Do I be honest and decline invites or do I do things just to please others when I am not enjoying any second of it due to intense anxiety and paranoia?
My new friends want me to do stuff with them. The problem is that I am severely mentally ill with sz and anxiety. I can only handle a small amount of socialization and I am only able to drive in certain areas of town at certain times of day because of my bad anxiety/panic. I am good with small doses of structured socialization when I am comfortable driving to the place (if it’s really close to home).
Do what you can then say you have to go. I get bored of my friends sometimes and leave or stop answering their calls for one or two days. I tell them I don’t drive far or when there is a snowstorm, I take bus or metro then if they don’t want to pick me up.
Thank you. I will have to be honest then with my new friends that I am only comfortable socializing with them at the coffee shop where we met because of my driving anxiety and other mental health issues.
It just stinks. I thought I could handle more. Sz and bad anxiety are so disabling. I hope I don’t lose these friends now. I hope they understood. In the past, no one has.
I feel you. I didn’t drive at all for a years and now I do but not far either.
I don’t want to do anything with them outside of the coffee shop local meetups that the coffee shop hosts. I don’t want to go anything extra. Is that wrong? How do I tell them this?
People pleasing hasn’t worked for me. When I choose my well being as long as it doesn’t hurt someone else I feel stronger and more inline with my self
Be honest. You can try change a bit here or there for friends. And dont need to tell all at once. But be yourself. You dont want to wreck your mental health, for friends you aren’t yourself with.
I think kind people are fine with you setting boundaries. What do they know already about your mental illness?
