How-can-I-tell-my-existence-does-not-annoy-people-while-they-prefer-to-stay-silent-about-it-the-same-way-they-annoy-me-and-I-never-say-a-word-about-it-ophobia

It’s real. Been battling with it almost my whole life.

The way out? I’m still struggling, but I realize a really good cure is to be more genuine with my own interactions.

When something annoying happens, I need to make some noise about it. So I’d be sure that when I’m the annoying person, I’d get to hear about it from those who should be making their own noise, too.

What if they don’t make any, but I’m still annoying them? Well, that doesn’t sound like my problem.

It’s truly hard to live with a mind that constantly tries to interpret what happens inside everyone else’s. Yet the more I practice expressing my own, the more I’m able to internalize that everyone else has the capacity to do it if they want to.

So here’s a note to myself: If you can’t accept compliments because “what if people are just being nice?”, be genuine with your own comments. If you’re unable to receive help because “what if I’m only a burden?”, don’t go the extra mile yourself when you know you don’t have the energy for it. And if you can’t tell if those around you are honest, be honest with yourself and they’ll eventually follow.

If all else fails, maybe treat it like a real phobia. Face your fear, and trying asking; am I being a pain in the ass right now?

More often than not, their answer will slip right through upon hearing the very first syllable.