I always assumed I was an extrovert. I’m quite good at talking to people, even those I don’t know. I can host a party, flitting from group to group like the proverbial butterfly. I was once even described as ‘bubbly’. Of course I was an extrovert. So what if I didn’t particularly like talking to strangers; that was merely a personality quirk born out of switching high-schools. And that tight feeling high in my stomach before social events was probably indigestion. It didn’t mean anything. I knew I was an extrovert.
I was wrong. I am an introvert; I just didn’t realize it until I was well into my twenties. That probably seems like something I should have figured out earlier, but it truly caught me by surprise. I was always sociable and able to talk to anyone, but then when you change high-schools twice, you learn to be friendly real fast. And I guess I just got used to acting like an extrovert. It wasn’t until a few years ago that I read something about introverts and had my own little epiphany. All those small things added up. And then the real discovery began.