The Emotional Strength of Introverts During the Pandemic

[Unknown Unknown]

I do empathize for the extroverts. If they feel as drained as introverts can get in social situations the pandemic has got to be challenging for them. Although, extroverts in my past experience in general haven't shown much sympathy for introverted natures. Even going so far as to deride introverts avoiding social interaction for self care, even though it doesn't put anyone else at any health risk. Unlike social gathering does during the pandemic.

 

[Ogni-XR21]

I really enjoy the pandemic life. I never cared much for social gatherings, so while over the summer life was relatively normal here in Germany I used Covid as an excuse to no meet with people.

 

[Addi]

As an introvert, who's actually an extrovert, I hate personality type wankery.

 

[Failburger]

I get to wfh.

Life is nearly perfect

 

[Courier 7]

Introvert. Thriving in this remote environment. I haven 't felt this stress free in a while. Losing weight. Eating well. Socializing over voice chats with friends more. My self-care game has skyrocketed. I feel great.

Turns out, corporate environments and long commutes were killing me.

 

[rokkerkory]

More introvert here but doing OK... of course sad I can't see family and friends like normal but not much has changed other than full time WFH

 

[Xterrian]

As an introvert, who's actually an extrovert, I hate personality type wankery.

Click to shrink...

This. The amount of people going "oh I'm glad to be an introvert during this" just feeds the extreme stereotypes of intro/extroverts.

You can be introverted and still love hanging out with friends, it's just that you can feel drained after sometime and need to recharge by being by yourself.

It feels like people are kinda celebrating/idolizing not seeing/having friends sometimes, which is really disheartening.

 

[Kraid]

I'm an introvert who worked from home pretty much exclusively for 2.5 years before this started and let me tell you, it's been hell! I'm fine not having to have stop & chats in the office all the time, and I appreciate when I can go shopping alone in the store. The very small circle of people I'm close with I can't really see, and now even going grocery shopping just ratchets up my anxiety even higher. I feel trapped in my house, which is a miserable feeling. I absolutely fucking hate this with the fury of 1000 suns.

 

[Koukalaka]

I'm not super introverted, but I do enjoy my own company quite a bit. It's undoubtedly made the pandemic much easier for me than some friends and family.

Having said that, I think you can't divide people nearly into two groups. I caught up with a work colleague in person for the first time in seven months for lunch and it made my month, despite the fact that we already talk regularly.

 

[CarbonCrush]

I am an introvert. I have weathered the lockdown well in terms of not being able to socialise with my friends, but not being able to fulfill my sexual needs is now really starting to affect my wellbeing. I need female company stat!

Anyone similar?

 

[Keldroc]

As an introvert, who's actually an extrovert, I hate personality type wankery.

Click to shrink...

Agreed. People put way too much stock in this stupid "introvert/extrovert" stuff. It's not science and it's not useful, and self-proclaimed introverts lean way too hard on that label as an excuse for rude behavior. Preferring to be alone most of the time isn't the same thing as being completely inept in social situations.

The pandemic sucks. Lockdown sucks. Not being able to do anything sucks. Even the most self-righteous self-labeled introverts I know are restless about it at this point. Get through the days however you need to, but nobody should be enjoying what's happening. It's a gross way to frame it.

 

[saturnineCarrier]

Good for y'all saying confinement is no big deal for you.

 

[Night Hunter]

I started working again this week after being laid off at my old job.

I already miss Home Office.

 

[ItsTheLittleThings]

waifu pillow to the rescue

ahem.

:(

 

[Lobster Roll]

I like to think of being an introvert as having a social battery capacity that is MUCH lower than other people's. I miss being social and seeing people that I like, but that doesn't change the fact that after an hour or so, I'm thinking of being back in my cave.

 

[The Albatross]

I'm not an introvert but I've always appreciated being alone, and I've done fine with the lockdown, and I'm fine like not going out and seeing people, etc. My wife is a major extrovert and really, really struggled.

