[ehudt]

+1 to therapy. Also, consider reading The Highly Sensitive Person by Elaine Aron.

I made a huge improvement to my shyness and self esteem by doing a few awareness workshops in my country (not US). And now doing therapy to boost other areas of my life which I want to improve.

It's not your fault, it's how you (and I) were raised. I am a sensitive person. Since my parents didn't know much about it, they didn't teach me how to get by, how to make contact with people, how to respect myself and still be out in the world. The message I got was that I am shy and I need to "get over it". This didn't help but made things worse. Only in my 30s did I start fixing it and healing my pains. Very much worth it.

Good luck