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AJ89
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12 Jan 2013, 4:55 pm

I sometimes have problems with being paranoid because I'm too self-conscious and I'm always thinking people are viewing me negatively, staring at me or are indirectly mocking me.



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12 Jan 2013, 5:03 pm

Yes... Today it has flared up again. It doesn't help that I don't have a social circle to speak of. No friends, few acquaintances who don't mean that much to me on an emotional level, my relationship with my relatives is growing less tight every year. I tend to approach other people with a modicum of distrust, because I've experienced that you can get screwed over by people you allow to get close to you. I often walking around with a me-against-the-world attitude.


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12 Jan 2013, 5:07 pm

It could be paranoia, but is it really paranoia or just a logical consequence of being 'unable to tell'? I don't know, but for me, I always brace for the negative and am surprised when it is positive - I am not sure the positive will last because I get so lost in trying to read, or unintentionally neglecting to read - entirely missing, the situation. I think when we have social experiences that are painful, embarrassing, and anything of that ilk happen often enough, and all the social cues are so difficult to read - I think it makes sense to feel a bit "paranoid", but I am not sure that is paranoid in the strict sense - I'd call it a reasonable reaction under the circumstances. Not fun, and hopefully we can gain some confidence - I'm still working on it - but I think it is understandable. JMO :)


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12 Jan 2013, 5:09 pm

AJ89 wrote:
I sometimes have problems with being paranoid because I'm too self-conscious and I'm always thinking people are viewing me negatively, staring at me or are indirectly mocking me.


I have this problem as well. I'm very socially phobic and somewhat agoraphobic.


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stitch4518
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12 Jan 2013, 5:12 pm

In public is the worst for me. I have to think about where to put my hands, what do I stare at, am I spacing out etc. I alway feel as if everyone is looking at me and my quirks. The few friends I have (1 is an aspie) , never gave me any reason to feel like that so I can be my "normal" self. Although I have been caught stimming and I do get paranoid about that so I tend to do that whilst I'm by myself.


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12 Jan 2013, 5:14 pm

Logicalmom wrote:
It could be paranoia, but is it really paranoia or just a logical consequence of being 'unable to tell'? I don't know, but for me, I always brace for the negative and am surprised when it is positive - I am not sure the positive will last because I get so lost in trying to read, or unintentionally neglecting to read - entirely missing, the situation. I think when we have social experiences that are painful, embarrassing, and anything of that ilk happen often enough, and all the social cues are so difficult to read - I think it makes sense to feel a bit "paranoid", but I am not sure that is paranoid in the strict sense - I'd call it a reasonable reaction under the circumstances. Not fun, and hopefully we can gain some confidence - I'm still working on it - but I think it is understandable. JMO :)


Yes, I agree. I wouldn't call it paranoia in the strictest sense either. It's most likely due to social phobia and fear of public places.


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AJ89
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12 Jan 2013, 5:27 pm

I've had plenty of bad experiences in trying to make friends so now I don't even bother anymore now and I'm a social recluse by choice. Sure, I talk to people online but I avoid social situations and making friends in real life. What really set me off was when my 'friend' stole from me. He invited me out for some drinks so I went and afterwards he took my wallet and house keys. It was not really devastating for me because I had no cash in my wallet, all I had was a debit card which he couldn't use anyway since he didn't know what my pin number was and I got a second set of house keys the next day. Just the act set me off from being social altogether because he seemed nice and he was different from other people who I've tried to be friends with because he regularly talked to me and we did other things together before without anything bad happening. Yet he stole from me anyway and this was person who I got to know and trust over several months and has never did a bad thing before. I am always anxious when I am around people. I feel like people are staring at me whenever I go out into public, I have a hard time trusting anyone when they ask me to do something out of the ordinary and I usually feel like people around me are indirectly insulting me even though most of the time they aren't, I feel like they are doing that.



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12 Jan 2013, 5:27 pm

I have problems with paranoia. If someone says or does something that slightly harms me, I will often leap to it being part of a grand conspiracy against me.



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12 Jan 2013, 5:40 pm

AJ89 wrote:
I've had plenty of bad experiences in trying to make friends so now I don't even bother anymore now and I'm a social recluse by choice. Sure, I talk to people online but I avoid social situations and making friends in real life. What really set me off was when my 'friend' stole from me. He invited me out for some drinks so I went and afterwards he took my wallet and house keys. It was not really devastating for me because I had no cash in my wallet, all I had was a debit card which he couldn't use anyway since he didn't know what my pin number was and I got a second set of house keys the next day. Just the act set me off from being social altogether because he seemed nice and he was different from other people who I've tried to be friends with because he regularly talked to me and we did other things together before without anything bad happening. Yet he stole from me anyway and this was person who I got to know and trust over several months and has never did a bad thing before. I am always anxious when I am around people. I feel like people are staring at me whenever I go out into public, I have a hard time trusting anyone when they ask me to do something out of the ordinary and I usually feel like people around me are indirectly insulting me even though most of the time they aren't, I feel like they are doing that.


