saidso: I think joining social organizations outside of college is a superb idea. As mentioned at the start of this thread, my emotions seemed to have been put into a box and I've fallen through the cracks with many people who claimed to be "friends". I admit I'm much more cynical and cautious around people than I was when I was an undergrad at college, but my recent trip to the Caribbean to get scuba-certified was nothing short of beneficial for me. Since diving is a social activity that encourages higher-level interaction and friendships, I met a cornucopia of interesting people and already lightyears away from where I was at even before starting some of my most recent rant-y threads. Maybe people in general aren't so bad after all. Thank you for encouraging me to make better choices with my social needs as well as for sharing your very relatable experiences! You are not alone in this struggle either because as I finish up my grad school program I'm transitioning too so it won't be easy but maybe it will all be worth it! Hope things get better for you too

MickeyCheeky: Thank you for your thoughtful contribution to my threads as always. As stated I sure hope that women hate me but grateful that you're providing some logic into my situation. Being in the middle of the introvert-extrovert spectrum I am not the kind of person who likes to take all of my time up with others, but its always worth expanding my repertoire or support group.

I'm not going to criticize anybody here who have recommended stronger social skills to improve my odds against women, but why do people keep giving this advice? We live in double-standards where the phrase "be yourself" is at every street corner, yet seemingly the entire human race always wigs out every time I screw up socially or have a quiet/introverted personality, and are always arbitrary as to what I can improve on or what they even define as social skills. It's like if I'm not absolutely perfect socially or 100% extroverted, it's a heinous crime and I'll live life at the bottom of society's totem pole and stay there Society's bias towards extroverts or "people's persons" is a large reason for my self-consciousness and insecurities.