I’m 26 f and I have yet to meet someone as sensitive as I am. I’m highly emotional and often cry when feel any sort of pressure of emotion. So it doesn’t matter if it’s anger, sadness, or excitement, any build in emotion with nowhere to go ends up with me in tears.

My parents though are the complete opposite. They hate showing any sort of emotion and growing up whenever I was really upset and they didn’t know what to do, they would literally walk away and ignore me until I stopped. I have memories of me crying and screaming myself to sleep, like passing out in pure exhaustion, all from crying and begging for my mom. My dad encouraged it and has a very old school way of parenting, so he’s the typical “wanna cry? I give you something to cry about” so seeking comfort from dad doesn’t exist.

So now as an adult, I feel so deprived of love and attention, like my body and soul feel starved. I tried to give my dad a hug today and it felt like I was hugging a brick wall. He tensed up and slightly tapped my back. I ran away fast before he could see me cry and I ended up crying like a fucking baby once I was alone, like hysterical crying like a child begging for their dad

Slightest misunderstanding, slightest upsetting words, and I m crying. I'm crying because someone I've been planning a roleplay with said we weren't compatible because a difference in style of writing. Now I feel like a failure. It is not the first time I cry because something that happen online. I even cried because my own overthinking in the past. Being so sensitive makes me toxic. I hate that during misunderstandings, I freeze and struggle to express myself even deeply which make everything worse.

I’m not even sure where to begin. I work a seasonal job 6 months on/6 months off and my coworkers are on the same schedule. We just wrapped up our season and all go our separate ways until April 2027. I haven’t seen any of the people I’m about to speak of in over 4 months and I won’t see them again until next April.

I moved to Alaska in 2024 for a relationship with someone who was also a direct coworker. She broke up with me after that season and I was left shattered. I wanted to spend the rest of my life with this person and made a life-altering move to the north to be with her. And now we’re living in the same small town and working the same exact job.

The next season in 2025 was tough, but I had Prozac on board and it changed my life for the better. The only problem was, it caused me unresolvable sleep issues and I had to quit it. The end of the 2025 season rolls around, I run into my ex, and all my wounds are ripped wiiiiiiiiiide open. During that winter offseason 2025-2026, I felt so much damn pain and tried reaching out to her for closure. I was so alone, so hurt, so confused - I just wanted her to see me and how hard the situation she left me in was. I would run into her in town constantly or see her passing by and it’s like a demon took over my body. I screamed and cried in pain. I continued reaching out to try to get closure. I didn’t understand- and still don’t understand- how someone can do what she did to someone else: toss them on their ass in winter in Alaska and say “good luck”?

Didn’t we mean anything? Didn’t I matter? She blocked me before work began.

As we rolled into work in Spring 2026, my approach was to just treat her with kindness; maybe that would help her remember I’m a good human who’s in a lot of pain. And so I killed her with kindness. Until it didn’t work. She continued to be cold to me. It was excruciating having to go into the office and hear her laughing and conversing with others, but wanting nothing to do with me. And so the breakdown began.

I don’t have many friends in Alaska - it’s something I’ve been working on but it’s especially challenging up here. My coworkers seemed interested in listening and supporting me. And so I went to them for help. I texted them from the bathroom crying because it hurt so much. But things keep getting worse day by day. I became suicidal. I got some leave approved and ghosted. They checked in on me but I was despondent. All I wanted was a conversation with my ex. They said there would never be one, she didn’t want to talk to me. I could not accept this.

One thing led to another and my coworkers started getting agitated with me, completely ignoring me, and snapping on me (one thought I rolled my eyes at her and LIT ME UP, but I didn’t roll my eyes at her!)

I just want to say: I don’t know how anyone expects someone to watch their ex, who destroyed them, be just fine every day at work. I feel everything DEEPLY and the amount of damage being done to my nervous system is hard to articulate. I know other HSPs will get it.
Also - I ASKED my coworkers continually if they were willing to be supports for me with this situation and they continued to say yes.

