For the ones who’ve felt like the odd one out their whole lives

Have you ever felt like you were the only person in the world who thinks the way you do?

Like everyone else was given a guidebook for how to exist – how to talk, how to connect, how to just be – and somehow yours got lost in the post?

There’s a particular kind of loneliness that comes from feeling different in a world that seems to understand everyone else.

It might start young: standing on the edge of the playground, watching the other kids talk and play with each other like they all instinctively know the steps. Or feeling overwhelmed in a classroom that never quiets down, wondering why no one else seems bothered by the noise.

Maybe you were the one who needed more time, more space, more quiet – and the world didn’t offer it. Maybe you were told, explicitly or implicitly, that the way you were wasn’t quite right. That you were too quiet, too sensitive, too withdrawn. Or maybe no one said anything at all – and you simply learned to hide yourself.

Maybe you still carry that feeling.

But the problem was never you. The problem is the spaces that weren’t built for you.

It’s easy to internalise the idea that you’re broken when the world isn’t designed with you in mind. But the truth is: so many of us have felt this way. We hear this often in our community – people sharing their stories and expressing the profound relief of discovering they’re not alone. There are so many of us who have felt like we’re on the outside looking in.

This sense of being different can follow us into adulthood. It shapes how we see ourselves, how we relate to others, and the choices we make. It can lead us to stay small when we should take up space, to stay silent in conversations where we have something to say. We might avoid new situations, worry constantly about being judged, or feel like we always have to pretend to be someone else.

And perhaps the hardest part is believing that it’s just us. That we’re the only ones who feel this way. That everyone else is out there living confidently and easily, while we’re stuck on our own, struggling.

But you are not the only one.

There are so many people silently carrying this same feeling – of being different, of not fitting in, of wondering if they’re somehow doing life wrong. It’s just that most of us were taught to keep it hidden. So we do.

But something powerful can happen when that feeling is shared. When we’re met with understanding instead of confusion. When someone else says, “I feel this way too.” That moment – of recognising yourself in someone else, of being recognised in return – is where healing begins.

Finding a space where your quiet is welcome, where your sensitivity is understood, where your pace is honoured – it can be life-changing. It doesn’t make the feeling vanish overnight, but it softens it. It helps you see that your differences are not flaws. That you weren’t broken – just unseen.

If you’ve ever felt like the only one – you’re not. You never were. And you don’t have to carry that feeling alone anymore.

If this resonates with you, and you’d like to experience that sense of belonging we’ve been talking about, we’d love to welcome you into our community. Join one of our upcoming Meet Ups where you can connect with others who get it.

You belong, exactly as you are.