle to pronounce it, laugh at it, say it repeatedly in a silly voice, say a different name altogether. I'm sure you get the picture!

All that is harder than it sounds. I often dread having to introduce myself because of the above.

But the worst thing is that I'm not awarded any anonymity at all. Some examples I can think of are:

Unsuccessful interviews are remembered because of my name. If I apply to the company in the future my name is recalled.

Google searches; the first two pages of Google are all me.

I rang the Samaritans once due to depression. I was asked my name. I gave a different one on the off chance I knew the lady but she constantly used it and it became jarring and off putting.

I don't want to change it; I would feel like an idiot saying to all my friends 'from now on call me sophie' or whatever.

But - aibu to be fed up? Or am I over-reacting?

Oddnameout

I changed my name from the ridiculous spelling my parents saddled me with to a normally spelt diminutive, but I'd been using it for years anyway.

So family call me my birth name, all my friends call me my legal name. But I have been known to say, "I don't care what you call me as long as it isn't rude", as I'm a supply teacher I get asked my name a lot. I have had whole groups call me 'Debra' or 'Valerie' and I just respond as though that's my name.

I've also known a lot of people use a different name when their first name is foreign and difficult to pronounce. You don't need to actually change your name for everything but you could say,"I know it's difficult, if you can't say it then say X", cold you do that? Have second 'reserve' name?