@Scarred4Lyfe 1 August 2021 more from that month

Well, it's almost 8 AM Sunday morning, the cats have been fed (and fed...and fed...but that's a different story) and the birds have been fed and the squirrels have been fed and I have mucho caffeine in me and I may just almost be prepared to go out to Walmart and battle the seething horde. I don't think I ever really dig deep down into how problematic my aversion to being around people has become. It began manifesting itself a few years before COVID struck, and I decided in October of 2019 that I simply could not continue my business as sound reinforcement for local music venues after finishing two days running sound for a local wine festival. I am just extremely uncomfortable around people, and crowds of people really stretch the limits of my ability to remain in a social frame of mind. And it is only getting progressively worse. It takes me a few days to work up to the point I'll go to the store or anything. At times I hide from the mailman, I have even 'hid' from family a few times to avoid having to deal with...well, just people. I've lied about being sick to avoid a few family get-togethers over the last two years. It isn't because I am avoiding any one person...most of the time I simply do not want to be around anybody. Hell of a life for someone that used to enjoy people so much...