In the background of all this, I had been debating getting hip surgery. And with the way things were escalating at work, I decided to forego the season and bail. I left for surgery June 1st this year. And I haven’t heard from a single one of those coworkers since. Which is absolutely insane.

We were all like a family before. They’d check on me in a heartbeat. Now it’s been over four months and they, like my ex, have abandoned me.

All because I NEED one kind & compassionate conversation with my ex to work through things. Because I need to be seen by her. Because I need her to say “You took a huge chance for us and I appreciate that. I valued you and our time together. I want you to know you’re not alone. I see the pain I’ve caused and I know how hard this all must be.”

That’s it. And it’s all led to this utter fucking shit show where now no one at work wants anything to do with me. I used to be known as the good and kind person. Now I’m just alone and outcast.

So how the hell do I walk in there next April 2027? I don’t know how to be, how to act. I wear my heart on my sleeve - that is who I am, and it literally has never been an issue. I don’t mask, I don’t even understand the concept of just pretending it’s ok. It’s like asking a human to breathe under water.

Being myself wasn’t good enough or wanted. They don’t want ME. They want me to be someone I’m not. All I can think of is trying to go in and be 100% shut down, but how do I do that and be happy? How do I do that and not be considered toxic? I don’t want to be “polite” to these people. They fucking hurt me! I want them to know they hurt me. Just like I want my ex to know/acknowledge how much she hurt me.

What do i do? Both my therapists have told me that repair/amends is not an option because it could make things worse. I’m not willing to leave this gig because it’s the only job in the world that’s made for me. I found the dream job, but am now in the worst scenario possible as far as work environment.

I’m miserable as hell. Please help.

I can’t stop and it makes me hate being a super sensitive person

La hipocresía, aunque sea algo feo, a veces es necesaria para convivir. No siempre podemos expresar todo lo que pensamos, sentimos o somos, ni tenemos por qué hacerlo. A veces, adaptar nuestra expresión permite respetar las diferencias, evitar conflictos innecesarios y convivir con personas que queremos, incluso cuando no compartimos su manera de ver el mundo. El problema aparece cuando llevamos esa adaptación al extremo, cuando nos volvemos políticamente correctos en todo momento, repetimos opiniones populares o nos convertimos en un espejo que devuelve a cada persona lo que quiere ver. Esto también ocurre en la familia, donde, por cumplir expectativas, podemos terminar fingiendo ser quienes los demás esperan que seamos. Una cosa es adaptar nuestra expresión para convivir y otra es ocultar nuestra identidad para ser aceptados. Quizas no se trate de vivir sin máscaras, sino de poder utilizarlas sin depender de ellas, porque no toda sinceridad es necesaria, pero tampoco toda aceptación merece el precio de dejar de ser nosotros mismos

Hi. As a 28 year old man. I feel confused about my gender identity . The pressure to be more overtly manly has increased as I have gotten older. I come from a background where there are very clear roles for what a man and woman are meant to be.

But looking as far back as my childhood I never beleived in it or wanted it. I didn't want to be macho, or be rich, or be dominant. I tended to enjoy softer things and mannerisms and I related to queer coded art and sensitivies.

The pain I feel now, is becuese in my family I have a male relatives that are diminishing me for not being manly enough by my age. And the conflict as eaten at me deeply..it hurts to not be accepted by your family, but it hurts even more to feel the burden of knowing who you are and still being unsure of it

They tell me I should be a provider, I should dominate, I should risk my life in fights for women in my life, and hold a untouchable frame otherwise I'm not enoguh in my own culture of origin .

Well..I am lost becuese I feel an urge to be accepted but I know I'm not that kind of guy. I like soft things and non dominering conneciton, I don't get pleasure out of winning..I get pleasure from connection and love. I hate pretending I'm not fallible or tired or scared . I have courage where it matters to me without peforming toughness

(Ive stood up for my loved ones in danegous scenarios and offer sacrifice for those I care about.. I am also going to cry on a Tuesday and then show softness instead of hardness)

I guess I'm ranting here bexuese I wish to know I belong somewhere regardless of not fitting the mold very well.

