Should I apologize for my introversion?

Post Reply New Topic

I've been working on my social skills, learning to emulate the right facial expressions and to ask people questions, but I'm not as good at it as I thought. I went out shopping with my friend that I talk to on the phone a lot but haven't really seen in years, and it was like meeting a new person. After a few minutes of talking and laughing the conversation dried up and I just sort of tagged along for the next hour. I couldn't tell if she was annoyed or creeped out. She wanted to hang out afterward and go do something, but I just wanted to go home, so she dropped me off.

Is that rude, or weird, or can I safely ignore it?

You wouldn't apologize for your skin color, would you? Of course not. Just like that, introversion is something you're born with. Never apologize. If your friend can't accept who you are, get new friends.

he is right, however, the friend of yours probably felt like u didnt want to hang out with her as if u didnt like her. dont need to appologise, but you may have to explain or just come up with a decent white lie

Never apologize for who you are! If a friend doesn't accept you, they aren't a friend.

I can't say anything that pretty much hasn't already been summed up. I echo these responses. If a friend can't accept you for who you are, they're simply not a friend. You are the way you are. There is no need to apologize for that.

But on the other side of the coin, if you're just tagging along with your hands in your pockets, it's a truism that many people won't really want to spend time with you. If you want to be a presentable and relatively sociable person, you need to make the effort to learn a few useful conversation starters, phrases, etc. Learn the person's interests and engage them on that topic, even if it's just to keep the conversation going sometimes.

I've been trying rather hard to make myself suitable for socializing. I follow all the tips, tricks, rules and whatever else for social engagements. I still get really uncomfortable speaking to people, though, and I'm a lot more intimidated now than I used to be because I'm suddenly hanging out with ADULTS (even though, technically, I am one as well) rather than high school kids. I'm not worried so much by the time we spent as by the time we didn't spend, IE, when she kept asking if I wanted to go do something after and I just said I wanted to go home.

I won't mention it unless she does, then, but next time I can bring myself to spend more than an hour out of the house.

You shouldn't have to apologize for being the way that you are.

If you are really good friends, then you may need to explain about AS. Tell her that you enjoy hanging out with her, but that you are rather quiet and don't find conversation comes easily. Good friends will understand. She may even be able to help by instigating the conversation more than waiting for you to speak up.