Introverts - Who Are We?

Wouldn't you have to be an extrovert to fall in love with dancing?  To be around that many people where connection is key to having a good dance?  To continually sign up for and take dance classes to continue learning?  To attend festivals - across the US and internationally -  where it is common to travel as a group and even room with people who you don't even know their last name?

Would these scenarios make most introverts get stomach pains anticipating too much time spent with others?  Honestly, a little bit.  The purest definition of an introvert vs an extrovert is this:  An introvert needs solo time to recharge;  An extrovert recharges by being around people.

This is one reason I wanted to start this blog.  I hope I am not alone when sometimes I stress about getting enough time to myself to recharge when traveling with a large group.  I also sometimes worry that I will be perceived as being anti-social or cold if I disappear for a while or want to opt out of a group activity.  I genuinely love being around most people, but sometimes I really need a quiet reset so I can be my best self when around others for days, sometimes weeks, at a time.  When I started my dance journey, I very quickly met and started dating another new dancer who was VERY extroverted and found a lot of satisfaction being in the middle of all of the action... always.  The term FOMO was invented for people like him (Vs. my JOMO, Joy Of Missing Out).  This was hard on our relationship because he took my need to recharge personally vs understanding this was just ME and what I needed.  My point is, there are some people that just don't get it when people like myself need some quiet time to recharge before dancing for 6 more hours.  And I worry about this.

All of this being said, when you stick around long enough in the dance community, deeper relationships form.  People begin to realize we all have our own ways of interacting and acceptance happens.  Us introverts begin to feel understood and bond with the other amazing dancers, turned friends, turned forever besties.  Its all part of the journey,