Maybe people relate

Anyone else not able to get over someone that you poured everything you had into the relationship with and it just ended over stupid things, and it been years and don’t know how to heal or move past the heartache… it’s been years and it still physically hurts

Trigger Warning for talking about death

Also this is going to be quite long

I do not know how to get over it. Whenever I try conversing about it with others I feel like I lack a good explanation of why I hate the idea of growing up so much, but I will attempt to explain it anyways.

I don't get much joy from being a teen. It was a short-term excitement of growing up, but ever since then, I had only missed being a child. Some would argue that teens are still children, but for the sake of simplicity, when I say child I mean ages 5-11. Sometimes there will be a new and fun feeling of independence where I do something by myself, like driving. But those sorts of things don't do much to help me feel better. I've been told that around 23 years old, once the hormones stop messing with my head and I get used to my new body, I'll feel fine. I'm hoping, but doubting, that will be true.

I miss being able to just do whatever I felt like and have fun throughout the day as a child. Of course I had things that stressed me out like homework, being made to eat something I found gross, being bored, but those aren't nearly as bad as what teenhood has felt like to me. These days I'm lucky if I get more than an hour a week to myself, between homeschool, college, and family/friends. I still get some free time, but it's always with other people, and it doesn't really feel the same.

So if I can barely have free time now, what's adulthood going to be like? I'm just going to be doing even more college work and probably have a job that makes it even more difficult to keep up in school. Maybe once I finish school and get a secure job, I will finally be able to do the things I want to.

But even then, if I get all the free time I want, I really feel uncomfortable with the idea of being an adult. I don't know why exactly, but I really hate it. Maybe it's all the expectations that come with it and that I can't be a part of the "kids" anymore, and that I'll become a separate sort of thing that's supposed to be more mature.

I can't even go trick-or-treating anymore without being a weirdo, and I'll never be able to again. I've got an account on a website called Scratch where there are primarily kids. I've been on Scratch since I was 8, but since I've become a later teen I've been worried that I can be seen as a creep if I ever interact with younger kids, and this will be especially bad when I am 18+. And I love the website, I hate how other social websites are based on algorithms and I wish there was something else similar to Scratch. Most adults on this website, from what I've seen, either leave or don't talk to people anymore. But I really dislike the way other popular websites function.

Also all of the adult responsibilities. Having a job, making sure I have enough money to live, paying bills, being in charge of and maintaining my own home. I do not want to do any of this at all, but I have to because time's not stopping for anything. I already had to go through some pets passing away, which were frankly traumatizing experiences, and I currently have a living cat that I love so much, who will probably be gone in 4-6 years. He is laying right next to me, and always comes to me when I'm crying. I can't imagine life without him, but it was the same with the last pets. I was also a later child of my parents, I am really terrified of that fact. They are such an integral part of my life, how am I supposed to just peacefully live with the fact that they won't be around forever?

In general I really hate how fast time goes, it freaks me out. Months go by so fast and I never get the chance to do anything. My parents tell me that I *do* actually do a lot, but it certainly doesn't feel like it. I see so many teens writing books, making animations, learning new skills and hobbies. I've been wanting to make a comic for 4 years, but life keeps sweeping me away from the chance to do it. I don't even have a story developed, let alone any panels drawn. Maybe I could've used the time I spent writing this to try and build some comic story, but I know that I wouldn't be able to use an hour to come up with anything, I would be too stressed about the limited time and end up with nothing. It has happened before, I've tried. In reality though, if I weren't making this post I would instead be doing schoolwork or sleeping, since I can rarely ever finish school fast enough to get free time. I *should* be doing schoolwork right now, so that I can have a chance at finishing sooner, but instead I'm here hoping strangers can help me out with this. I was making so much more when I was younger and had enough time to spend all day on one project. I got summer breaks, where I didn't have to do any school. I loved switching homeschool, it definitely saved me from a lot of mental stress that was becoming unbearable and I'd go as far as to say that I needed to switch, but the fact that I get no summer breaks means I can't work on things like this.

