# Sitting alone at lunch?



## kreeper

School is starting next week, and I'm a little worried. I don't have many friends, and out of the few friends I do have, only two are close enough where I would feel comfortable sitting with them at lunch. My high school has a two-lunch schedule (icky). And so far, one of my friends has a different lunch and the other hasn't gotten her schedule yet.

I'm actually semi-comfortable with the idea of sitting alone, but I'm not crazy about it. I have a couple times before and I felt so paranoid and afraid of what others might be thinking of me. Not fun. 

Anyways, I'm not sure if I could work up the courage to sit with an acquaintance. (I tried before last year when I was new to my school, and the girl was very reluctant and ignored me the whole half hour I sat with her group. :cry ) I'm not even sure if I want to. It's hard to explain, but I'm alright being alone unless people are watching... :get 

What would you do in my situation? Do you think it's bad if I just let things be and sit alone? (I know I'm making a bigger deal out of this than it needs to be, that's just how I roll, sadly. )


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## ShyGuyy420

I didn't have any friends in my lunch my freshman year of high school so i always went to the library during lunch period. I was lucky enough to have some friends to sit with though my sophmore and junior year. This year if i dont have any friends in my lunch period i'll probably just go sit in my car.


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## itsmemaggi

I clung to a person who was sort-of alone, herself. Fortunately, this worked pretty well for me. Otherwise, I got my lunch, ate it quickly (while reading and/or listening to music), and then spent the rest of the period in the library. I hope you have a better time. Once you get that core group of friends (all it takes is one, sometimes, to introduce you to tons more), you're set. But if you don't think that's going to work, I definitely advocate the music/reading option. It makes you appear very laid back, like you don't care you're eating alone.

xoxo
Maggi


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## pita

I had one year in high school where I had no friends on lunch break--well, technically they were my friends, but I don't think they really liked me that much. So I used to just walk home then walk back again. I still hate eating alone in a cafeteria, but music & reading helps a lot. I'll just put my mp3 player on and read a newspaper or something.


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## Zephyr

In high school I skipped lunch and hung out in the library. I was sooo cool.


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## SilentLoner

My freshman year I stopped going to the cafeteria after a month or so because I always ended up sitting alone. Either spent it in the bathroom or in a study hall table (no getting into the library without a note even during lunch!!), skip lunch altogether.

I switched schools after that year - in my new school everyone had lunch at the same time, anywhere on the first floor of the building. I could eat in the hallway (bunch of people did) then spend the rest of the time in the library.


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## Undreamed

When I was in high school, I had nobody to sit with at lunch, so I sat in a stall in the bathroom until it was over every day. I know...it was pretty pathetic. When I look back on it, I should have just gone into the lunchroom and eaten alone while reading and tuning out the world.


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## CandySays

Don't dwell over it. If your friend has the same lunch as you, great. If not, take it as an opportunity to enjoy the period by yourself, doing what you want, not caring. Find yourself a tree to sit under or a nicely shaded place to eat your lunch (essentially what the period is for). IMO, anyone who judges you is an idiot. Or ignorant. Or both. Embrace who you are or work your way up to do something about it (i.e. asking to sit with people).

"Nobody can make you feel inferior without your consent."
-Eleanor Roosevelt


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## rossifranklin

> I definitely advocate the music/reading option. It makes you appear very laid back, like you don't care you're eating alone.


I'm not so sure about that, particularly, of the music/headphones. I think it looks more like someone that wants to look like they don't care.


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## kreeper

Undreamed said:


> When I was in high school, I had nobody to sit with at lunch, so I sat in a stall in the bathroom until it was over every day. I know...it was pretty pathetic. When I look back on it, I should have just gone into the lunchroom and eaten alone while reading and tuning out the world.


