Photo by Kyle Glenn on Unsplash I've written about the flushed cheeks and blank mind I experience when suddenly finding myself the center of attention or when called upon to speak extemporaneously among non-friends. Many writers and introverted people seem to experience this freeze of words, awkward physical movement and self-consciousness while being observed. [...]
Ever wonder why some people require thrills and action in order to get engaged in life while others are content reading a book, listening to music or staring at artwork? What physiologically makes an introvert an introvert and an extrovert an extrovert? There is more to the introvert/extrovert comparison than how each one socializes. It's in your [...]
As an introvert, there have been countless times when someone else got the job/attention/raise/praise/boyfriend because they were quicker on their feet, vibrantly outgoing, tireless and more aggressive than me. If you lose out enough times, you start to feel inadequate or incompetent. There’s a fair amount of shame that goes along with feelings of incompetence. I [...]
Most of my introvert friends are childless or have one child. They seemed to have instinctively known their child-rearing capabilities and stopped while they were ahead. I on the other hand barreled through every red flag that warned me. I overlooked the need for long spans of time to myself. I didn't notice how much I [...]
It is 2006 and I have everything. My husband is making professional athlete money as an executive at a hedge fund. We have three healthy, beautiful, active, children. We recently moved into a spacious and impressive home. I am getting to know people by throwing dinner parties for my husband’s co-workers and attending neighborhood Bunco [...]
It’s midnight and my eleven year old son, Bryce, and I are camping out on my dad’s property. It’s not ideal camping weather. There’s a chance of a storm and the thermometer hovers around 45 degrees. The plump air mattress under our two-man tent uses up a precious four inches of floor to ceiling space. Bryce [...]
