I have gotten to the point that I specifically avoid almost all person to person interaction over written communication. When responding to an add, I will even put a note in it that I am a disable vet who has PTSD and cannot speak over the phone.

I can't notice people when I am in others company, to the point that I realized last week that I can't even look at them when talking to them. I have also realized that I even have issues looking at hubby and daughter. It is as if I don't look at them, I can pretend they are not there.

As for help to get over it.. no clue. All I can offer is companionship in this issue.

hugs
yadlim

+1

'nuf said ;-)

I have a terrible time communicating anything. I think when people write it is so much different than talking to someone because of typing habits or voice tone. I have been told my writing comes across kind of stiff, like I am stuffy. LOL. Trying to loosen up on that.

I am very shy when it comes to meeting new people within my boundaries or personal space. I drop stuff and my voice shakes and I get very quiet even though I am social? Complete strangers within a long distance don't bother me, but I tend to keep my head down and I'm trying to change that too. I understand the distance thing and it took me a while to notice that.

I don't have any tips for it, but I think it has to do with personal space for me or my feelings toward a person or myself.

LOL David

HUGS Yadlim! : ) I appreciate the companionship!! It is so isolating knowing that no matter how hard I try I just can't communicate in person... argggghhhh! Not so much silent screaming... rofl

I've noticed the not making eye contact thing too... Plus just the other day I realised that when I THINK about someone I know there's absolutely no image of them at all in my mind... I usually recognise people when I SEE them but... if you asked me to describe someone... I'd have nothing apart from male/female, and approximate age...

I don't know if that is related to the ptsd or to TBI (I've had several but the last one was pretty serious ~ no short term memory for around six months...). After that TBI I couldn't watch any new tv programs because I just couldn't remember "new" characters... but then I also couldn't read anything either, lol... because by the time I got to the end of a sentence I'd forgotten the beginning... Thank goodness I managed to rehabilitate THAT brain functioning disaster... Life as a goldfish had funny moments but they weren't that often.

Hmmm! Even before the latest serious TBI I had extreme difficulty telling people who look "similar" (to me) apart... for example if Al Pacino and Robert De Niro are in a movie together... sigh, I spend the whole time trying to remember who is WHO & trying to figure out... who IS who... arggghhhhh!

People are too complicated... might stick to dogs, horses and rabbits... lol

I do not communicate well in general. I find that I am nervous talking to people and I cannot think fast enough to respond to questions comments.

My emails suck to often confusing words or spelling them wrong. My wmotions tend to pour out in emails making me the unstable one.

I get frustrated because I cannot get my point across so I tend to be short and direct so people do not like me because I appear to be a bitch. Either that or it is a long rambling message that does not make sense.

HUGS Lilly... hmmm! Small talk... omg... the booby trapped minefield of... trying to say nothing... about ANYTHING! I think that might be a martial art... I'm certainly no small talk ninja : )

HUGS David!

Yup! ; )

HUGS Dooo : )

Arggghhhh! I'm the opposite. I'm very quiet naturally... but when I get "near" people I get NOISY... much more so if I'm out of sorts, tired, stressed...

PS: I don't think you come across as stiff at all...

Oh, if I am put in a group of people for instance friends of friends I get very chatty talking about stupid stuff and I have been called socially awkward. So ya, I get that too

HUGS CC! Thanks for the reply...

I think the points you make in discussions are very good! I appreciate them

LOL... Dooo... I have been thinking about wearing a warning label badge... "Socially awkward" might just be the most appropriate & concise label... now all I have to do is pick an appropriate colour...

Hey! I've just had an AWESOME idea for that badge...

A yellow smiley face with the words "socially awkward" in small print shaped as the smiling mouth... Though obviously the utter horror of having someone lean in close enough to READ it, thus invading my "personal space"... might negate any benefits of WEARING the badge, rofl... argh, sigh

Hmmm! So yeah... what we've described so far as a group is... difficulty judging...

~ appropriate length of communication,
~ relevance of what we share to other's perspective,
~ style,
~ eye contact (too much or too little... or none),
~ managing our own nervousness...

Woah... arghhh!

LOL on the badge. Ya, better make it huge letters so they can see it at a good distance!

I'm the same way. In an era of cellphones, I have one, but almost never use it. Writing is much, much better for me. I had an old friend stop communicating with me last year because he wanted me to "graduate" from email to talking on Skype. But I'm better on email.

He decided to stop staying in touch. It was pretty sad, because he was from a face to face support group I belonged to for 5 years. But I couldn't help it. I'm just better writing, you know?

HUGS Muji... I've a cunning idea to carry a whiteboard and just write to people... instead of speak, lol...

At the concert I accidentally, INADVERTENTLY, semi-insulted TWO incredibly burly security guards... They searched our bag for "contraband" and were most perplexed and amused by the pre-packed home made healthy salads we were taking into the concert... Perfectly balanced portions of protein, complex carb, with heaps of vegetables... I started enthusiastically explaining how a well balanced meal controls blood sugar and prevents body fat from collecting around the middle... uhm... oooops... OMG, panic mode...

BOTH these guys had HUGE tummies and I'm busy explaining healthy food... arrrrgggghhh... could the ground just open up and swallow me right then... No! Talk about embarrassed minute of silence...

Phew, they both laughed heartily, we got to keep our salads, one of them even joked they looked pretty darned tasty and he was feeling hungry... I spent part of the nine hours of the concert whacking myself figuratively on the side of the head for being so insensitive... They were nice guys and yeah... I am an idiot who should NOT be allowed to speak in public, lol, hmmm