Hey guys I hope you guys are doing good. So I'm having this issue with my psychiatrist and parents because I don't go out much. Even though i talk online normally to a lot of people everyday, they still say that is not human interaction and they are not real friends,even though I've been with them for a while. I have made tons of friends outside before and was really social, but I'm not as comfortable as I was before and prefer staying indoors, but I do have some friends outside of the computer. Though my parents didn't care and got mad and my psychiatrist says that I have no friends and am a loner. Any advice on what I should tell them

What I always say to people who claim that I don't have any Friends is that a view good friends whom you can trust and have your back are more valuable than having many mutual friends who are just there as long as you're having a good time. You don't need to see your friends every week to know that they are your friends. The Bond between you and them is what really is important. You can meet them from time to time but also keep in touch by writing a lot.

Also behind every username is a real person with emotions, an unique look, personality, hobbies, likes and dislikes. If you know a person online for quite a while you can become friends if you start talking about more personal stuff. Maybe you even share pics, funny stories that have happened to both of you or even have skype calls from time to time. That is a form of Human interaction, it's not face to face so you can't read body language and can't have a cup of tea together but it is interaction non the less. I'd go as far as saying it's even easier to talk about deep issues because you are anonymous so sometimes people reveal more about themselves and if you stay close afterwards and gone through some stuff together there is a certain bond too. It's just different now that we have the internet and I think it is hard to understand for people who haven't grown up with it. Many people aren't real friends on the web and pretend to be someone they're not, sure, but it's the same with people you meet outdoors.
If you still go out from time to time to meet your old friends and not lose touch completely I don't see any problem. I don't know if they'll accept the explanation above but I hope it helps.

And being an Introvert is not a bad thing. Out of all the people I've met in my life the introverts were the deep, thoughtful ones. The ones you can have serious conversations with, joke around if you both are in a good mood but also the ones who know when to sit down, keep quiet and listen to what someone says. Introverts appear to be quiet people but their inner life is the exact opposite. Remember there is a difference between being simply shy and being an introvert. Yes many introverts are also shy but there is a difference. As an introvert you simply don't have the urge to have the spotlight and to talk to people 24/7. Too much social interaction is, from my experience, emotionally and physically for those people. I'll try to come up with an example. An Introvert would prefer to stay home on Friday and enjoy reading a book, watching a movie or going for a little walk. He doesn't have the urge to meet new people/friends at a party and going crazy. A shy person would like to go to the party and have fun with others but they feel like they have no choice but the stay at home because they feel insecure about going there, approaching people and can’t have fun there without worrying a lot about appearing awkward to the people around them.

Introverts and extroverts simply feel different about social interaction. There is nothing bad to it. People are different and should be allowed to live their social life the way they want as long as they don't hurt themselves and/or others by living that kind of life.

Being an introvert myself, I can say that like 99.99999999999999999999999999% of extroverts are fucking IDIOTS when it comes to understanding other people...
Anyhow, IMO being an introvert is a GOOD thing, sure you might feel like killing yourself sometimes and in general be prone to depression if you are not the god of luck himself, but in the long run you will be HAPPIER than anyone else (happy - not joyful)
Having one friend that you know will be your friend for an eternity and beyond is an infinite times better than having a million friends that are comically retarded.
Introverts are like capacitors while extroverts are batteries
Introverts are AMAZING but they need to recharge frequently and peacefully, they hate and are terrible at smalltalk, even though they tend to be great liars, they're also less likely to have psychopathic or sociopathic tendencies (being a psychopath is a good thing nowadays -_-)
While extroverts can talk about anything for anyhow long, they can't think beyond "Oh hey.. sooo uhh.. what did you eat for lunch last saturday" and they can't be 100% trusted even if they're close to you (I mean if they;re family or some shit you can probably trust them 99.999% in most cases)
In my personal experience I can say that being an introvert is hard, but given a spark of luck or two it's VERY rewarding. I've been tough times and I had NOONE to talk to since whenever I tryed to talk to my mom or dad they just dismissed it as nonsense or said "You need to get off your computer, it's making you insane" sooo yeah... But juan day I was playing some random ass game with a few of my newly met classmates (switched schools middle to high) I met a certain person, after a very very short amount of time (like literally 5 minutes) we already acquired somewhat of a bond.. It didn't take long for me to start adoring the person and I did what I could to pursue the relationship, a couple of weeks later we met IRL (same country different towns) (classmates aswell) *skip ahead a little* and now we're friends for life if not more (:

TL;DR:
Being an introvert is a good thing, life's more difficult but better. Extroverts can't understand us. One friend > lots of them. Take chances to make friends for life if you sense that that'd be a thing you'd like and always apply the golden rule (do shit that you'd like done to you)

Hello
I am very introverted as well I am 22 and I have come to learn that its always best to be yourself and try to not care what others think of you. I personally view some very close online friends as real friends because they can have an impact on your life. However, having some face to face interactions isnt bad and its good to keep a balance. I would just tell them about the friends you mentioned you had outside the computer and then I would explain to them what you are comfortable with, your views etc and see where it goes from there but I would not torment yourself about it just be yourself because your own happiness is what is important

You should tell them what >>2 said. What you describe yourself as doesn't sound like an introvert, maybe more like a shy person, but not really. You sound pretty normal to me. I'm not an introvert, but I'm also not a social butterfly either. I just talk to people when I feel like it or when they feel like it. Most of the time I'm at home browsing the internet, drawing or talking to my family. Outside of the house I'm usually working and I also go to religious meetings, but I think it's normal to spend time by yourself. A loner is somebody who doesn't talk to anybody. I was a loner my freshmen year of highschool. I would just stand at a corner and stare at people for like six months until the principal started standing in my spot. It was then that I started talking to people. Before that I talked to nobody at school, nobody online, and only sometimes with my family and to only one person in the religion I was in. That's what I think a loner is lol. You don't sound like a loner at all. Good luck getting the message across to your parents and psychiatrist. When I was in highschool I didn't go out at all. Only one time in the entire four years did I actually hang out with another student outside of school. It was fun, but not my normal thing to do though. My sister on the other hand was always outside the house and rarely home though. People are different sometimes, and that's normal.

>>5 You could be an ambivert, like me :)
We tend to be on the fence with our introvert/extrovert characteristics.

>>1 make something, anything, that only you could understand. It could be a symbol, a drawing, a song... art, or anything, really. Always helps when my depression catches up, I just think to myself "well, no one understands it except me. I have to stay alive because only I know it's meaning."
I don't know if that helps, but it always works on me.
Also, I like to listen to music that relates to the way I'm feeling.
If you flick me an email, I'll send anyone a list of songs that can help. If your on the edge, just one minute, that's all, I'll be here for you.

>>6 Oh, you're right! I am an ambivert, I just didn't know the word for it. Cool.

I feel for you. It's true that bonds of people are the true power but I don't get out to much besides school.
Go to a manga store or eat out that's not too much but
it's good enough in my book.

No, even though I am hella introverted, I have many friends and it is great. Plus, I prefer to be an introvert, so that I can actually observe people from afar yo.

Being an Introvert can be great because you have a lot of time to yourself, but I see where your parents are coming from, having a kid that "isn't like normal kids," dude im the same way so just find other introverts to be friends with, then you wont act so introverted, that's what I do!