Looking back now it was obvious. Even as a little girl in kindergarten, the other parents would always be telling me, "Wendy, you need to smile more." It wasn't until my junior year of high school that I finally was introduced to the term that I related to so greatly: resting b*tch face (RBF).
For those who need a recap, RBF is a face that when relaxed (resting, not aware of its appearance to others) is perceived as mad, expressionless, or simply annoyed. Unfortunately, those with RBF are often inevitably doomed to emitting an unapproachable, cranky stigma, and thus begins the struggles of living with RBF syndrome:
1. Candid pictures are terrifying.
2. People tell you that you should look happier.
3. Teachers have described you as, "Stoic."
4. If you had a dollar for every time someone told you, "Try not to look so thrilled," you'd be rich.
5. Being a shy introvert is twice as hard.
Not only are you quiet and withdrawn, but to make things worse, when you're mindlessly sitting there contemplating life, your face just:
6. You usually have no idea what your face looks like.
7. Whenever you make new friends, you are bound to hear the, "I thought you didn't like me when we first met," story.
8. Your mom is always questioning you as to why you are giving her "that look."
Sorry this is literally just my face.
9. People think you're mad at them all the time.
10. Everyone is 10x more terrified of you when you're tired and have even less energy to think about your face.
11. And thinking about your face is exhausting.
12. Unless you are an active participant in the conversation, you look like you hate everyone.
13. Only your closest friends know how much fun you can be.
"I promise, I'm a nice person."