Anxiety and high sensitivity.

[Guest_9043]

I'm just wondering if anyone else feels these things?

I have an official diagnosis of anxiety, however I am also a highly sensitive person. It is actually my being or part of my being. Elaine Aron wrote an entire book about us. I am also an INFJ personality type. Being these two things makes it challenging to figure out which part of me is my diagnosis of anxiety? Is my anxiety cause by my personality type and being a highly sensitive person? These are questions on my mind. As I'm getting older my sensitivity is even more heightened. Unfortunately not a lot of people have much understanding around this very rare personality type nor being a highly sensitive person. It's been a very challenging life for me. I'm trying to find what makes me happy instead of being told for years what I'm meant to be doing. You need to get out more, you need to socialise, what do you love to do? It is like the majority of people find it hard to believe that sitting at home very quietly is what I like to do or that I like to have interesting conversations in the comfort of my own home. I don't like lathe crowds or noisy places. I get overwhelmed because I feel too much. It can be draining. Quietness and alone gives me time to recharge.
Lately my tolerance of silly people has become basically zero. I can actually have severe physiological responses. I wish I could socialise more, it's just hard. Does anyone else go through this?

[blondguy]

Hi 2quik

I am also a person that is very sensitive too...I understand where you are coming from and thankyou for raising 'high sensitivity' in your thread topic

Since there is no such thing as a dumb question on the forums...can I ask what a INFJ personality type is?

Just for myself I think we are a product of our environment...I used to have chronic anxiety attacks 38 years ago and have dealt with the symptoms first....and the cause after learning to cope yet everyone's symptoms do vary

I agree with you about 'silly people'...I also seem to have a low tolerance as well yet I do also have difficulty with social and anticipatory anxiety issues..unfortunately

my kind thoughts

Paul

[therising]

Hi 2quik

Introvert, intuitive, feeling and judging can definitely seem like both gifts and curses at times.

You're what I would consider a 'high viber'. You pick up on the energy or vibe of people pretty easily, which is pretty handy at times. The down side can involve being in a place where there are lots of people. It can feel like a sensory overload at times. One of my greatest challenges involves food courts at shopping centres. Way too much going on there. The sound of hundreds of voices combined, all talking at once, can seriously challenge me. Being sensitive to sound, I challenge myself to shift to 'sight'. I'll focus on visual stimuli, which tends to calm things down a little.

Growing intolerance to foolish behaviour often indicates a shift into a higher state of consciousness. It's kind of like you've been living your life on autopilot until suddenly you notice folk around you are either inconsiderate or just basically crazy regarding their beliefs and behaviour. For example, given the last paragraph about shopping centres: Because I've become more tuned into visual stimuli, suddenly I begin to notice each individual person in a shopping centre. This also means I suddenly begin to notice all the people who suddenly feel entitled to walk straight in front of me (forcing me to stop in my tracks), I notice all the people who disregard me when I'm waiting my turn to be served and I notice all the shop assistants who ignore me (in favour of speaking with a work colleague on the next register). At first I thought 'Gee, I'm delicate. What's wrong with me?' I then came to realise these folk are still on autopilot while I no longer am. It's almost like I feel invisible to them, 'til I snap them out of it.

A highly sensitive person can choose what sort of day they're going to have. Three different days:

• A challenge day, where we go out and challenge folk to 'wake up'. This can act as a form of personal amusement at times. It can also be a self-education day, in the way of observing and coming to understand human behaviour and our own nature
• A positive interactive day, where we choose the people and places which are highly positive and highly interactive (people and places that bring us joy, peace and excitement)
• A recharge day, where we stay at home and discharge all the aggravation the world can throw our way. We actively relax

By the way, I imagine you're a bit of a daydreamer, as am I. Not an uncommon trait for people who are highly sensitive.

🙂

[Guest_9043]

Hi Paul,

You are welcome. It is a worthwhile topic and not often enough discussed. In short an INFJ personality type stands for Introverted, Intuitive, Feeling and Judging. Results derived from the Myer Briggs Personality Test that is free online. You can also find out a lot of information through either Google or You Tube.

That is one of the things about anxiety. It is always such an individual case by case scenario. About the only commonalities that exist for certain are symptoms of anxiety. Completely relatable between others whom also suffer from anxiety.

It's a good job you worked on treating the symptoms first and then the cause. If it had been done the other way around and the symptoms had not even been looked at then your anxiety may have been still overtaking your life.

