just some stuff about schools worsening social anxiety
tw: school, general talk of being trapped/controlled⚠️⚠️⚠️
schooling system traumatising for certain groups. it is specifically and systematically cruel to autistic people and to people with situational mutism, and to so many other people.
but also generally, it’s bad for people. deeply controlling. you cannot go anywhere or do anything without permission. constantly being watched, your actions having to be justified. anyone who acts differently or has more needs than average, is sanctioned for it, formally and informally. there’s nowhere to go and hide, nowhere to be alone.
schooling exaccerbates social anxiety so much because you’re constantly seen; there are so many eyes. (and no, i don’t care that “that’s what they have to do to keep you safe”; they set up a system in which humans are stuck in locked buildings for hours on end - then they try to keep you safe within it??).
a fair few people with sad get markedly better just from leaving school. im so so so glad im out. you have no idea. my mental state is improved solely because im out now. for me, school was deeply traumatising in specific ways because of my sm. and i won’t ever forget that.
social anxiety is not just caused by internal processes; environment plays a role in the maintenance or worsening. we’re not just talking accomodations here, we’re talking deschooling. while social anxiety disorder itself involves amplification, there were probably still ways they could have made you feel safer, and there were probably several ways they made it worse.🌹🌹
