#studentoflife

I wasn’t born into a family that was sports oriented. But I was involved in a good amount of physical learning. As a child though, my introverted personality had me step back from the performing arts. It wasn’t until age 18, that I felt more comfortable to engage in goal-oriented physical activities. Activities like dance, music, stage performances. 

I enjoy hands on learning. It hasn’t always been the way that was most available to me. Most of my education was book and standard testing based. My career choices have reflected my love for interaction and engaging activities. Almost 30 years ago, I became a dental assistant, this was during high school, when I took vocational training. When I moved to the city of Seattle, I started taking ballet classes at a studio near where I lived. I then continued dancing through college until I had my second son. When I moved to Cincinnati Ohio, I got a job in the culinary arts. I enjoyed working with food and moved on to become an assistant pastry chef and cake decorator. 

I few years later I became a caretaker for my grandmother. She and I became very close and I realized this was something I was good at, being a caretaker. I enjoyed taking care of her and styling her hair and makeup. When she passed away I decided to go to cosmetology school, where I learned skills in hair design, nail care and skin care. This led to another discovered interest in medical massage. So, 5 years after graduating from cosmetology school I also became a massage therapist. 

I enjoy being silent, as much as possible in fact. I love my alone time. As a child, I did not like speaking. I did not like to speak in public settings. My dad had a high profile job, there were people always over at the house all the time. This was hard for me. I did improve on my socializing skills as I got older. To develop this, I took drama in high school and speech in college. The thing I still dislike though is impromptu speaking.

Now, these days, if I have something to say, I have no problem saying it. That is, if I feel there are others around willing to listen. As a girl growing up in school settings, I wasn't able to engage in what I call, "rapid girl talk." You know, what happens when a group of girls get together and they start talking at 1x speed. It seems hardly taking a breath. Yeah, I can't do that.

I am certain at this that I am an introvert of sorts. As I've read up on this personality trait, there is science to back up why being an introvert causes exhaustion when you don't get your alone time. Chemically, it has to do with a neurotransmitter called dopamine. Found in everyone’s brains, dopamine has been called the “feel good” chemical because it helps control the brain’s pleasure and reward centers. It enables us to notice rewards, giving us energy to move towards them.

Another helpful thing dopamine does is reduce our “cost of effort.” Socializing expends energy, because we have to listen, talk, and pay attention to a stimulus. Technically, socializing is tiring for everyone, even extroverts. However, dopamine helps with that. Extroverts have a better tolerance when it comes to socializing. They don't feel the mental and physical fatigue, like the introvert because they have a more active dopamine rewards system. They are able to overcome the tiredness that accompanies socializing.

I enjoy people, I just need a place to recharge after a certain point. Researchers don't fully understand introversion yet. We may prefer a different brain pathway than extroverts. One that is activated by a neurotransmitter called acetylcholine. It is tied to things such as, long-term memory, perseption learning and the calm but alert state. It can produce happy feelings when one is alone, quietly reflecting, concentrating or turning inward.

I read somewhere that talking about our hobbies is like leaving little flags out in the sun so our SOUL TRIBE can come find us

I do a happy dance everytime someone likes and reblogs. I wanna urge you to pour your craft out into the universe even it feels like no one is consuming your art. Dont hold it in just let it flow.