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Posts Tagged ‘conformity’
The Social Challenge Of Highly Sensitive People
Highly sensitive people can be independent and able to be alone. However, that does not mean that we necessarily are happy and comfortable with it. Recently I have been asking myself why being alone is considered “bad” or a sign of a problem. Do I need to be herded into a group, an identity, or…
Read MoreWhy Conformity Is About Group Norms
Have you ever thought one thing and done another? Have you ever changed your mind when in a group that had different ideas? I know I have and it made me feel like a wimp. Being an HSP means that my positions are not the norm, and I am always seeking ways to bridge the…
Read MoreOvercoming The Need To Please
Highly sensitive people have many ways of handling their nature and the overwhelm that they experience. Being different means that relationships are often difficult for us. We often feel at a disadvantage in relationships feeling one down because we feel disrespected. There are many reasons for this. Our compassionate non-competitive natures seek mutuality in a…
Read MoreAre HSPs The Proverbial Canary In The Coal Mine?
In his book Thrive!, which discusses the gifts and challenges of highly sensitive people, Dr. Tracy M. Cooper talks about his research on the trait of sensory processing sensitivity. What interested me most were the stories and real-life experiences of fellow HSPs. They helped to draw a picture of how HSPs as a population might…
Read MoreThe Othering Of The Highly Sensitive Person
Sensitive people are different. Being different means that they often live in the shadows. I thought about this today when I was reading an article about feminism in Great Britain, written by Anna Ford, a respected British journalist. What struck me about the article was her wonderful description of the devaluation and marginalization of women,…
Read MoreAre You Too Nice As An HSP?
Some time back, I had a mini-interaction with someone pushy, an encounter that I, as an HSP, quite dread. This time, I paid attention to the dynamics of this initial conversation and thought about what that told me about the other person, instead of discounting it like I used to do in the past. As…
Read MoreMasking Our Intuitive Sensitivity
It’s two days before Halloween as my wife and I head to our favorite Italian restaurant in the city. Entering the foyer of the restaurant, I notice a message written on the chalkboard listing the night’s specials. In addition to mussels with plenty of garlic and Venetian zuppa de peoci soup, a psychic is also…
Read MoreSensitive People’s Inverted Hierarchy Of Needs
A few months back, I attended a talk by Dave Markowitz, the author of Self-Care For The Self-Aware, in the events room of a metaphysical bookstore filled with highly sensitive people and empaths looking for insights and help. The energy in the room was electric. As it often happens when I attend a group event…
Read MoreThe Mistake Of Identity
Identity is an anchor in most of our lives. It is usually derived from a combination of our own experiences, our family and school feedback and our culture. Identities can feel wonderful if we have positive feedback or it can feel like a ball and chain if we do not. The more important question…
Read MoreToo Nice For Your Own Good As An HSP?
Sometimes, it can feel like we can’t even see the underlying problems that come with emotional patterns we play out as HSPs. It can feel like we are doing our best but then bashing our heads against the same problem over and over again. Maybe, as an HSP, our identity is too tightly woven with…
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