Hey, I'm a new member here but I read this and kind of thought of myself and a few people I used to be close to. Several of my friends have had social anxiety and what they told me is that they came over it by just doing what they fear the most.... Which i know is much easier said than done.

Not all of us are perfect, and everyone has there issues, and even though it may seem like yours are terrible, it's because you feel that you're stuck and can't achieve the goals/dreams you have, but believe it or not, noticing your problems like this and being able to ask for help is the first step to getting closer to those goals. You wont be this way forever, as long as you keep trying. Don't give up, it's your life and it's up to you to make you happy, no one else. You neeed to get out of your shell, take baby steps and train yourself to think differently. Change doesnt happen all at once, and I know this from a lot of experience. It's defeinitly not an easy thing to do when you're feeling helpless and confused within yourself.... But you are not alone, and you can achieve and become the person you want to be, you know what you want, right? You know what you're having trouble with... And even though you might not know exactly whats stopping you all together, just do and think about things that make you happy... Think about what others seem to enjoy, try joining a club, not for other people, but for you or something like that where it's social but it's also not forcing you to talk to people, and then maybe you can make friends with new people, who you not only like being around but also enjoy the same activities with.