I think I had mild self-diagnosed anxiety for a large portion of my life, which really took hold in college. I went through a majority of college without speaking to anyone, evaded those that did try to reach out to me, and eventually dropped out. And my online persona wasn't much different; I still remember strangers messaging me on IRC and my heart rate jumping several BPM from just a "hi".

I think I have arrived at a point in life where I am no longer nervous around strangers, but despite that I can't help but want that feeling back. It's relieving that I can interact with the rest of the world, but I can't help but feel like I've lost an important part of me; not just the anxiety but a major part of my personality.

I think these are two different things.

Social anxiety where being around other people makes you anxious is very different from anxiety where you are just worried all the time.

I say this because you are obviously talking about a completely different condition than the woman in this article.

You're absolutely right, at worst it was a mild inconvenience for me, nothing even close to the authors wife has to face.