I have a lot of trouble when dealing with people.

Recently I discovered that I am being laid off from my job, and I’ve been procrastinating trying to find a new one. It’s not because I don’t want to work, but I fear that I will not do very well in my next job. My father has been trying to get me into his department, and I go along with it like I am excited, but honestly I am so afraid of failing or doing something wrong if I do get in.

I have a girlfriend whom I’ve been with for a little over a year, and things are going great, except when we have talks. Whenever she tries to give me constructive criticism, I take it personally and I feel very hurt. I try not to let it get to me, but I feel like a bad person, even though she is very gentle during the talks and doesn’t try to put me down. I also tend to be very closed off and almost expect her to read my mind to figure out what’s bothering me. She’s made it very clear that if I don’t start opening up, she will have to leave.

I’ve never had very many friends, and whenever the friends that I do have try to ask me to do things, I seem to make up excuses as to why I can’t. I’ve been invited to parties and outings with my co-workers, but I decline in the same fashion that I do with my friends. I’m always afraid that they won’t like me and I feel like I am uninteresting, even though I’ve been told otherwise. Most of the friends I do have are here on PsychCentral, and I feel safe here because I don't have to see anyone, and the people are nice and accept me just the way I am.

In high school, my parents urged me to join after-school clubs. I kept telling them that I didn’t have the time, or I had a lot of homework, or even that I had no way of getting home. I tried to avoid the subject in hopes that they’d forget, but they didn’t and wound up making me join anyway.

I don’t know what to do. When I was about 10 years old, my psychiatrist diagnosed me with social anxiety disorder, but I don't think that's what it is anymore. I am afraid to talk to him about it because I think he might think I'm exaggerating, even though I'm not.