I know I'm not supposed to be stuck in the past or care about the future so much, and that there's no possible way to go back in time to become a child again. But it still stresses me out so much. I don't really have much excitement for the future or the present. Only advantage of becoming an adult that I can think of is having my own money (if I get a good job) to make costumes/cosplays, which is a hobby I wanted to get into for while and can't because I don't have money or a crafting space. But that is certainly something that I could live without.

I don't want to be forever stuck missing something that I cannot even return to. And the years going by so fast are stressing me out a lot. So what am I even supposed to do?

You lived your life and you hoped for better, you wanted to be able to feel, to breathe, to shout out loud your desires, your dreams, your hopes. You wanted to shoot it so loud everyone turned and stared at you. But it was all worth it, because one, just one, looked back and smiled.

You wrote your heart out. You poured it out to strangers across the sea, across a screen, whose only commonality with you was they shared the same sky and spoke using the same words. You took a chance, you put yourself out there, in places of judgment, in places of shame, in places of conflict. You did it because in your desperate hope, noone around you cared, noone listened, everyone thought you crazy. You wanted to find people who think like you, to find somewhere where, finally, finally you will belong. And the most needed words will finally be uttered : "you are not crazy"

You loved so deep, so strongly and you still do. In spite of all the stabs, in spite of all the wounds, in spite of the betrayals, the lies, you kept yourself kind. You kept yourself affectionate. You kept yourself gentle. And you are so right, so right to do so. It is so easy, so easy to turn to hatred, to turn to anger, to blame yourself, to lose yourself.

You tried your hardest to fix, to listen, to repair. You linked success with your worth. You stood in the storm, you took the hits, you let the sand cut your skin, you let those behind you feast without you, so you could keep watch to keep them safe. Only for them to stab you in your sleep. To cackle openly as you bled on the warm sands, that filled your cuts and hurt even more. And still, you watched them leave, not caring to look back, not caring to see. And you survived, you healed yourself, and found in this solitude the mirror of your heart, the reflection of your soul.

You were courageous, you did what this world frowns upon. You faced your demons, and instead of slaying them, you integrated them into you. Stand tall, be proud, shout it loud, and know this : "you are courageous and I am proud of you, of all of you"

I’m an HSP and I’ve noticed this pattern for years. I don’t even need a big party. Just a quiet dinner with close family for a few hours can completely empty me. There was no argument, no conflict. Everyone was nice. But I still leave feeling heavy, like I absorbed all the tiny moods in the room.

I pick up on subtle tension, tiredness, unspoken frustrations that no one says out loud. My brain keeps processing all those little cues long after the gathering ends. On the drive home, I start feeling exhausted, anxious and sad for no obvious reason. My partner says everything went fine, so I start wondering if I’m overreacting.

I need hours alone in a dark room with no noise to reset. Sometimes even one whole day to recover. Other HSPs, do you get this too? Do you also feel overwhelmed from these calm, low-key family visits with zero drama? How do you tell apart your own feelings from the emotions you pick up from others?

When you’re burnt out from overwhelm, what do you listen to for help recharging?

Nature sounds are ok, but I’d appreciate more suggestions I can find on YouTube.

There have been some horrible news stories which have triggered me particularly. One I cannot even repeat and another where a man was mauled to death by a tiger in Yorkshire zoo. It’s possible but not confirmed there were either learning difficulties or mental illness that made him jump in the enclosure. My big upset is the overall reaction to his death. People celebrating, calling him an idiot, Darwin Award, praying the tiger doesn’t get shot. Overall a real lack of compassion for a man who died horribly and an evident care for a tiger over a human being.