No, I totally understand where you're coming from. I did that a couple times when my only friend was out sick. But even in the bathroom, I was worried that someone would come in and notice that I was in there for an abnormal amount of time. :lol



CandySays said:


> Don't dwell over it. If your friend has the same lunch as you, great. If not, take it as an opportunity to enjoy the period by yourself, doing what you want, not caring. Find yourself a tree to sit under or a nicely shaded place to eat your lunch (essentially what the period is for). IMO, anyone who judges you is an idiot. Or ignorant. Or both. Embrace who you are or work your way up to do something about it (i.e. asking to sit with people).
> 
> "Nobody can make you feel inferior without your consent."
> -Eleanor Roosevelt


I love that quote! Yeah, I think I'm going to be alright. I feel better about it already! Thanks everyone for your advice


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## styler5

I felt horribly embarrassed when I was in high school. Thankfully, it doesn't bother me much anymore in college for unknown reason.


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## Akane

I wish there had been a table I could sit alone in highschool. Instead they were usually full of people I didn't want to get near and would have harassed me the whole lunch time. So I stood in the hallway with some other people and didn't eat anything which left me ready to pass out by last period. Then I ended up having to sneak some type of chocolate into class to keep from being sick and got yelled at constantly for it.

In college now I can eat wherever I want. I drove to fazoli's and had spaghetti between classes. Really wasn't so bad eating alone.


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## Lachlan

This topic brings back bad memories. I would suggest you try not to sit alone at lunch.


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## styler5

Lachlan said:


> I would suggest you try not to sit alone at lunch.


Easier said than done.


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## Lachlan

^ :sigh I know, hence the 'try' . I just don't wish my own experience of this problem on anyone. It was so horrible.


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## Beryl

My highschool was very unique so I ate alone without any problems for the first few weeks of highschool but I was lucky enough to have met a new very extroverted person pull me into his group of friends a few weeks later.


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## Drella

Zephyr said:


> In high school I skipped lunch and hung out in the library. I was sooo cool.


Hah, I hung out in the lobby of the guidance counselors' offices. 
Thankfully, only a few students ever walked through there during my lunch period, so it wasn't _so_ humiliating. Sitting alone in the cafeteria is unbearable; I was forced to do it until I finally decided to skip lunch altogether.


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## 58787

I attended an open-air high school more like a college campus and we were allowed to grab food and basically eat anywhere on the school grounds. Loved it - so happy I never had to do the typical cafeteria thing. Not that I ever ate lunch anyways.


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## CandySays

kreeper said:


> I love that quote! Yeah, I think I'm going to be alright. I feel better about it already! Thanks everyone for your advice


Good! You seem like a levelheaded chick. I'm sure you'll handle the situation well when the time comes


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## CopadoMexicano

I remember sitting alone about 90 percent at the time at lunch during high school and university made me feel self conscious./


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## vibrato5

Sitting alone does suck ***. I have completely given up on going to the cafeteria at my school. One time last year I had gone to the cafeteria and had finished my food and gotten up to get some more. When I came back, these two girls were sitting at my tiny table. I was like (to myself) "what the hell, did you not see my back and stuff there?" It was completely akward for the five minutes that I continued sitting there, silently reading my Wall Street Journal as if I was more interested in getting good grades than being social.

Sorry, I'm sure this doesnt help. It just reminded me of a bad experience :sigh


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## sh0x

my freshmen year i had 1 friend to sit with, but he turned out to be an @$$, so i decided to sit by myself in the library, it wasn't so bad.


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## kreeper

Ok, so today was the second day of school, and the first day with a normal lunch schedule. I sat alone, and I was a bit uncomfortable (and overheated! It's 100 degrees where I am right now) but not miserable. I found a spot outside, kind of out of the way where few people walk by, and read a book while I ate. I probably would have been better off in the library though, like some of you recommended... Maybe I'll try that next week.

