ImmenseLoad wrote:
I'm at rock bottom when it comes to a social life as I currently have no friends at all so what should I do to rectify this? I'm 20 and I work as a truck driver so work is a no go for social purposes since everyone at the company I work for it way older then me.
Does anyone have any helpful advice?
About 2 years ago I really hit rock bottom. I had no one I knew or talked to outside of my grandparents. I had been forced to volunteer as a kid with the Red Cross as part of their youth program, but it really wasn't for me, too much working with people on a daily basis. What I realized I wanted to do was to volunteer WITH animals. So I began looking for places where I could volunteer with animals and meet people in a setting that was comfortable for me. So that's what I did.
I think find something that you really enjoy doing and then see if there are any volunteer opportunities, meeting people in an environment where you already have something of common interest can be a huge ice breaker. Make sure you are comfortable with the environment yourself, I'd say at least for me don't be afraid for it to feel a little unnatural and a little uncomfortable, because that's how we learn and grow, but if it's too uncomfortable don't be afraid to find something else that might work better for you.
It took me 1 whole year and a half before I could finally feel comfortable both with the demands of the volunteer work I was doing in one place where I work with Horses at a rescue before I truly felt comfortable. My time there this past 2 years has been a huge learning experience, and I cried a lot during my first year and a half! But I've learned so much there and am always grateful for the experience that I get to have there with them.
The other place I volunteer at is also with animals, there are a LOT of people and I still don't feel comfortable, but the woman I volunteer for helps me to feel comfortable by being a good acquaintance. I.E. she's really a great person who makes me feel good about coming in even when I don't want to be around those people. I don't feel comfortable around the people who are not her there, but I'm still there doing what I love and I do get some social interaction while doing something I am naturally good at (working with animals). And because I am reliable and dependable I get a lot of brownie point references
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I also made and lost my first friend through volunteering route! Haha, so I am obviously making progress.
So while working with animals might not be your niche there might be other things that might work for you in the volunteer area. And that's just my tip: Volunteer, volunteer, volunteer and volunteer some more