Many people fail to understand the painful shyness of the introvert, unless they are, of course,
then they understand it perfectly.
An introverted person can be easily embarrassed and sometimes painfully so.
As an introvert myself, I know just how painful it can be when others fail to understand how to interact with and around you.
Here are a few ground rules for dealing with an introvert that will make everyones life easier...
Rules:
1. Never, ever, ever embarrass an introvert. A few ways this can be done that you may not even realize... calling them out in public, drawing attention to them, ignoring them, joking about personal things, picking on them. It maybe all fun and games but to an introvert, it really hurts.
2. Understand that they are introspective. Yes, introverts get lost in their own thoughts often, let them. Just leave them be, when they're ready they'll let you in, maybe.
3. For the love of all that is holy... give them space. Introverts actually like alone time. I realize that's a hard concept to grasp but you must adhere to it.
4. We like our bubble of personal space and expect you to respect that.
5. People drain us. Yes, we may get snappy or tense after spending time surrounded by a large group. We can't help it, please be patient with us.
6. We are not rude or stuck up, we are just shy and prefer to remain on the sidelines observing.
7. Give us plenty of advanced notice before subjecting us to group outings of any sort.
8. Understand that we have trouble voicing our thoughts, again patiences.
9. We are extremely emotional. It's because we are often overwhelmed. Help us, don't get frustrated with us.
10. We are okay with our introvertedness, we don't need you to fix us.
Here is a few images I came across of Pinterest that says it all...
Take heed, you never know just how harmful your words can be! An introverted person is never going to stop and tell you how much something you said or did hurt. They'll just cry later when no one else is around to see it!