Thanks again for all the help and sympathy!



vibrato5 said:


> Sitting alone does suck @$$. I have completely given up on going to the cafeteria at my school. One time last year I had gone to the cafeteria and had finished my food and gotten up to get some more. When I came back, these two girls were sitting at my tiny table. I was like (to myself) "what the hell, did you not see my back and stuff there?" It was completely akward for the five minutes that I continued sitting there, silently reading my Wall Street Journal as if I was more interested in getting good grades than being social.
> 
> Sorry, I'm sure this doesnt help. It just reminded me of a bad experience :sigh


That was so rude of those girls to do that! I would have probably tried to run away without them noticing. :lol Ugh, yeah that's why I don't ever sit in the cafeteria. Too many people making me feel all self-conscious.



ryalbe said:


> I attended an open-air high school more like a college campus and we were allowed to grab food and basically eat anywhere on the school grounds. Loved it - so happy I never had to do the typical cafeteria thing. Not that I ever ate lunch anyways.


Same with my school, except there are some limits (can't eat near some of the classrooms). Even so, I'm pretty paranoid that people are seeing me sitting alone and judging me for it. But yeah, definitely a lot better than the cafeteria.


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## shyguy87

I went to a pretty big high school with 4 lunches. I only felt comfortable with a select few at my school and they rarely had the same lunch as I did. 

We had about 30-35 minutes for lunch so I would normally find a spot near the end of the cafeteria, eat quickly, then use the rest of the time to go to the library to read a magazine. It really didn't bother me a whole lot.


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## DitzyDreamer

I sneak out of school and eat outside, if weather permits. If not, I'll sit near an exit.


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## stuck_inside

My school is starting tomorrow and I'm also worried about this. :um What I think I'm going to do is eat alone the first day and scope out the tables; then hopefully the next day I will know where people are sitting and find a friend. Maybe you can try the same thing? Good luck!


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## hulkamaniak

My only plan next year for Uni is to get pre-drunk off my *** on the first orientation day, so hopefully I can form some friends . . . or either screw it all up and look like an idiot . . and not want to go in the next day


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## darkchildishdreams

I used to sit alone at lunch 3 years ago. But I gained some "friends" . But then having those kinds of "friends" is stressful. I left them and I'm back to square one. Sitting alone at the library.


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## Lisahh

Dood, I had three tables of people talking about me the whole three days that I attended high school, before I withdrew.
People are evil. For me, just sitting alone and doing work or something works a heck of a lot better than sitting with people and just looking around.


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## Solitario

Find some nerds to sit with. They'll be happy to have you. 


Not that I'm saying you're a nerd, but some groups don't care if someone joins them all the sudden. Just make sure you're nice to them outside of lunch.


Long term solution is to join a club or sport and get friends.


I only time I had this problem was in 9th grade. We had lunch split into 3 periods, and, of course, the period I was in didn't have many people I knew so I had to be a hanger-on with another group I barely knew.


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## kreeper

Solitario said:


> Find some nerds to sit with. They'll be happy to have you.
> 
> Not that I'm saying you're a nerd, but some groups don't care if someone joins them all the sudden. Just make sure you're nice to them outside of lunch.


Kinda what I ended up doing, except it wasn't a group of random people that I chose to sit with (I don't think I could have managed to be that brave  ). I asked a friend from last year's English class, and started sitting with her and a huge group of people, who are all a bit strange (in a good way). And it's worked out for me pretty well, even though I'm still a little uncomfortable.

Still, when I was sitting alone, it wasn't so bad either. I was self-concious, but in the end it was just a half-hour of eating.

Thanks everyone for your advice/sympathy!


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## froofroo123

I eat alone at my university campus all the time. It beats going hungry, and for me, there's no room for anxiety when there's hunger.


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## trancediva88

_I think I would rather sit by myself than sit with people I don't like... Usually at work I will eat in my car, its nice though because I can listen to musik.._


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## Shauna The Dead

I sat alone quite a bit while in school. I preferred it that way though.


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## Epicfailture

Usually i just sit next to a bunch of random kids and blend in so that i don't look like I'm alone. I don't even talk to the kids next to me... soo. idunno. I really hate eating lunch without anyone. Most of the time, I just use the computer in the library without eating the whole day.


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## imt

I sit alone at lunch only when the library is closed. I'd sometimes go see my guidance counselor or sit in the college office or something.
I hate lunch periods.


