hi help please!

[cutieee]

hi everyone,

i'm a 23-year-old male and i was hoping to get some help or advice, please. i haven't got any friends at the moment and i'm really interested in making some. in the past, when i’ve had friends, i often believed they didn’t want to be friends with me and i started feeling like a burden to them.
i do attend talking therapies as i suffer from psychosis, depression, and anxiety. typically, when i make friends with other males, they tend to mock me because of my feminine nature.

additionally, i struggle with gender identity issues, which makes it even harder.

if anyone has any advice or similar experiences to share, i would really appreciate it. thank you.

Can you find friends elsewhere? Where are you meeting the old friends?

from when i attended university a few years back. i’m quite terrified of meeting new people generally.

i wouldn’t know where else to find friends, my therapist recommended joining this group with mind to meet people similar to myself but the thought of doing so terrifies me.

i don’t really leave the house anymore unless it’s for work or grocery shopping

Hi I just wanted to reach out as I have had depression, anxiety and all sorts of problems through my early 20s - one thing that helped me was to find 'my' community and 'my' people. You mention you may be genderfluid, are there any queer spaces near you? Often queer spaces are welcoming and inclusive.

This might be of help.

https://www.themix.org.uk/

i come from a quite strict religious family, and i worry that engaging with queer spaces might trigger a psychotic episode. it makes me so upset sometimes i feel it’s best to runaway at times.

thank you for reaching out. it’s comforting to know i’m not the only who has experienced this too.

thank you

I also wanted to add, have you found your city's community on Reddit (this will work only if you live in a fairly big place and are not at risk of being recognised. I am mentioning because in the community of my city there was recently a young person who also was genderfluid and they were trying to escape a strict religious upbringing: they received great support and advice. In general Reddit is very supportive if you find your community.

Do you live at home or on your own? Both have challenges although since I left the country where my parents live I've felt a million times better.

Anyway I'm just an old(ish) mum and so certainly not a person you want to make friends with (my own kids are about your age) but I want to wish you well and also want to show you that it is possible, I felt really in pain and broken and irredeemably wrong at your age and I got better. I have a house, a family, a job I like and I'm happy and loved. It is possible and I'm going to say to you what I wish people had said to me: you are stronger than you think you are.💚

thank you for suggesting reddit. unfortunately, it's rather difficult for me to engage with local community spaces online due to my situation. i appreciate your advice, though.

thank you so much for your kind words and support. i live at home, which comes with its own set of challenges. it's really encouraging to hear that things can get better, and your story gives me hope. i appreciate you sharing your experience and for reminding me that i’m stronger than i think 🤍