Teen Gothic

When I started being a goth when I was about 17 years old, it made me feel very comfortable and confident in my own body. However, once I fully embraced the lifestyle I noticed that I was getting stared at everywhere I went and just would like walk into a store and people were acting like they got an authentic picture of an alien or something. Is this a common thing? Or am I just unlucky? Because I don’t think I should be ashamed of how I choose to express myself and my style.