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## Mnster

Well my high school had 4 lunch periods boy did that ever suck. During my lunch hour on my senior year I had zero and I mean zero friends or even interesting people to sit with. I tried sitting alone and it worked for a while. The football prep people would always ask me to come to their table. I hated it I mean I totally hate sports and found listening to talk about it down right annoying. Sometimes I thought they were asking me to their table just to mock me, quiet kid said something, whatever. It worked for a while then their table got to big to where there was so many people sitting at the table there was no room to eat so they gave me the boot. I sat alone for one day noticed this girl with really really really bad SA sitting by herself. Her case of SA was the worst I've ever seen. She would say nothing to anyone, when called upon in class she would mumble really bad. Sometimes the teacher would yell at her to say something clearly till she was crying, her case was just that bad. She wasn't a mute or anything she had friends she was comfortable with talking around. So anyways I sat with that girl for a whole year, we never once exchanged words or even gave notice to each other. However, we had each other and our books to fill the table so we didn't look so lonely or out of place. We were perfectly fine and comfortable in silence.

The first 3 years on high school lunch were some of the best times of my life. I sat at the car guy druggy table, they had just amazing storys.


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## King'sCrossing

I don't sit alone, I just go on random people's tables to try and not look alone.

but I never talk to anyone on said tables, so everyone think's i'm weird.


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## DB71991

i hate lunchtimes and breaks, im always by myself either in the cafe or in the library


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## XxArmyofOnexX

Zephyr said:


> In high school I skipped lunch and hung out in the library. I was sooo cool.


:ditto :lol


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## The lonely ship

:| Man "flippen " hate that part of school Im a senior now and all 4year highschool I sat alone no attualy I use to take my plate find a place to eat hidden scarf down my food .


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## luicy

_i am curently going through not wanting to sit alone at lunch anymore <im a freshmen in high school> first off people can be very disrespectful to you when they see you alone at luch, about last month a group of guys & two girls sat where i was siting, they laughed loudy, talked about me, and even gave me a friggin nick name! i felt so small and defensless, i stuck it out until the end of lunch though, by pretending to read and ignoring the fact that one of them were siting way too close to me. i went to the libray one day, than got teased about it by my senior cousin, than i went to the bathroom < i did not want to hear girls squeeze and smell the smell of pads till i passed out> plus i was hungry during both of those "solutions" i just want fit in and that wont happen with me having one of the luch periods in which i know not one person and i feel like crap during the whole 35 munites._


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## Aphexfan

Gahhh lunch was always the most traumitizing part of high school for me :-/. Luckily for me whenever i had no friends in my lunch hour I could just go to the library or some other deserted area and just wait it out...


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## shankly

I felt disconnected in high school, so I would go on a lot of walks during lunch rather than sit with people I didn't particularly like in the caf. 

But ya, whenever I do find myself sitting alone I just tell myself that no one is probably paying attention to me. Some alone time is good. I think there's a lot of pressure to do things with other people just for the sake of not looking like a loner.


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## ValiantThor

highscool is the worst, it really is. the anxiety kids can go through can damage them and effect their attitude in the future.


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## link55t

CandySays said:


> Don't dwell over it. If your friend has the same lunch as you, great. If not, take it as an opportunity to enjoy the period by yourself, doing what you want, not caring. Find yourself a tree to sit under or a nicely shaded place to eat your lunch (essentially what the period is for). IMO, anyone who judges you is an idiot. Or ignorant. Or both. Embrace who you are or work your way up to do something about it (i.e. asking to sit with people).
> 
> "Nobody can make you feel inferior without your consent."
> -Eleanor Roosevelt


That's weird. I was on here because I sit alone at lunch and wanted to see how other people felt about doing it. And that quote by Eleanor Roosevelt is painted across the top of the wall at my school.


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## ShellyChin

Before teachers were patrolling the bathrooms, I'd sit in the bathroom stall and smoke cigarettes until the lunch period was over. 
But after that I stayed in the library for the duration of lunch. 
The first day at lunch is agonizing because I never knew if my friends had the same lunch schedule as me so I worried all throughout the day about it. 
But I switched schools now and theirs only one lunch period so I get to sit with my friends now which is relieving and less worrying to deal with on my part!


