To feel incredibly socially awkward?

[Truthtime2023]

Has anybody else lost their confidence over the years?! I honestly dread the majority of family events or parties. I feel like I have nothing to add to conversations. Or I genuinely think other people just don’t bother to make conversation with me. I wonder if I’m boring?

I don’t feel it so much with my own family, but honestly with DH’S family events 20 minutes can pass and I haven’t been involved in any conversation! We had a party last week with some of his wider family I’d never met and I can’t say I enjoyed a second.

I have a good group of friends and always love to be in their company. It’s never a struggle for conversation. But those times are rare due to our lifestyles and commitments. Of course, there’s no short of conversation with DH.

Through school, teenage years and my early 20’s I was always so outgoing. The “confident” one who wouldn’t or couldn’t stop talking! Now I avoid people in the supermarket…..

Strangely I’ve never struggled to socialise at work and have always felt pretty confident. I wonder why that is?

I’ve got a 3 month old boy and had a vision that I would make new “mum friends” through baby groups. But honestly, when I’m there I find it so difficult. The majority of Mums are already in a clique and I feel the odd one out.

So, does anybody else feel this way? Or am I just the odd one out?

Yup. Same OP. And only later in life too. Odd really. It got me down a while back so I did some serious self care and forced myself to do some small interaction most days. Have also made efforts to see my two close friends more often. It hasn't made me less socially awkward but I am less bothered about it and more accepting. Maybe you could try and find another SA person and suggest a walk with buggies and build from there? My DD is at secondary now but I remember 3 months well. Magical - but knackering and hormonal. I think there are lots of us socially awkward people and FWIW I find them the most interesting people. We are just hard to find because, well, we are not great socially :) I hope you find your tribe soon.

Yes OP, I hear you, although I am a totally different demographic to you - older, not a parent and never been confident at work, any more than in social situations and don't have a group of friends to fall back on! Even my partner tells me that I am socially inept, clumsy and awkward, ( which is actually very hurtful, but typical of the belittling, insensitive, humiliating and degrading comments she frequently throws at me), and I feel like the 'ugly duckling', but know that I will never metamorphose into a graceful swan! And I am autistic, which doesn't help.

I have no advice for you OP, but offer sympathy and solidarity.

I've become like this too, am mid 40s, I've been through some rough life events in the past 10 years and sometimes I wonder if it's made me less tolerant of mundane moaning from people who really have nothing to complain about.

I've been a bit worried lately I'm becoming slightly agoraphobic, I avoid the mums on the school run I'd previously cultivated friendships with, I just don't know what's wrong with me.

Bumping this thread for traffic.

The irony of the OP saying that she feels that nobody bothers to make conversation with her and what happens? The thread has been up for 16 hours now and she has only had 3 people engage with her thus far!

Hope you are doing OK today OP