Are You Shy?

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When growing up, I always had problems holding conversations with other kids because the things they would say never made sense to me, not only because I had trouble following speech but what they had to say might as well of been off a Charlie Brown show....."Wah! Wah Wah, Wah!"

I didn't become "shy" until I was in 7th grade and this was after a year's worth of bullying, name-calling, ostracism and hatred from an entire classroom of 6th graders. That's when I developed social anxiety disorder and any sort of interaction or scrutiny by people was so frightening, I was even scared of walking up to the teachers desk or down the hall. I had such a fear of doing something wrong I tried to do or say as little as possible around others.

It wasn't until I started medication in my 20s that I finally was able to have conversations without being pathologically phobic. But it doesn't take away my socialization difficulties and I still have to fight to find words to express myself. And I'm always putting my foot in my mouth saying the "wrong" thing or un-intentionally coming off as "stupid".

I am so shy I can't even talk to people online

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I am quite a shy person. I was always the quiet introvert in my family.

I'm shy but I talk to everyone, so I don't know what category that goes in.

Not shy at all. I'm an ambivert. If there's a problem my first impulse is to ask others for help. If they manage to help me I thank them profusely, give praises and we both feel good. If they can't help then I switch mode and turn on my brain to figure things out myself. Got these opposite qualities from my mom and dad, so most of the time I'm really good at solving problem.

I am an introvert but I am not shy.
I just find it difficult to start conversations, even with people I know well (I struggle to say "hello" but approaching and discussing a specific topic with a stranger doesn't cause me any problems).
I am also not able to talk through a cam and sometimes a phone.

My partner would say I’m both: shy and assured at the same time.
He told me he is often shocked by my openness and my nonchalance on certain topics and surprised by my shyness that "no one understand" in other contexts.
I think one of the problems in my life is that I don't have the same concept of intimacy and privacy as most people.
People also don't understand why on some things I am so private.

I have already told my partner that "everyone is different" and he told me that no, he sees certain repetitive patterns.
With age, I'm finally starting to understand what he means.

18 years after this thread went dormant, I am still shy.

With me it's not as simple as just being shy or not. I perform live music in front of people, without feeling any stage fright. I'm usually genial with people I feel reasonably safe with. I tend to end up alone a lot, but not really through choice.

[votes and runs away without further comment]

I would say I am more shy than not shy.