Being anxious around attractive women
Hello,
I’m 27M and one I’m quite shy when communicating with women, especially those I find attractive. On top of that, I have a "resting bitch face". When I look back at situations from a "third-person" perspective where I was talking to a cute girl, I sometimes just want to crawl into a hole and hide. I get stressed out, and my verbal and non-verbal communication reflects that.
This happens even with women I know, albeit barely. For example, at the gym I usually run into a few really pretty girls there. We acknowledge each other since we say hi but I’d like to take it to at least the small talk stage. However, even when saying hello, I sometimes struggle to even smile at the girl. Long story short, around attractive women my non-verbal communication makes it seem like I’m completely uninterested or even that I dislike them.
Back in high school, I was doing a bit better. If I remember correctly, I had no problem just giving a girl a random wink. I’d say it was much easier for me to make a connection with the opposite sex back then.
Maybe all of this is due to low self-esteem (I’ve been through things I don't want to get into right now) and also because of a stutter I’ve had since childhood. Lately I've been kind of overthinking my last interactions with girls and I feel anxious because of things I wanted to say or do and I did not because to put it simply - I was afraid.
Is there anyone here who used to be shy around women but managed to change it? How did you do it ? What would you recommend ?
I’m 27M and one I’m quite shy when communicating with women, especially those I find attractive. On top of that, I have a "resting bitch face". When I look back at situations from a "third-person" perspective where I was talking to a cute girl, I sometimes just want to crawl into a hole and hide. I get stressed out, and my verbal and non-verbal communication reflects that.
This happens even with women I know, albeit barely. For example, at the gym I usually run into a few really pretty girls there. We acknowledge each other since we say hi but I’d like to take it to at least the small talk stage. However, even when saying hello, I sometimes struggle to even smile at the girl. Long story short, around attractive women my non-verbal communication makes it seem like I’m completely uninterested or even that I dislike them.
Back in high school, I was doing a bit better. If I remember correctly, I had no problem just giving a girl a random wink. I’d say it was much easier for me to make a connection with the opposite sex back then.
Maybe all of this is due to low self-esteem (I’ve been through things I don't want to get into right now) and also because of a stutter I’ve had since childhood. Lately I've been kind of overthinking my last interactions with girls and I feel anxious because of things I wanted to say or do and I did not because to put it simply - I was afraid.
Is there anyone here who used to be shy around women but managed to change it? How did you do it ? What would you recommend ?
26-30