# "Now we will just go around the room an present our selves"



## 2Milk (Oct 29, 2014)

I ****ing hate these types of teachers man. wtf! Useless waste of time, and torture if you are socially anxious.

By the next day.

No one remembers your ****ing name
No one remembers what you even look like
No one remembers what you did during summer
No one really gives a ****

If you are socially anxious you remember how awkward you were that day for ****ing ever, which makes you even more afraid of people. ugh


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## Kevin001 (Jan 2, 2015)

The worst part about the first day of school, lol.


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## JohnCrack (Jan 11, 2014)

chill...Just pretend for a minute you're a happy guy and present yourself. Fake it till you Make it, that's how I survived all these years bud.


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## 2Milk (Oct 29, 2014)

JohnCrack said:


> chill...Just pretend for a minute you're a happy guy and present yourself. Fake it till you Make it, that's how I survived all these years bud.


I can't fake it, I just can't. I can literally feel my heartbeat in my freaking head. I get so nervous that I can't even pronounce words properly.


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## JohnCrack (Jan 11, 2014)

2Milk said:


> I can't fake it, I just can't. I can literally feel my heartbeat in my freaking head. I get so nervous that I can't even pronounce words properly.


Then just be honest and show the world you're a nervous rat. But don't forget to smile cause it always hide what's going on inside.


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## Memory Motel (Nov 24, 2015)

Oh god I hate that sort of thing. People ALWAYS start laughing when I am presenting something, my nervousness is beyond obvious.


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## thetown (Aug 16, 2014)

yeah, college is geared towards extroverted people, and extroverts love small talk. Especially for us anxious people, we don't like to force ourselves to make as many friends as possible because we only need a few close friends to stay happy.

But as ice-breakers are a common occurrence in college, I suggest that you prepare yourself with some sort of rehearse script to not look awkward when you introduce yourself. Unfortunately, first impressions are important, and many judgmental people look at these things.


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## Memory Motel (Nov 24, 2015)

Lovecrushed said:


> yeah, college is geared towards extroverted people, and extroverts love small talk. Especially for us anxious people, we don't like to force ourselves to make as many friends as possible because we only need a few close friends to stay happy.
> 
> But as ice-breakers are a common occurrence in college, I suggest that you prepare yourself with some sort of rehearse script to not look awkward when you introduce yourself. Unfortunately, first impressions are important, and many judgmental people look at these things.


Icebreakers are an absolute nightmare. I see that tons of "icebreaker activities" are scheduled for my college dorm next month. One involves making an improvised rap song about who you are and what you are studying. **** THAT. Extroverts are so ****ing annoying, they always assume that everyone else is just as comfortable doing the same things they enjoy doing.


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## malaise (Aug 18, 2009)

Memory Motel said:


> Icebreakers are an absolute nightmare. I see that tons of "icebreaker activities" are scheduled for my college dorm next month. *One involves making an improvised rap song about who you are and what you are studying.* **** THAT. Extroverts are so ****ing annoying, they always assume that everyone else is just as comfortable doing the same things they enjoy doing.


Good lord. I'd rather set myself on fire than go through that.

I've managed to be less anxious now than I used to be for these icebreaking or "get to know you" type activities, but Christ, rapping??? Since when did we all have to be performers instead of real people.

I remember once during one of these "present yourself" activities one girl in my class simply refused. She was just like, "Nope. Not doing it. You can't make me". After several uncomfortable minutes of the professor trying to persuade her she just stood her ground and said, "You won't change my mind."

I was kind of stunned that he just let her off the hook. And envious. Why didn't I think of that?

Of course you can't avoid these things forever, at my various jobs I've had to endure them as well, so you may as well learn to bite the bullet. I still have extreme anxiety and panic, and the ensuing self-hatred and self-criticism, but I've learned to manage those moments so I'm not spiraling into a black hole like I used to.


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## ezioauditore (Jan 23, 2016)

I go back to school tomorrow and I'm terrified of this.


