High school is considered to be one of the most important period of time from one’s life and one’s process of development, alongside other milestones such as: college, medical school or other types of schools. While in secondary school, you will get to experience so many new things such as: meeting new people who will, or won’t, turn into your friends, learning new stuff which will contribute to your future and your knowledge or even meeting your significant other, why not?
However, what happens when you have a shy personality? This may influence a kid’s high school experience when it comes to making friends or getting his work acknowledged. Shyness can also interfere in a teenager’s capability of sharing and communicating his feelings in an effective way or even join scholar activities.
High school can be a tough place for a shy kid
A kid who is shy may find it hard fitting in into a group of people or classmates from his secondary school. He could even experience bullying because of this characteristic of his personality, which may be damaging to his self-esteem, self-confidence or the process of self-developing. These traits and this process are so important in a teenager’s life, and the fact that these are ignored, or even disturbed, is upsetting.
Moreover, secondary schools are bad at teaching its students that being shy is not a bad thing and that is a part of who we are, which we can’t get rid of so easily. And even if the school has one, they are poorly prepared. That’s why psychologists and therapists are much needed in every school, because every kid who is struggling may need to talk to a specialist who will make them feel understood.
A shy kid may experience anxiety when it comes to meeting new people or attending high school classes. This may occur because his incapacity of sharing the exact way he feels to his peers. Or he may feel peer pressure at a greater level because the kid feels that he needs to fit in between classmates by becoming another version of himself, one which can be better or worse.
During secondary school, I was a shy kid too, and I still am. I found it hard expressing my feelings because the thought of them hurting the feelings of others was all over my head. People, especially my classmates or even strangers from another classes, often chose to bully me and judge me for my shyness instead of trying to help me to cope with it. As time passed and with the help of some people, I got used to the idea that having a shy personality is not bad, it even makes you special. Finding my people really helped me with shyness, which dropped to a lower level.
However, you shouldn’t feel overwhelmed by it and you should find ways to manage it in a healthy way, and also people around whom you can be yourself and not create a fake image. These friends should have the ability to understand you and make you feel that this is where you belong.
If you still deal with struggles about this subject and its consequences, I strongly recommend talking to a specialist who will help you and will give you several solutions and remembering the idea that you are special in your own way and shouldn’t feel peer pressure about it.
