They tried ways to get a breakthrough in life. It all seemed stuck or cursed.
We may wonder what exactly is going on in their head. We may feel helpless trying to get them somewhere. We may even think they are hopeless and lazy just because we did better in life.
The truth is they are not lazy. They are Overstimulated. This happened to the HSP — Highly Sensitive People.
A highly sensitive person is very mindful of not only their 5 senses and feelings but also of their surroundings. It is easy to trigger them without a word.
That does not mean we could brush away their sensitivity with jokes or making a laughing stock out of them. It is as good as dealing with life and death.
It is not as easy as telling them to Wake up! like how my close-knitted person in my life once told me off. She had forgotten her slump into the HSP category for many years when life was getting nowhere for her.
Externally
HSP is well known for the need to have their me-time very often. The noise would drain their energy triple the rate of gold melted. I write this as a person who shares the same boat as them. And recognizing these helped me to try to practice mindfulness for my mental health.
Gatherings are overwhelming as they don’t appreciate much sitting around listening to gossip or mockery from other people over those who are not present.
They are seen as peaceful and the vocalist tried to get rest from being around the HSP. But, HSP is not in appreciation of too many vocalists around them. Vocalists or chatter-boxes are energy vampires in their life.
They can be socially friendly and chatty to only a few whom they trust and feel secure.
Internally
HSP who are spiritually inclined would not tend to plant hatred in their hearts. HSP who are far from spiritual inclinations or positivity may end up suppressing hatred and envy towards others quietly.
They feel inferior or wish for their life with breakthrough despite all their efforts which were in vain.
So when we meet a person who we just could not get him or her out from the same spot, it is not because they are lazy. They had been overstimulated with either one of these traits. Part of these points is also explained by Dr. Michaela Dunbar, a psychologist who is based in London.
These are several traits of a highly sensitive person.
- Mood disorder: Overstimulated by mood swings often occurring in women ranges from anxiety to depression.
- Lost Focus: Overstimulated by distraction. The moment they focused on something and a call abrupted their momentum or rhythm, they can take a long time to get settled down. If the news they listened to are mind throbbing, they would suddenly get a mental block.
- High-Speed Mind: Overstimulated with overthinking, their minds can’t stop thinking even as they tried to get some sleep. Most of them lost a lot of good sleep waking up affected again on a brand new day. Some of them had to depend on melatonin to force themselves to sleep.
- Physical Pain: Overstimulated with physical pain when it surged to their body. Usually, HSP could also get back shoulder and neck strains leading to migraine or hypertension symptoms. So, listen to your body if you are a very highly sensitive person. Your body might be telling you it needs a break. Rest. *check with your doctor as I am not a doctor myself*
- Energy Drained: Overstimulated people felt their energy drained easily. This is not just physically, but emotionally and mentally it all switched off in an instant. Sometimes it takes them a few days to bounce forward with joy again. On other days they might look for cheap places to rent a room and bunk in for sleep under medication if they are not able to do so in their residence.
- Withdraw from being surrounded by people: Overstimulated in the energy demand when surrounded by people who can be very overwhelming for them. HSP tend to isolate themselves and try as they might to do something well in life, they could not reach it. They tend to slump into hopelessness, losing faith and self-esteem.
So the next time you meet an HSP, be mindful of how you interact with them.
Note that these traits may seem to overlap with some other mental illnesses or ailments. It might appear in people suffering post traumas, depression, imposter syndrome, or anything else.
[Caution]: Do consult a certified psychologist for help if you need to affirm that you are only being a highly sensitive person or more to that. I am not a psychologist practitioner, and these are just knowledge we can roughly understand about people who are overstimulated.