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## TheSilentGamer (Nov 15, 2014)

This happens almost every time when there's a substitute or a new teacher... The terror is real.


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## 2Milk (Oct 29, 2014)

Buckyx said:


> this sucks even for those who has no SA(just shy or smth) and teachers should understand that no everybody would be comfortable in such situation and should also find a better way to introduce students to each other
> happened last time to me a decade ago and made me extremely anxious, now it would be still comfortable but I could do it


Yeah teachers should really try something new once in a while for ****s sake. In HS this teacher handed out a sheet and we had to find people who had similar features, interest, etc.. and had them sign their name, IMO that's a much more enjoyable and effective way to break the ice.


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## farfegnugen (Aug 16, 2010)

I used to have nightmares about this. The pressure to sound like you have it all together and have big plans for yourself.


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## BAH (Feb 12, 2012)

0erwaer6uw5srhb


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## mike285 (Aug 21, 2010)

Ugh, I had to do this for a bunch of interview days I had earlier this year. I find it funny that I'm still nervous even after having done it so much lol.


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## FunkyFedoras (Aug 30, 2013)

The worst part isn't even the "My name is..." or "I'm from [wherever]," it's the extra questions. "Let's go around the room and have everyone introduce themselves. Say your name, where you're from, your major and a special talent you have/your favorite memory/what you did over break/a memorable story/your favorite type of ice cream/your dream job/your goal in life/etc." I HATE the extra question. T_T


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## Tharsoum (Aug 16, 2013)

2Milk said:


> By the next day.
> 
> No one remembers your ****ing name
> No one remembers what you even look like
> ...


They do.
"-I'll pretend that weirdo is not here. He/she projects such a negative image I don't want to be involved with. Poor thing...
-It's disgusting. I mean, wtf don't you have parents who cares enough to lend you money for clothes or sth? Also, what's with that creepy/geeky look, I thought emos and those kind of snowflakes got extinct. You look so negative yet there's so much to enjoy in life, blackie. I'd really prefer an afro american over such a gothic like you. I don't want bitter crap on my way. Shoo.
-You were lying. I mean, it's obvious a nobody like you spends his/her summer only in his/her room.
-You're an object for my feelings. Evoke nice emotions on me, I'll like being near you. Evoke negative ones, I'll not like being near you. With such a creepy attitude of yours treating me like I'm a ****ing threat, you're more for the second cathegory."

Ok, that was extreme. I just wanted to express something that may be read obvious being expressed this way: they generate such instances thinking it will promote trust among partners. They care on members like you yet they think you're able/you should overcome fear. They won't trust/will think on you as weak if not, and yes. People get afraid of the weak since they see a potentially exacerbated. version of themselves


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## oddgirl (Feb 24, 2016)

I laughed out when I read the title of this thread because it is SO relatable to me! I've had to deal with this at least once on the first day of every school year. This year on the first day of college it was the worst. My teacher made us get up in front of the whole class and introduce ourselves. I hate public speaking. I literally get shaky, my hands, my voice, my heart beats out of my chest. My face gets red, I get sweaty. It's the WORST! Nobody cares who you are. Why do teachers put us through this torture


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## flyingMint (Aug 31, 2015)

Ive said this before and I'll say it again..
Ice breakers are the social manifestation of the devil. SO AWKWARD! 

My professors this semester seem to be obsessed with making life awkward! 
My psychology professor made us write a questionnaire then we had to turn and talk about semi-confidential stuff we wrote to the person sitting next to us! 
My politics professor made us stand up and have a paper rock scissors match, the person who won had to move on to the next winner while the person who lost got to sit down. (I won but sat down because I WAS NOT ABOUT TO DO THAT) 
My english professor constantly groups us together in awkward groups and she's literally done this 5 times already this semester and it's really nerve wracking. Like last tuesday she made us talk about movies and i barely watch movies so I just sat there like umm....