I often think, like, if I wasn't married and didn't have a kid, this would have been one of the easiest 9 months. The hardest things for me was balancing work and a toddler which was really hard, we did fine so far, but like almost all of my anxiety was over worrying if I'd get sick and who would take care of my 2 year old if I'm having difficulty breathing/living, and I can't send her to my parents because she'd spread it to them and they'd die, etc. That was the strong anxiety I had in the first 3-4 months. It's subsided since, TBH, we've been living with the virus in our community and treatment seems better now than it was back in March/april/May when things were really scary around us.

I feel guilty about that thought that I have, like, it's not right for me ot think "goddam it'd be so easy if I wasn't married and with children..." I love my wife, love my child more than anything in the entire world x10,000,000, but it's a thought I often have, like "ffs, WFH for 9 months would have been my fucking DREAM."

Where I'd struggle probably is if I were single. I do think I'd be lonely in my love life and feel isolated by like not be able to meet someone, so I'm thankful for my situation. MAke no doubt I wouldn't want to change anything in my life.

 

[Brinbe]

Yeah I'm an introvert and I'm struggling with this pandemic. I really hate the conflation of introversion with being socially avoidant. They're not the same thing.

Click to shrink...

1000% on point here.

 

[Midramble]

I'm a good mix of introvert and extrovert. I've been getting by but I miss people pretty dramatically. I miss their stories, struggles, and hearing their dreams. I miss the sense of humanity that one gets at a karaoke bar. I miss my human comrades.

I do not however miss bullshit. I don't miss commuting and traffic. I don't miss working at a desk to justify an office lease. I don't miss having to fight lunch rushes.

 

[Ruisu]

I remember all the times I saw introverts shit on "anti-social" people and how they were nothing like them, because introverts actually like being with other people. And now the pandemic is here, and only the truly anti-social people can thrive! This is finally our time, we anti-socials are the ideal of social interactions and the introverts who shunned us can only wish they had the same level of distaste for social interactions at all. /s

Being serious for a moment, a person can be an introvert and also be anti-social, that's not necessarily a negative aspect of personality that you need to disassociate from in such a hurry. It's also completely subjective since some of my friends would never consider me anti-social by the way I act in the few times we see each other, while most of my family and extended family do consider me anti-social because of how averse I am to most if not all kinds of meetings and reunions with them. So in this pandemic I've been getting a lot more shit from them about it since they're the only ones still meeting and coming over. I didn't like to see them in normal conditions, and I like it even less during this pandemic. So yeah, I hear a lot of rants about how "you can't shun away everyone, you need to socialize, you need to keep contact with people, blablabla".

 

[fontguy]

I admit it. I started the plague so I wouldn't have to go to that party on Sunday.

 

[Deleted member 77553]

As an introvert the pandemic has made me more happy because I'm doing online classes from home. Yes, I miss interacting with friends, but these last few months have been really nice.

 

[Reeks]

Introvert here. I need a small amount of social interaction to feel balanced. Not having the opportunity has been really hard for me. I can't reach out as easily because I hate phones and zoom type meetings. So having zero social interaction has been increasingly difficult.

 

[Dandy]

The pandemic has made it so I no longer feel bad about myself for staying home all the time.

 

[ned_ballad]

I haven't felt this relaxed and safe in like... my entire life

I feel some guilt about it, since so many other people are suffering

 

[ThreePi]

As an introvert the level of social interaction I typically need is fulfilled by brief interactions with cashiers at fast food establishments. First month or so was rough, but I'm getting that now.

 

[EssBeeVee]

Not gonna lie, pandemic life and normal life are like 90% the same for me.

Click to shrink...

Lol ikr. Nothing changed here.

 

[Rex Dart: Eskimo Spy]

I don't miss my coworkers exactly, my current workplace is socially chilly.
I miss the mental distinction between work and home.
I miss house parties, eating out, and meeting friends for smokes.
I miss easily exploring my city without assuming that something will be bogged down with restrictions, if it's available at all.
I've had to be more proactive about making time with my friends online. I don't think I've ever appreciated human contact so much.

 

[TAJ]

I miss roller coasters and a few other minor things. When the county fair would normally be going on I was briefly a little bummed that it was canceled because I enjoy the art and hobby buildings.
But I could do this forever and pretty much be fine.

 

[Imperfected]

Wait, hold up.

There's a pandemic?

 

[Drek]

I'm an introvert, my daughter is an introvert, and my wife is middle of the road. We have our own house on a nice sized lot. The only meaningful change in my life has been picking up making my own sourdough.

