Is people-ing a word?

It has become common to be less social these days. Some people have been lucky enough to not be affected by this “trend” or whatever it is, but it seems that maybe social media has taken the place of the give and take interactions that some people haven’t seemed to learn, or that they have forgotten.

It’s taxing on the mind and the self-esteem to have an interaction with someone (and I say “interaction” rather than “conversation”) where they talk, vent, and the like, then “gotta go, bye!” Always in a hurry, not a care about what you have to say. Unless, of course, it’s about THEIR conversation. This is EXACTLY like social media! You “like” their post, comment on it, and they love the attention. That’s why they post on there in the first place. But if you were to post something, they’d probably never even read it.

And people wonder where depression, loneliness and isolation come from. Why people become anti-social and “you’ve changed.” Some people get so far inside their own head that they can’t get out. There’s no one else to talk to or tell them otherwise, bounce ideas and dreams off of, or any positive interactions. Some people forget how to interact or do so correctly, that when they do, the words don’t come out right and they end up hurting feelings, making people mad, or turning them away altogether. Some people only know how to interact on social media or through text messaging. It’s easy to use autocorrect or reword things before hitting the send button.

There’s also the famous and oh so common gang of people who only listen to respond. They don’t give a shit what you have to say. It’s only reminding them of something that they have to say that’s more important or way cooler. They just want you to hurry up and get done talking so they can start telling their story. They don’t even acknowledge what you just said. Not even a “that’s nice.” Yeah, fuck you too.

I call this “having the floor.” It’s a handy way of explaining exactly how it feels to be heard and have peoples’ attention to where you feel heard. This phrase came to my head when I was at the end of my employment and would have daily meetings with the 3 men in management above me. None of them would give me the floor, and when I was asked a question, I would often get interrupted and be unable to finish speaking. It was rude and unprofessional to say the least.

If I were able to go back in time, I’d have handled myself in a more assertive way and put them in their place. (Tactfully and professionally, of course) I have learned through therapy that I’ve mentally connected these kinds of situations to past incidents that have caused my traumas and shaped how I reacted to things in my life. This probably led people to believe I wouldn’t do anything to stop it. Oh boy, what I wouldn’t give to go back in time…

These days I stay home as much as possible and spend my days in quiet reflection. I try to do the things I enjoy and find new things that I’m able to with my physical limitations. I’m working on getting those under control and also find different ways to do things that don’t cause more pain. I think too much, but once I type it out, it helps get things out of my head. That’s why it’s good to have a blog.