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## Trololo

ShellyChin said:


> Before teachers were patrolling the bathrooms, I'd sit in the bathroom stall and smoke cigarettes until the lunch period was over.
> But after that I stayed in the library for the duration of lunch.
> The first day at lunch is agonizing because I never knew if my friends had the same lunch schedule as me so I worried all throughout the day about it.
> But I switched schools now and theirs only one lunch period so I get to sit with my friends now which is relieving and less worrying to deal with on my part!


Haha. this was exactly like me except the smoking in the bathroom bit. I used to hide in the library during lunches when my friends had different period. Except the times where they had to close the library.. :| I commute now which isn't as bad, but it makes it more difficult to make friends.


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## avex

Lol. This thread reminds me of how I HATED eating lunch during high school. ALOT of times I would sit with the same people and I would HATE when they finished their lunch they would get up and go somewhere else. I didnt have many friends in high school. I just did my work and graduated. Didnt go to prom. Didnt have my 'first girlfriend' like others wanted to. Alot of times during lunch I went to the library but there were a bunch of nerds in there.


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## crimsoncora

I will sit with everyone here

Scoot over we will form lunch table of awesomeness


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## ZRebellion

Find the nerds.
And try to befriend them.Though,even nerds can be hard and awkward to befriend with?


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## heyJude

Aphexfan said:


> Gahhh lunch was always the most traumitizing part of high school for me :-/.


Me too. Bad flashbacks...Because my only two friends had different lunch periods on certain days, sometimes I just had no choice but to eat alone. It really sucked and made me so self-conscious. 30 minutes felt like an eternity. I spent my last year of high school lunch periods in the library or in the bathroom though. Sometimes I would spend 2 hours in the bathroom stall doing homework since there was nowhere else to go...I am so glad I don't have to go through that mess anymore, so you current high school students having to eat alone, I feel for ya. :|


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## InMyDreams55

Freshman and Sophomore year i had a big group of friends to sit with....junior year it started dwindling....senior year i was in the library almost everyday. :blank


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## mezzoforte

I know exactly how you feel, and the same thing has happened to me when I tried to sit with an acquaintance.
I don't have any friends in my Thursday lunch. D:
I used to just hide out in the bathroom, but now I get a pass to go to the library. But I really like the library because it's quiet and I can do my homework or study during lunch.
It sucks that we're not allowed to leave school during lunch though. ><


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## cybernaut

heyJude said:


> Me too. Bad flashbacks...Because my only two friends had different lunch periods on certain days, sometimes I just had no choice but to eat alone. It really sucked and made me so self-conscious. 30 minutes felt like an eternity. I spent my last year of high school lunch periods in the library or in the bathroom though. Sometimes I would spend 2 hours in the bathroom stall doing homework since there was nowhere else to go...I am so glad I don't have to go through that mess anymore, so you current high school students having to eat alone, I feel for ya. :|


Yep, I'm definitely someone that relates to you. This is one of the main reasons for why high school has been so depressing for me.

My 9th and 12th grade year have definitely been the worst, when it comes to eating by myself. When I was in ninth grade most of the kids knew each other from middle school, and I was one of the new kids from a totally different area. Whenever I was caught eating by myself, I felt really self-conscious and I was always asked whether or not I had any friends..which hurted me so bad. Since I never found anyone to clique with during my freshman year, I eventually started to skip lunch and would literally wait in the bathroom stall and listen to my I pod/study or I would go to the library.For my 10th and 11th grade year, I had this one friend I've used to eat with. But, now we've gone our separate ways.. Now that I am a senior, I still feel self-conscience when eating alone in the cafeteria. I give myself props for being brave to do it now, though. Yeah, I get stares..but I try to ignore them. Sometimes, if I'm desperate, I will take an empty seat next to a group of people and pretend that I'm a part of their group. Then after eating, students have to go to this "commons area" before the bell rings. Due to not having anyone to hang out with in the commons area, this is when I go into the bathroom/computer lab..if there's still a lot of time left.


