being overly influenced by other's opinions

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SamZ93
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02 Nov 2017, 12:10 pm

Sometimes when someone says something negative about a subject/thing/hobby I like, my brain will take it as a fact, even if I disagree, and I won't be able to shake that feeling off. Anytime I try to engage in that subject, I'll get this sad, tightfisted feeling in my chest, and I keep having this one-side conversation in my head, trying to remind myself why a I like this subject or idea, and that just repeats instead of me actually enjoying the subject.
Normal, this fades with time, but recently I feel that these hasn't been happening, (at least, not as quickly). Has anybody else had similar 'episodes', and how did you deal with it?



Fraser_S
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02 Nov 2017, 12:13 pm

Yes! Like before I watch a movie, i'll go onto IMDB to read other peoples "reviews" before deciding whether to bother watching the movie or not. If there's more negative reviews than positive ones, then i'll avoid the movie altogether, even if there's a chance I might actually enjoy it. :roll:

This is just one of many examples though.



SamZ93
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02 Nov 2017, 12:33 pm

Can you tell us about some of the other examples?



Fraser_S
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02 Nov 2017, 12:47 pm

SamZ93 wrote:
Can you tell us about some of the other examples?


I obsess over reviews on Amazon, i'll add things to my basket, then remove them again as soon as I see something negative about the product.

When I listen to politicians on the tv (g**s***es) I know... I find myself swinging back and forth between both sides of the argument depending on who's speaking in the moment.

When I hear "one side of the story", I tend to immediately side with that person, without considering the other side.

Maybe not the best examples, but my minds a bit fogged up at the moment.



SamZ93
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08 Nov 2017, 11:35 am

Maybe I should elaborate a bit. It's more like a subject matter has been "tainted" for lack of a better word. I can't think or watch or whatever about a subject without feeling sick, with a heavy feeling in my chest. And I keep having defensive one-sided conversations in my head, going over why I love/like a subject instead of just enjoying. How should I deal with this, and has anyone else dealt with something similar?



kahhh
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09 Nov 2017, 3:38 am

Yes, I know what you're talking about and I get this sometimes and hate it so much. Logically and rationally, of course, I don't care what other people think and know that it doesn't matter that much. But it's like you said, it's like the brain takes the negative thing as a fact, so then it rejects going against it. Like, with a movie for example, if I hear negative opinions or bad things about it but then I'm watching it and enjoying it, the negative things I heard will still be stuck in my head and it's like something in my brain is confused by the conflict... "nah, this thing sucks, remember? You can't really be enjoying it." Like the brain's signaling that something isn't right here, and trying to fight it away ruins trying to enjoy the thing.



SamZ93
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09 Nov 2017, 11:48 am

What's a good tip for over coming this feeling? Or at least coping with it. My current plan is a combination of trying to make myself enjoy something anyway and/or waiting until it goes away on it's own--both of which could be working better.