For me it is a bit different. I feel I have more challenges personally. I have an official diagnosis of Complex Post Traumatic Stress Disorder with Chronic Depression and Anxiety. It is similar to what I need to do, meaning I have to deal with the symptoms first and then all the causes. Sometimes, I need to deal with both at the same time in order to start getting some relief. For me when I am getting into a panic, I talk to myself and ask myself is there any clear and present danger right now, are you under threat? Is there some way you are not safe. Usually all answers are no and that seems to calm me down and realise my now. Most often it is my traumatising past that has the floor. Those three questions help to settle me down more.

Unfortunately I am not of much help regarding difficulty with socialising. I do not have any hints or tips. Yet another personal and complex problem for each individual. Antipatory anxiety I also understand. Often our own thoughts are our own worst enemy and I have found that challenging the thoughts when we have moments of awareness that is what we are actually thinking then we can begin to challenge them a bit. It for me is about understanding what is real and what I perceive to be real. So, I just go inward as that is where I seem to find my answers. I am going to reply to The Rising's post to my thread so perhaps you may also get something uselful from that?

Cheers

2quik.

[Guest_9043]

Hi therising

Apologies for not replying to your post on one of my other threads I posted the other day. I was way too stressed and overwhelmed to find a response. It certainly can feel like a blessing and a curse. The term you use "high viber" is apt. I am awake to put it simply. Picking up on people's energy I really do not like much. That mixed in with high sensitivity and emotional sensitivity is just too much at times. One of the reasons I pretty much "ignore people". I hear you on food courts. I very rarely go to them. I also hear you on sensitivity to sound. I also have sensitivity to sight unfortunately. Sight seems to be a bit more manageable at times though than sound.

I understand what you mean regarding shifts into higher states of consciousness. That has definitely happened many times to me. As it stands I believe the world is completely bonkers. If I hear or see one more bit of madness of peoples choices over the CoronaVirus I think I am going to scream. If I think in depth about the behaviours and choices some Australian people have made recently I think I will go nuts. At the end of the day I cannot control the madness and pandemonium so I choose to just focus on me and my life. In saying that, it has definitely made me less inclined to socialise.

I understand the rudeness that is encountered at stores whether it be towards yourself or others. Most of the time I speak up and have been known to cause a bit of a stir. Sometimes I am quiet. I frankly don't care. If people are going to be purposefully rude and not give a damn like some people are very capable of being that way, I have no problem in saying it how it is. I don't care about the outcome, just that I spoke my mind instead of being a pressure cooker. In saying all this I understand the unique challenges of being more mindful, observant and awake can bring into one's life. It certainly is very challenging for me and not always in nice ways.

In regards to your three different days. I do my challenge days. Mostly in other ways though than going out in public. I still challenge things and learn a lot too.

I am still trying to find people that do not suck me dry and exhaust me within no less than half an hour. With my social anxiety difficulties this makes it hard and it is going to take time.

As for recharge days. I have recharge hours daily ha ha. I am a daydreamer, I day dream about pointless things, it just is not pointless to me 🙂 Thanks for sharing.

[therising]

Hi 2quik

I imagine what others regard as 'pointless', with the daydreaming, is definitely significant to you. I get where you're coming from. I can be thinking, for example, 'I wonder why the body behaves this way or that way' and then off I go into a daydream state when suddenly bamm, a possible reason pops into my head from out of nowhere. I think 'Wow, interesting possibility'. Off I go researching and a lot of the time find the possibility has been discussed before or research is being done on it. It's stuff a lot of folk I know wouldn't be all that interested in but I just love knowing how things tick. I love finding out about the nature of things and people. I love exploring whatever pops into my head.

I will do this for entertainment purposes too sometimes, when I'm a little bored. I'll think, 'I wonder what I can wonder about'. You can pretty much be guaranteed this has been labelled as some condition but I don't really care. I love doing it and it doesn't create any disorder in my life. In other words, doesn't matter what you label this form of enjoyment, it's not a disorder (for me anyway). it's a great way of relaxing and being inspired.

A lot of inventors and theorists throughout history are noted daydreamers. it's how inspiration pops in. Interesting piece of info: fMRI scans show higher levels of activity in the brain during daydreaming than outside of this state.

Happy dreaming 2quik 🙂

[Guest_9043]

Hi therising,

Yes, it is significant to me and that is all that counts. It makes me happy and that is all that counts.

I find that many people get caught up in day to say life. Many have forgotten to wonder about things. People would much rather follow then be their own leaders.

Whatever you do that may have been labelled as some sort of condition is created to control what they can't, try get anyone to see how this is a defect or just are plain bland in their own think. We can't have free thinkers, that would be catastrophic now wouldn't it, according to some anyway.

You are doing what makes your heart sing and I applaud that. Yes, people from history are fascinating. History is one of my very favourite subject and I just love it.

Happy day dreaming to you therising.