I have been awkward all my life and I am not ashamed to say that. I try to make it a positive thing and that is possible. It can also make my social life very frustrating and create a lot of anxiety. It was annoying in high school, but it’s really different in college.
One example is that sometimes I would rather stay in my room and jam to "Hamilton" than go out and mingle. Being in college is great because you get to make so many friends and I am lucky enough to say that I have made a lot of fantastic friends. Even though I have made those amazing friends who I will always cherish in my heart, there are some days when I just want to stay alone in my room. That can make me happy, but at the same time it sucks. I do want to mingle and have great memories with my buddies, but sometimes anxiety and nervousness kick in and I become an emotional turtle.
Another thing that I hate is when I get extremely nervous speaking out in class or talking to my teachers. When you are socially awkward, you don’t want to make a big deal out of anything. Whenever you can, you’ll just suck it up and deal with it yourself, or maybe try again later. Also, if you get stressed very easily, finals week isn’t your best week. You can study for hours only to forget all you studied -- or at least think you did, as soon as you start the test. It’s not fun.
The worst is when you start to talk to somebody about being in a relationship. I have always had this problem; remember when you were in middle school and you had your first boyfriend or girlfriend? It really wasn’t a relationship because it was the dark times of middle school and everyone was figuring life out. That’s how it is for awkward people all of the time. It’s not that we don’t want to be in a relationship, because we do. It can just get stressful for no reason. It is horrible and really confusing.
If you see someone afraid to make eye contact, run away when a group of people come or hasn’t left their room all day, then just give them space and know that it’s not you but them. Just respect their space but let them know that they are invited to whatever plans are being made; also know that they still want to be friends and still love you even if they chill in their room a lot.
People are surprised to learn that I have these issues. They see me singing, dancing and acting on stage in front of an audience and I seem fearless. It can be hard to tell, but when someone is in their niche they won’t be awkward. That is so much easier for us awkward people than the one-to-one connections that most students handle without a problem every day.
