I intend to ask my T about this tomorrow as well, but figured I would get some of your opinions. I'm a very talkative and outgoing person in general, but I am a bit of an introvert. I still live home, and could stay in my room for days on end if I didn't have to shower/eat. My family know that I am antisocial (it gets worse and worse as I get older), and my friends say that I am very social - but on my own terms (which is about every three months according to them - otherwise I like to do my own thing).

But I do understand that part of a healthy relationship is giving on my part. So, I try to hang out and listen, watch a show or two with the family, but its like when I'm done - i'm done. They want me to hang around because they are just starting to really enjoy me and honestly, I'm the only person in the house worth hanging out with sometimes because I don't have romance, financial, political issues, etc. I just like to watch a show, laugh, have coffee.

And then I like to be by myself for the rest of the 6-8 hours of the day before bed. Today (its 730 pm), I have spent maybe a full hour outside of my room. My mom wants to show me things on tv, cook dinner, tell me funny things - anything she can do to keep me with her longer. And I understand that she is living in a house full of people with no one to talk to.

I KNOW that it is healthy to have what T calls "time to recharge" and I KNOW how to not be used. But I also have to give a little, which means that sometimes I need to (or want to) step away from myself and see how others are, but I get so irritable and feel like i'm being held hostage by myself. How do I get past that and enjoy, even small moments, with others I care about? How can I teach myself to be nice?