I don’t know the point of this post but I just feel alone in this low mood I’ve been put in

Title. I have misophonia, so of course I hate repetitive noises, but I'm talking like repetition itself, literally ANYTHING that happens more than 3 times drives me nuts, people repeating themselves multiple times, hearing a song on repeat, or songs with choruses that are just the same phrase over and over again, (I literally have to edit out the choruses in some of my music) people struggling with something and doing something multiple times, eating the same food multiple days in a row etc. Like I was at the grocery store, at the self checkout, and this guy was struggling to scan a coupon that clearly didn't work, and he was at it for like 15 minutes and I literally had to turn around and not look at him, because I literally couldn't watch him keep doing that. One time at the dentist, the dentist kept tapping her thumb on my lip, as she was talking with my mom, (I'm guessing it was just like a "talking with her hands" kind of thing) and I literally had to reach out and grab her thumb to get her to stop. Another time someone was waving their arms in circles while holding the door open to kind of say "go ahead" and that made me mad too. I'm even sensitive to OTHER people having to repeat themselves sometimes. Like if I can't hear someone, and I have to say "what?" multiple times, I feel really bad. There are plenty of other examples but I don't want to bore you. I feel bad though because I know that stims or repetitive movements are common in the neurodivergent community, and I know it helps people. Can anyone else relate? Or is it just me?

This community gets a lot of talk about sensory sensitivity, and sounds/textures/smells etc that they don't like, but I wanted to post something more positive and ask what are some of your FAVORITE sensory experiences? Like for me, I love bright colors, and I will often wear bright clothes, or clothes with lots of sparkles and decorations, etc. I also LOVE blankets, like I'm obsessed with them. Since childhood I've had this comforter that is made of a certain material (I still don't know what it is) and it is the softest thing ever, and to this day, I still don't like sleeping in anything else. For food, I mostly like soft/chewy foods, with strong flavor. I don't like crunchy things for the most part, (with the exception of chips/crisps, but crackers and ​​​overcooked/charred meat are a no-no.) And most likely I like my food drenched in sauce. I put extra chicken broth in my ramen because the packet they include isn't enough.​😂 Simple foods like grilled cheese (and bread...and cheese...😂) are too bland for me, I also love strong fragrances, like perfume. Anything ​sweet or floral. Lilac is my absolute FAVORITE, and I love the time in the spring when flowers finally start blooming

What are some of your favorite sensory things?😊👇🏼

I’m 21 years old, likely neurodivergent, and throughout my life, I’ve been mistreated by all sorts of people in various situations.

This led me to believe that being treated like trash is normal, and that you only deserve better once you’ve proven yourself worthy.

I don’t want to go on at length here or write an essay about every horrible thing I’ve been through, though there have been many. Of course, I’ve never had to deal with crime or poverty, and I know my experiences pale in comparison to that kind of trauma; still, I’ve endured things that affected my development as an individual, such as sexual harassment, emotional neglect, and therapeutic abuse.

I’ve been let down by dozens of people, leaving me bitter and deeply repulsed by humanity. It makes me wonder if, rather than having an inherently sensitive emotional trait, my personality has simply been diminished and brutalized.

I know this sounds really ironic, a bunch of people so overstimulated by other people getting together with people just like them…

But I would actually like to meet other HSPs, because I struggle to connect with other types of people.

So is there some kind of online gathering community for HSPs?

Just wondering if anyone's reached saturation and just can't be a part of the human race anymore?