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## Takerofsouls

Lunches used to be the worst, But im lucky enough to have a car so its not a problem anymore. Just go drive somewhere, park, sit and listen to music and go back before your next class.


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## SkeeterThePurpleGuy

Oh man! I feel the same thing you're feeling!

I would suggest that, if neither of your friends have your lunch period: 1) Go sit by yourself (if you're really comfortable w/ it) or 2) Just plop down with a group of kids. Depending on how the tables are shaped, you could sit at the far end, then slowly make your way up closer to the group.

Hey, you've got nothing to lose. (Let me tell you: I did tactic #2 with a group of boys one day, and it only took a few weeks until I was engaged in conversations!)

Although, I'm not really the one to talk, as I've sat with the same group of people since 5th grade lol (If it weren't for them I guarantee I'd sit by myself everyday) 

So, in a nutshell, the most effective tactic (in my opinion) is to just sit down at a table that looks promising enough. You don't even have to talk to the people there, just sit lol


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## troublednerd

Oh man, sitting alone at lunch. This year especially, it's something I'm always worried about it. 

I've always been paranoid when it comes to sitting alone during lunch, because I feel like people who look are judging me for not having any friends to eat with, so in freshman year I'd cling to what few middle school friends I had. The anxiety of not having much to talk about with these people I sat with got worse too. And now sophomore year, I feel like the friend group I used to rely on is crumbling (a lot of them never really talked to me anyway) and the few other friends that I have are kinda growing apart from me, so now I'm thinking of just sitting alone in the library and hoping no one notices.


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## JDsays

darkchildishdreams said:


> I used to sit alone at lunch 3 years ago. But I gained some "friends" . But then having those kinds of "friends" is stressful. I left them and I'm back to square one. Sitting alone at the library.


I was on the same boat back in my high school days. I had friends, but some of them kind of f**ked me over and left me to be alone during lunch  . I'm curious as what you mean by "those kind "friends"

Do you mean eccentric high school kids kids that are considered "oddballs"? Because that became my crowd after my so-called friends left me. They were really awesome though, I had a group like the Breakfast Club


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## Numen

Bit of an old topic, I know, but I do remember the days in high school when I had problems with this. Freshmen year, oddly was the best year, and since I was new, I made friends with some neighbors and others, and had a place to eat starting with the first day. I met another friend through my first one, and we decided that our mutual friend was a bit uncool and went to go sit off on our own for the rest of the year.

Second year was where things started getting bad. It just so happened that none of the people I truly made friends with the previous year were in my lunch period, with one being held back a year and another graduating, and others just in a different period.. and I also had a lot of overseas travel with the fam. Sat alone for a day or two and then asked the guy I was sitting with the year before if I could join his table of new friends, and he kind of half-grudgingly but politely accepted... wasn't so much a true "friend" but w/e.

Third/junior year was the worst, since the summer after sophomore year I had a variety of family issues to deal with, or was traveling for most of it, and didn't hang or interact with many high school peers, so when I came back I was out of touch with many people. And again barely any one in my friend circles in my lunch, so I sat alone for like I think over a week. Eventually a random guy on the far side of the cafeteria who was a year or two younger than me just grabbed my backpack and invited me to sit with his group, probably more out of pity than anything. Was really embarrassing at first but I gradually became friends with them.

Senior year was actually okay, as I somehow got into the sort of popular/jock/cheerleading circles because I was smart but not quite a nerd/loser. The popular/hot girls actually invited me to sit with them at their table oddly. I did for about two months (one of em even had a crush and bought me flowers for Valentines) then decided that was kinda weird and moved over to the nearby table where people I actually became real friends with sat. But throughout pretty much every year of high school, my best friends in other classes never actually had the same lunch period as me, which sucked. And unlike some other people here, we didn't have the option of taking food into the library or just leaving and going home (I lived 5 minutes away).