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## nepnep247 (Feb 25, 2016)

those things are a real top nep of a joke


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## DespairSenpai (Jan 19, 2016)

This is why I always skip the first day of classes


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## NoDak81 (Oct 26, 2015)

2Milk said:


> I ****ing hate these types of teachers man. wtf! Useless waste of time, and torture if you are socially anxious.
> 
> By the next day.
> 
> ...


I am a teacher and have done icebreaker activities before. Even though I have SA myself this never occurred to me. I might try a different approach...


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## singlet (Feb 28, 2016)

I avoided presentations right until the last day of university. In order to graduate I had to present my project to a panel and answer questions. Needless to say my voice was awful and I kept running out of breath. It's just anxiety. If we practiced a lot I'm sure we could own public speaking. I wish I had the courage to join toastmasters.


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## 629753 (Apr 7, 2015)

flyingMint said:


> Ive said this before and I'll say it again..
> Ice breakers are the social manifestation of the devil. SO AWKWARD!
> 
> My professors this semester seem to be obsessed with making life awkward!
> ...


lol, nice professors, same **** with mine, out geography teacher made us some random *** questions and it turned out to be that it was deciphered to be some questions about sex.

When it was my turn everyone went quiet. Ayeeeeee!!!!!!! :clap:clap:clap:clap:clap


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## NoDak81 (Oct 26, 2015)

impedido10 said:


> lol, nice professors, same **** with mine, out geography teacher made us some random *** questions and it turned out to be that it was deciphered to be some questions about sex.
> 
> When it was my turn everyone went quiet. Ayeeeeee!!!!!!! :clap:clap:clap:clap:clap


Why would a teacher ask about sex? Hopefully admin found out.


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## 629753 (Apr 7, 2015)

NoDak81 said:


> Why would a teacher ask about sex? Hopefully admin found out.


To we know more about ourselfs lol


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## flyingMint (Aug 31, 2015)

impedido10 said:


> lol, nice professors, same **** with mine, out geography teacher made us some random *** questions and it turned out to be that it was deciphered to be some questions about sex.
> 
> When it was my turn everyone went quiet. Ayeeeeee!!!!!!! :clap:clap:clap:clap:clap


geography and sex? lol how does that even go together? lmao 
thats some shadiness right there lol


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## 629753 (Apr 7, 2015)

flyingMint said:


> geography and sex? lol how does that even go together? lmao
> thats some shadiness right there lol


Logic. Not the rapper, i dunno, she askedsomething like this: how does it feel when you see the ocean? I wrote peaceful and comfortable, it was about how i felt about love.

it was right doe hahaha


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## ScorchedEarth (Jul 12, 2014)

There are not enough nopes in the world to describe how I react to this. Next time I encounter it, I'm walking right the hell out. Damn normies and their rituals.


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## aralez (Jan 16, 2016)

FunkyFedoras said:


> The worst part isn't even the "My name is..." or "I'm from [wherever]," it's the extra questions. "Let's go around the room and have everyone introduce themselves. Say your name, where you're from, your major and a special talent you have/your favorite memory/what you did over break/a memorable story/your favorite type of ice cream/your dream job/your goal in life/etc." I HATE the extra question. T_T


Especially when it's "tell us an interesting fact about yourself"

there is literally nothing interesting about me pls go away


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## whathaveibecome (Feb 12, 2016)

2Milk said:


> If you are socially anxious you remember how awkward you were that day for ****ing ever, which makes you even more afraid of people. ugh


I've embarrassed myself every single time we had to present ourselves.
When I'm nervous I start acting weird, my accent gets 177 times worse, I can't pronounce words, which makes people think I'm retarded.
Couple of times I had whole class including teachers laugh at me, **** I still cringe every time I remember that and some of those were 4-5 years ago...


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## NoDak81 (Oct 26, 2015)

whathaveibecome said:


> I've embarrassed myself every single time we had to present ourselves.
> When I'm nervous I start acting weird, my accent gets 177 times worse, I can't pronounce words, which makes people think I'm retarded.
> Couple of times I had whole class including teachers laugh at me, **** I still cringe every time I remember that and some of those were 4-5 years ago...


 My condolences. How terrible.