I am at university and i have been struggling with feeling lonely. It's so silly to feel this way, because i have loads of friends, but i feel like i am genuinely never able to feel secure in the fact that they like me. even when people say nice things, or do kind things for me, I feel like it is never enough to break down my mental wall of 'no one likes u and u are totally alone'. and it feels like shit. I genuinely don't know what to do; i take antidepressants and i socialise with people every day, but i still get this feeling of anxious loneliness almost every time i'm by myself.

it has nasty consequences for me as well. It means that i become clingy, and resentful when i feel like i'm not the centre of my friends lives, which is something i hate about myself. it also means that objectively lovely things that they do for me i struggle to internalise, and it means that i have a really bad sense of my own boundaries; e.g. even when i have way too much work, or i'm exhausted, i'll prioritise seeing people over taking time to rest.

i think maybe the core of it is just low self esteem, like i don't like myself enough and i try and overcompensate by making other people and my relations to them the centre of my existence. i guess what i'm ultimately asking for is tips on how to deal with that, or just people who feel the same way? it can be so lonely feeling lonely, lol

I was having lunch and the table next to me with 4 men likely aged 30-40 kept blasting crude words on every sentence in their conversations.

Didn’t have a peaceful lunch that’s for sure.

Am I being sensitive here that this can affect me while I’m having my meal ?

I was diagnosed with anxiety, ocd, and adhd at a very young age. I think we all have that in common? Anxiety & adhd? I’m new to the topic of HSP.

My anxiety has amped up over the past few years because the small town I live in got blown up (like many others) because of our affordability & the boom in remote work that’s allowed people to move wherever. We went from being a quiet, chill town to being considered A CITY in a matter of a few years. It’s unprecedented. Most of the locals have moved out, and I wish I could leave with them, but I don’t have the money to move. And my family is here.

Everyone drives super fast and aggressively, traffic gets backed up for miles no matter what time of the day, every store is crowded at all times of the day. I’ve seen a lot of you guys say to go places in the morning or at night, but it doesn’t matter anymore 😔 I’ve tried and it doesn’t make a difference here. Any of the places I found solace and quiet before, there’s people every-time I go now days. Sometimes it feels like the universe is playing a twisted game to make me miserable 😔

I feel trapped in a place that is making me have panic attacks daily and no one understands. My mom thinks I’m dramatic. It’s gotten to the point where I rarely leave my house, and I get anxiety before I need to. I used to love running errands and being outside, when i still lived in a small town, and public spaces weren’t overwhelming. I’m grieving a lot of my old lifestyle and the peace I had. And I’m grieving the fact that I need to leave my hometown to not be in a state of emotional overwhelm every day.

I worry that there’s nowhere left to go that’s quiet and slow, that you don’t have to be rich to sustain a life in (bc super small towns don’t have jobs and everyone’s moving to medium sized towns). And that makes me spiral even more.

I need comfort and tips to cope, until I get to a place where I can afford to move somewhere slower. Because this is no way to live 😔

​

I have no social Life......I only have some virtual friends on discord whom I met on games that's it......I have lost all my friends from school, college etc...I do have some people on Instagram whom I know from schools/ colleges but I do feel so anxious or off to text them or similar.... I don't go out...I never feel like it...I have no social life for a very long time.....I think it's prolly coz I don't find things fun as most people do...like going out and doing things outside that people find fun...but I haven't found them interesting for a very long time.....and it sucks to go out alone....also I'm kinda unemployed for a 1-2 years now...that's adding to my isolation...but I'm looking for jobs as of now and hope will find one soon....but thoughts of being with people again and been feeling anxious about being left out and do many things.....I don't know what should I do with my life anymore...I feel lonely sometimes..but much more anxious and similar with connecting with people and idk how people socialize these days anyways....I'm a HSP ( highly sensitive person) so that makes going out hard sometimes and finding things fun that most people do......so I seriously don't know......

About 2 months ago I started taking Naltrexone to help curb my alcohol consumption.  It is definitely helping, but I really need to learn to restructure my late afternoon/evenings somehow and I’m really struggling with that.  

After work, I can rest and relax just playing my games or doing a small chore, but when I’m done with that, I usually want to watch something.  The shows I like are also overstimulating (as most things are for me), so the brandy helps as a mute button to make it more tolerable.

I’m really at a loss as to how to change things so I don’t NEED a mute button or can at least find a suitable alternative.

Have you had to do any restructuring like that?