By the start of college I became much much better socially and made a good circle of friends as soon as I started, and would often grab lunch with them; but by college, it's no longer that socially unacceptable to eat a lunch alone, especially on a big campus. And before high school, I was actually okay, and more outgoing and had lots more friends (especially middle school, before I moved). I just hated my new environment. It was a tiny backwater Appalachian ******* town and I couldn't quite fit in, in addition to being somewhat shy. Didn't help that a lot of those hicks used to give me odd or menacing looks and call me a "dirty Mexican" even though technically I'm completely white and from Europe lol. I wouldn't say I was quite "bullied" but definitely felt alienated often. But that kind of thing, along with no interest in Nascar, baseball, or football, really brought down my confidence and desire to socialize with others. Come to think of it, that was when the main part of my SAS began probably. Even though I'm actually considerably better looking than average (and had several really cute girls ask me out in high school), I was affected by these things and it took a while to recover.

I hear now there's an app for people who are afraid to sit alone in high school, developed by some sixteen year old, where you can find a table of people who accept others who need to sit with them, all through an app. Too bad those weren't around when I was in school. I didn't even get a cell phone (Razr) till my last year haha.

http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt...s-app-so-bullied-kids-never-have-to-eat-alone

Apparently it's not that rare of a phenomenon though, and there are lots of stories about it

https://www.theatlantic.com/notes/2016/09/when-kids-sit-alone-contd/499295/


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## shyguy07

Ugh, I hated that part of high school! We weren't allowed to wander outside of the cafeteria/courtyard either so I had to stay there. I think freshman year I sat with these older kids that let me sit with them, I don't even remember how I ended up there. Then sophomore year I remember sitting with this girl I had a crush on and her guy friends. They were all juniors though, but they let me sit with them, I just sat there and rarely said anything. Then junior year I don't remember what I did. Senior year was okay at first because I had people to sit with that were also seniors, but after people started going off campus to eat lunch I was stuck alone. I probably could have gone with them but I didn't have permission to go.

I was pretty desperate to sit anywhere to avoid being alone as to me that was totally embarrassing. When I did get stuck eating alone, I would pull out my homework and focus on that to keep me busy.

It's funny looking back how often I sat with juniors and seniors. I'm surprised I was able to sit with people. Of course in college eating alone is totally normal and no one thinks twice about it.


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## A Void Ant

Sitting alone at lunch? Story of my life.


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## Combine

When I was in high school we had somewhat more relaxed rules, so we were allowed to exit the cafeteria. I chilled in my English teacher's homeroom (my next class after lunch) for the duration. Ah, good times Mrs. Duffey.


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## pcampbell6555

*sit alone at lunch*

i usally sit alone at lunch....i have some freinds....but they hardly ever come to school....like today i have to sit alone...and if we orderd lunch we have to take it....andif we dont they call us to the office and we have to eat it....so maybe i should just go and eat it and then go and hide out into a stall.... but we will see.....i get embarresed when i sit bymyself.....cause everyone stares....and then they start to whisper...and its weird....maybe i will sit by my friend destine....but i dont like the friends she has...their vilent...but we will see....:..:frown2:.....:serious:....


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## jiminnie

In high school I just sat in my car alone every lunch. Luckily, we were allowed to venture into the parking lot otherwise I probably would've hid in the library.


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## AvoidantGuy

This was one of the first posts I ever saw on this website years ago and it always depressed me. In middle school and high school I would go to the library, or would hang out in the bathroom all period if it was closed that day. Pretty disgusting, but the smell of crap for 40 minutes was better then getting bullied or sitting alone. When we were allowed to leave for school lunch I would walk home and eat instead. I had my friends, I just never got the same lunch period as them which always sucked. Sometimes I miss school for the little responsibilities that I had. But I don't miss lunch at all. Maybe that's why I prefer to eat alone now because it's such a painful memory.


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## Ececz52

I eat alone by a classroom. Cafeteria & library are usually crowded, and I despise areas with many people. So that's a no-no.


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## kamatcha

I always skipped lunch and used the computers in the library during middle and high school to avoid any stares. If it was closed or too crowded, I'd walk around the school until lunch ended. Felt awful and very exposed. Kept thinking everyone was observing me.


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