This, for the most part. Maybe not full-blown paranoia, but an underlying distrust anyway. I much prefer online interaction like here on the forum than face-to-face stuff at the moment. That extends to interaction with autistics. I haven't been to the latest monthly autistic meet-up, and I'm not sure that I want to go to the next one.


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12 Jan 2013, 6:09 pm

CyclopsSummers wrote:
AJ89 wrote:
I've had plenty of bad experiences in trying to make friends so now I don't even bother anymore now and I'm a social recluse by choice. Sure, I talk to people online but I avoid social situations and making friends in real life. What really set me off was when my 'friend' stole from me. He invited me out for some drinks so I went and afterwards he took my wallet and house keys. It was not really devastating for me because I had no cash in my wallet, all I had was a debit card which he couldn't use anyway since he didn't know what my pin number was and I got a second set of house keys the next day. Just the act set me off from being social altogether because he seemed nice and he was different from other people who I've tried to be friends with because he regularly talked to me and we did other things together before without anything bad happening. Yet he stole from me anyway and this was person who I got to know and trust over several months and has never did a bad thing before. I am always anxious when I am around people. I feel like people are staring at me whenever I go out into public, I have a hard time trusting anyone when they ask me to do something out of the ordinary and I usually feel like people around me are indirectly insulting me even though most of the time they aren't, I feel like they are doing that.


This, for the most part. Maybe not full-blown paranoia, but an underlying distrust anyway. I much prefer online interaction like here on the forum than face-to-face stuff at the moment. That extends to interaction with autistics. I haven't been to the latest monthly autistic meet-up, and I'm not sure that I want to go to the next one.

Exactly that.
Maybe because I was also "backstabbed" by "friends" in life and someone has stolen something from me...


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12 Jan 2013, 6:12 pm

Trust no one.

Deep down inside, we're all nothing more than vicious, poo-flinging primates.


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14 Jan 2013, 8:07 am

I have problems with paranoia. It is very hard for me to get to trust people. In general, of people that i either don't know, or they are the
type of folks who can not be predicted (some drunks or druggies in this neighborhood for example or other people) then i don't trust them at all.
Our direct neighbors around us we can trust, however it's other ones we don't know. There are druggies down the street and drunks and i'm afraid to leave the home unattended for a long period of time. Sometimes its like i want to get back home (if we are both out) just to be home and make sure the perimeter is secure.
Some idiot tried to steal our cable and knocked off offline so our provider had to come and fix it and put a lock on the dang wire. Now the thing is we don't even have cable tv so the idiot that tried didn't get nothing. (Neighbor from next street over).
Some people here are horrible and reckless like that, and they'll literally toss a lit firework out their back door. They launch professional fireworks over others' houses whenever they party. It's scary sometimes since most of us with common sense don't want a fire to happen caused by dryness and fireworks.
People have broken into other's homes here. Thats why we keep a loaded Magnum, while keeping our target shooting fresh.
The cops here are useless and no one ever calls them.

I get paranoid about god forbid one of our 3 cats gets outside the house. (it's happened when the big one fell out the screen 1st floor, yet they get so scared they hide an wait for mamas).
I also have been paranoid about my "stuff" material things and i have concern for the well being of my inanimate objects and also garden/cacti/plants



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14 Jan 2013, 9:06 am

Yes, I think it is probably a mix of paranoia and self-protecting realism. Since I cant reliably sense what another person thinks of me I tend to assume that people I know, (even those who are friendly towards me) think quite negatively of me. I am aware of my failings and that I do and say things that annoy people. Obviously I try to put on a show of confidence but I don't even feel too confident about being able to gauge my relationship with a friend I have known well for 20 years. I feel like in the past I have assumed the positive so often only to be disappointed that I gradually drifted over to a more negative, paranoid, antisocial perspective. I hang around with people a little but not being able to read them means I really cant tell if they honestly like me - sounds weird and childish when I put it like this but don't know how else to explain it.


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14 Jan 2013, 10:31 am

The_Walrus wrote:
I have problems with paranoia. If someone says or does something that slightly harms me, I will often leap to it being part of a grand conspiracy against me.


I do that too, unfortunately.


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14 Jan 2013, 11:11 am

I have some problems with worrying too much in certain situations.
I nearly can get rage in those situations, because of the pressure.
I would say, sometimes I can get close to paranoia, but I'm deff. not a paranoid person and it takes a while until I get those feelings and thoughts, but then I can get out just with great difficulty.


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14 Jan 2013, 1:31 pm

Yes and I am considering taking a low dose of antipsychotics to see if it helps.