College Admissions Essay: How Shyness Changed My Life

As a little girl I was always the one who would hide behind her father’s leg. At the dinner table I would be quiet so I would never be brought into the conversation. The older I got, the more I came out of my shell. I still could never break free, though. It wasn’t until I became involved in organizations, that I was able to interact with people and take initiative.

Honestly for most of my life I've never been the most outgoing person in the world. I suppose a stranger would've called me reserved, but I knew that deep down inside that I had the ability to not be “that shy girl”.In time it did turn out I did have that I did have the ability not to be so quiet but it did take me quite a while; one experience in particular did in a way force me to come out of my shell.

Communication apprehension has played a huge role on my life. Growing up I thought I was a social butterfly, not worrying about what people thought about me or how they viewed me. I had some great friends growing up that were always supportive of me. We would hang out all the time and meet new people and just have fun. It wasn’t until I was a little bit older that I learned of the fear of public speaking.

Like I said before, I was the shyest kid ever growing up, I would go out of my way just to avoid talking to people I was unfamiliar with. Many people from school rarely heard me speak, I was easy to forget about. I kept to myself and did my work. Even outside of school I stayed to myself, only ever hanging out with a few friends. Even when high school started I was quiet. I began hanging out with more people, but there were still a lot of

I have always been sort of a shy kid; I kept to myself and did not interact with other people if I did not have to.

“Pray that your loneliness may spur you into finding something to live for, great enough to die for” (Dag Hammarskjold). Loneliness is a scary thing. As a child, I was very shy and timid and I suffered from it. My life was sheltered by my parents and I desperately wanted a sibling. Along with my parents, the private school I had gone to all my life never gave me the experience of stranger interaction. The thought of starting a conversation with someone I have never met made me drench in sweat. I dreaded the day of going to a public high school. Never in my dreams would I have imagined how it would affect my life and mold me into the person I am today.

Social anxiety latches on to its victims and sucks all hope and motivation for self improvement and success to the point where it seems that any and all attempts to overcome it are out of reach. What once was a crippling disadvantage, is now what I have to thank for becoming my true self. It took four years to be able manage the sense of trepidation and overwhelming panic when going about day-to-day activities such as asking questions in class or even having a conversation with any acquaintances; however, I would not change anything that I have experienced.

Overcoming my timidness may not seem like such an important deed, but when I look back, I recognize how much it held me back. The fear of speaking up crippled me and caused me to be unable to speak my mind. The black hole that consumed my life was my own insecurity. I started my first year of high school perfectly content living without a voice, as long as I was not the center of attention, I was at peace. During my junior year, I decided that it was finally time to face my challenge head on. I did the one thing that scared me most, I ran for treasurer for both the senior class and National Honors Society. At the time I made the decision, I knew that an important part of being an officer was speaking in front of my peers and teachers. I made

Coming out of my shell was one of my biggest accomplishments in my life. Growing up I was always the shy girl. I was scared of interacting with others because I would felt like I was going to say the wrong thing or just blank out completely. I wouldn’t really participate or be involved in anything until my sophomore year in high school. I felt the need to make adjustments to myself so that I could be more confident. At first I started of slow I had to put myself in uncomfortable situations where I was forced to talk to people.

Two years prior of my birth, both of parents made the ultimate decision to begin a brand new life as they brought themselves along with the rest of my family to the United States of America. Sold on the idea of the ‘American Dream’, they held aspirations of offering a better opportunity of an enriched lifestyle for all of us. With their own cultures mixed with my American values and ideals, out came a lifetime's worth of clashes and thoughts on who I am as an individual. I began to take on the role of the observer as I payed close attention to the family dynamic and grew aware of each member’s specific roles. Seeing how these said roles affected the relationships and behaviors of one another allowed me to gain a deeper understanding of others. Psychology allows me to observe my surroundings, to be able to figure out why things work the way they do and my love for it continues to grow. It offers me the chance to ask questions and strengthen my curiosities on human interaction and the level of impact it has on society.

This all has lead to where I am now. Comfortable with who I am and confident in who I’m still in the process of becoming. A given I know about myself now is that, without my social anxiety, I’m able to hold great conversation and enjoy myself out and about, however, I’m no extravert. I still enjoy a good book and staying in more than being social. The difference being, now I can also enjoy going out and being social. Along with that bonus, I don’t run and hide when people pop over to visit. Well, occasionally I still run and hide, but that's because of them and not

The Myers-Briggs Personality Test states I am 68% introverted. I mostly never start a conversation up with a person I don’t know well and even if I do I feel tension and am not relaxed more less just want to get the conversation over with. However, this is not the case with my friends, I can talk openly with no problems and feel relaxed. I am 68% Introverted, that versus 32% Extraverted according to the Myers-Briggs Personality Test, I am mostly Introverted because I don’t like talking in front of a lot of people like presenting a project. Talking in front of people usually makes me forget things and stammer when I say things. This was in fact true for a recent project did in the eighth grade where I had to put on a Shakespeare play with classmates, before the in front presentation I knew all my lines but when presenting I forgot half of them. I just never got comfortable with speaking to new people or in front of

I am a very introverted person, I don’t like being in front of crowds or talking to new people. As a child I was the complete opposite, I was extroverted and loved being the center of attention. Unfortunately this only lasted until I was about seven years old. After that something snapped and I became unable to talk or do anything in front of other people.

I was also a very shy person in school, so I did not try to socialize outside of my friend group. I was very content to stay within those friends, which is now something I wish I could change. I am not sure how much I could change my current bias if I had been more outgoing, but

People who are diagnosed with social anxiety have a difficult time communicating with others. In “Shyness and Social Phobia.” Joseph Walsh, informs “Social phobia, also known as social anxiety disorder, is a fear of social situation and interactions” (138). Specifically it is the fear of being judged in any social situation, which people diagnosed with social anxiety feel much more uneasy. In “Social anxiety disorder: Much more than shyness.” Margot Shields explains, “Most people have felt awkward or embarrassed in a social situation… however, people with social anxiety disorder experience much more discomfort than this” (22). When overcoming social anxiety, self-treatment can be an option. Although you will face many mental and physical obstacles