About

 

Hello and Welcome!

My name is Rachel and I am an introvert.

As an introvert, I am part of roughly 16 – 50% of the population that gets their energy from “alone time” (Buettner, 2012). I also have non-diagnosed Social Anxiety Disorder which according to the DSM-5 (2013) is characterized by avoidance, anxious anticipation, or distress in feared social or performance situations. This interferes significantly with a person’s normal routine, occupational (academic) functioning, or social activities or relationships. People with Social Anxiety Disorder are aware that this fear is unreasonable or excessive. Essentially, the boisterous reading of my greeting that you probably did when you opened this page is not something you’d typically get from me in person.

Despite being an introvert and suffering from anxiety surrounding social situations, God called me to be a youth leader. I started my journey as a volunteer first in 2013, immediately after graduating from high school, and I have grown into a youth leader who is currently mentoring students to run the multi-media production for our Wednesday night services.

I hope to use this blog to give insight into what it is like to be an introverted disciple who is discipling others in the very extroverted world of youth ministry.

Thank you for joining me!

P.S. – you can check out our youth pastor’s blog here

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Credit Where Credit is Due 

Works Cited:

American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). Arlington, VA: American Psychiatric Publishing.

Buettner, Dan. “Are Extroverts Happier Than Introverts?” Psychology Today. N.p., 14 May 2012. Web. 3 Mar. 2017.

Image Credit:

http://ryersonstudentaffairs.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Hello-My-Name-Is-Introvert.png
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