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## 2Milk (Oct 29, 2014)

aralez said:


> Especially when it's "tell us an interesting fact about yourself"
> 
> there is literally nothing interesting about me pls go away


I always answer with some stupid answer just to show that I think their questions are stupid. Something interesting bout myself? I play video games and like eating food.


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## 2Milk (Oct 29, 2014)

whathaveibecome said:


> I've embarrassed myself every single time we had to present ourselves.
> When I'm nervous I start acting weird, my accent gets 177 times worse, I can't pronounce words, which makes people think I'm retarded.
> Couple of times I had whole class including teachers laugh at me, **** I still cringe every time I remember that and some of those were 4-5 years ago...


That ****ing sucks man. I also speak two languages and even though my English is pretty darn good, when I get nervous I develop this awful accent and sound like a retard that can't speak proper English.

I've had classmates laugh at me but never teachers, that sucks man.


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## lonerroom (May 16, 2015)

I hate that, on the first day of class on a new semester in college several months ago they made us do that too, the teacher made people pair up in groups of 4, when I said my name to my group everyone in my group just became silent for a few seconds then hey turned their backs to me and talked amongst themselves and left me out the rest of the time.


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## whathaveibecome (Feb 12, 2016)

2Milk said:


> That ****ing sucks man. I also speak two languages and even though my English is pretty darn good, when I get nervous I develop this awful accent and sound like a retard that can't speak proper English.
> 
> I've had classmates laugh at me but never teachers, that sucks man.


Yea, when I'm by myself or with someone I'm comfortable with I can speak good English (with minimal accent) but when I'm with stranger, group of people or in front of class I mispronounce everything with very bad accent.

Any time I could I would skip 1st day of school or any time i had to do presentation, which would get me in school suspension with random kids and teachers where I would still need to introduce myself and embarrass myself again.

Good memories, gonna have them for rest of my life probably...


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## Farideh (Nov 13, 2011)

I expect people to be rude because rude people are everywhere. So when I expect that, my anxiety disappears. Anxiety is all about worrying about the negative outcome. Expect it and be prepared for it. If it doesn't happen, then do your happy dance and realize that it's your imagination that's causing you to feel this way.


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## smeeble (Jan 15, 2016)

Yeah it's tough, but I try to take comfort in that noone's really paying attention or cares. More than half the class is either zoning out or on their phones


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## Sabreena (Feb 17, 2012)

At my college orientation the icebreaker was "scar stories."_ The only real scars I have are self harm scars. _I freaked out because what the hell kind of insensitive topic is that? Everyone else was telling stories about how they broke their legs by running over a squirrel while riding their bike down a hill, and things like that. And I just said something about a tiny scar I got from tripping over a coffee table. 
There was such an awkward silence. Because you're not supposed to say something everyday, something boring. And you're not supposed to say something shocking like, "Oh yea, I used to slice my own skin when I was 15 haha" either.


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## Zest (Oct 1, 2015)

.


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## willtopower (Nov 22, 2015)

i dropped a class or two after walking in and seeing this was the expectation. probably could have simply left for that day. but yeah, never understood this.. no one cares.


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## Cheesecake (Feb 2, 2007)

My heart always sinks when I hear that.


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## 2Milk (Oct 29, 2014)

Yep sometimes I just feel like getting up and leaving right then and there. Like, why do I put up with stuff???


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## aralez (Jan 16, 2016)

aralez said:


> FunkyFedoras said:
> 
> 
> > The worst part isn't even the "My name is..." or "I'm from [wherever]," it's the extra questions. "Let's go around the room and have everyone introduce themselves. Say your name, where you're from, your major and a special talent you have/your favorite memory/what you did over break/a memorable story/your favorite type of ice cream/your dream job/your goal in life/etc." I HATE the extra question. T_T
> ...


This happened to me yesterday ._.


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## HopefulGuy (Mar 19, 2016)

By the next day.


No one remembers your ****ing name
No one remembers what you even look like
No one remembers what you did during summer
No one really gives a ****
Couldn't agree more.


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