Hi Peppa. What kind of PhD are you doing?

I think this will be more of me letting off steam rather than asking for help - although what I'd love to hear is other people who are in the same situation as me.

Basically, I'm a 3rd year PhD student and have a year to go. The institute I'm studying at is in the same city I've been in for the last 10 years, so I have friends here and an active social life.

When I started, the other first years were in a lab together and ate lunch etc with their lab. Noone in my lab went to lunch or socailised. Therefore I just didn't meet any students. I was too scared to just sit on my own at lunch - which now thinking about would've been the best way to meet people, as all of the students sit together. I have no problem with meeting and talking to new people at all, but I found the thought of sitting on my own and the chance of being ignored by everyone a bit terrifying.

Now I've been here for 3 years and don't know anyone socially. It makes me sad that all the students go out together after work and at the weekends etc. but I'm not involved at all. I don't feel like I need to go out more than I already do, but I feel I'm really missing out. I feel like a right wierdo and wonder if the other students think I'm some kind of loner. Even a friend of a friend started a PhD in my lab recently and he made friends straight away. I feel very inept!

Anyway, I know theres nothing I can really do now, so I'm just going to chug on. I think maybe the time for making friends here was in the first couple of months and I failed at that!

I finish in a year and will have to move. I'm scared that the same thing will happen again wherever I move to, and then I won't even have my old freinds and family around me! (But I will have my boyfreind)

Anyone else in this situation?