“Depression”, “toxic”, “abuse” are the words that are thrown right and left today. “Highly sensitive” is also from this list. How to understand that you really are such a person, and have not become a victim of the fashion for sticking labels?
1. You have been told since childhood that you are «sensitive», and even now, friends are likely to describe you as an emotional and receptive person. You really are constantly overwhelmed by a variety of feelings and always overwhelmed.
2. You have amazing intuition. You trust your gut, and it almost never fails you. The body itself tells you that something is going wrong or is about to happen.
3. It is vital for you to spend time alone. It’s only when you’re alone that you truly recharge, and if you can’t isolate yourself from sensory impulses—sounds, lights, colors—you feel completely exhausted.
4. You get overloaded quickly — from crowds of people, loud music, bright lights, strong smells. In such situations, you can not wait to be at home again, in silence, alone with yourself.
5. You find it hard to deal with other people’s negativity. Dealing with pessimistic interlocutors incredibly exhausts you — more than anyone else.
6. You easily «read» other people. You only need to spend a little time with someone to understand exactly what kind of person he is. You easily recognize deceit and rarely make mistakes in people.
From time to time the surrounding reality becomes too much, and then you escape inside yourself.
7. You are a very empathetic person. When a partner, friend or loved one is having a hard time, you are in fact going through the same thing as him/her. Sad books, movies, and even songs make you cry — but you don’t mind: you like to cry properly sometimes.
8. They willingly talk to you, they willingly tell you about their problems. For those around you, you are like a magnet: even if you are just sitting on a park bench, most likely, sooner or later a stranger will sit next to you, and in half an hour you will know the whole story of his life. You really know how to listen, so if something happens, they call you first.
9. You have a rich inner life, you love to dream. From time to time the surrounding reality becomes «too much», and then you escape inside yourself. Your own head is your safest refuge. A rich imagination helps you to create colorful and varied inner worlds, where it is so good to «sit out» difficult times. Sometimes you seem to wander between «here» and «there», for example, while waiting for a bus or in line. And this is also a great way for you to recharge.
10. You avoid overly violent spectacles. They are unbearable for you — you get so upset or angry after watching such films and videos that you prefer to simply avoid them.
11. You have playlists for different moods. If you feel like crying, or thinking about what happened, or just relaxing, chances are there’s a pre-made soundtrack for it.
12. Your emotions are the fuel for your creative process. If only because they need to be poured somewhere, transformed into something — into a drawing, a sculpture, a dance.
If you really like a person, you quickly fall in love with him and get very upset if you do not reciprocate
13. You watch what is happening around you. This means that neither the second pause that the interlocutor made before answering your question, nor the obvious “chemistry” between your friends will hide from you.
14. You are constantly asked: “Why are you so sensitive / so sensitive?” In truth, this is one of the worst questions you can ever ask a highly sensitive person.
15. You are aware of how others perceive you. You always know for sure whether you gave your best or not. You know, when at a party you want to sit in the corner, and when you don’t mind the attention. You are always polite and always notice when others lack tact.
16. You focus on details. You notice things that others don’t notice, such as a friend’s hair change.
17. You fall in love quickly and deeply. «All or nothing» is about you. If you really like a person, you quickly fall in love with him and get very upset when you are not reciprocated. But the pragmatic relationship that they enter into with a cold heart is definitely not for you.
18. You need time to make a decision. Usually you weigh the pros and cons, calculate the possible scenarios to make sure that you really make the right choice. If it seems to you that you made a mistake, you return to the starting point and try to understand at what point something went wrong.