 

[nsilvias]

my day to day life hasnt changed much since covid started tbh but yeah. i do kinda miss going out without having to worry when i do now tho

 

[Fatoy]

I miss seeing my friends once a month, but other than that I've worked from home for a decade and I'd basically become a hermit a long time before COVID hit. I definitely felt prepared.

 

[Infcabbage]

This doesn't surprise me, but as social introvert and I'm certain I would've checked out long ago if I didn't have a small group of friends and partners to keep in my quarantine bubble. Even introverts need social interaction now and again, even if it isn't as vital.

 

[Tigerfog]

Kind of introvert here and yeah, the pandemic is easy on me.
Now if only gyms weren't closed...

 

[meowdi gras]

I'm an ambivert, so when I'm in the right mood for socializing, this pandemic has been a damn annoyance.

More than that, though, I've been desperate for socializing this year as a distraction from the heartbreak I experienced when ex-bf dumped me back in January. That I've been unable to due to the pandemic has been fucking rough.

 

[Dark Knight]

Thankfully not much changed since I'm an introvert.

Click to shrink...

Yep. My life barely changed at all, which I feel a little guilty about I suppose. I do feel bad for those who are sorely missing people.

 

[Mathieran]

Ironically, being an introvert with a wife and kids has been really challenging for me. I'm almost never alone and it's really suffocating sometimes

 

[VariantX]

About the only thing that bothered me is having to walk through a drive through at a fast food joint since i don't have a car. Everything else is pretty normal for me since I don't visit people often and I go out to places once in a blue moon before the pandemic anyway. I've always been someone who prefers to be in the comfort of my home.

 

[VISION]

I'm an introvert and I'm still lonely

 

[Kevers]

I'm an introvert and I'm still lonely

Click to shrink...

This is exactly what I came here to post.

 

[Lari]

I'm fairly extroverted and I obviously miss people a lot, I miss going out to parties and concerts and I miss hugging my friends.

But i'm doing fine all things considered. Knowing everyone is basically on the same boat helps soothe my anxiety over it somehow. And I still talk to people I care about on a near daily basis which helps a lot.

 

[Baji Boxer]

What I miss most is going to Half Price Books, the movies, and going to the occasional restaurant by myself. Also, the money problem from being unemployed can be very stressful.

My health has improved a lot though. I didn't truly realize the toll retail had been taking on me until I was fired lol.

 

[Baji Boxer]

I'm an introvert and I'm still lonely

Click to shrink...

Me too, but I can't say I feel more lonely. So, normalish on that front, I suppose.

 

[Bishop89]

Not gonna lie, pandemic life and normal life are like 90% the same for me.

Click to shrink...

Yehhhh this.

 

[Enduin]

Yeah I feel a little bad about, but I'm living my best life right now. WFH has been glorious for me. Don't feel guilty for not ever going out or being social. Plenty of time to work on myself and just enjoy myself. Hate that people are suffering and struggling and wish it didn't take a global pandemic to cause this, but making the most of it as I can.

 

[Feep]

Massive extrovert reporting, and this suuuuuucks. Anyone wanna trade for a bit?

 

[Deleted member 4494]

I don't know if I'd call what I have 'emotional strength' -- it's sort of like referring constantly to grocery workers as 'heroes'; you can, and I'm glad people feel that way, but peeps gotta work to live. The reality is that the pandemic runs parallel with my life -- if it didn't, I'd almost certainly be losing my shit out here. I'm an introvert, yes, but I'm not emotionally strong because of it, or in an ad hoc way. Emotionally strong, to me, would be being extroverted and being able every day to deal with this.

 

[Crayolan]

Pandemic life is barely any different for me than pre-pandemic, I'm mostly just worried about not catching the damn virus when I go to work.

 

[Lentic]

I'm an introvert and it's been hard. Being around other people helps me get outside my head. Otherwise I tend to get locked into a certain way of thinking and start to ruminate. I start to feel mentally claustrophobic.

 

[Maximo]

Actually didn't like alot of the pandemic as a introvert, Im an introvert but I need to surround myself with my friends and their positive energy. Yes too much can drain the fuck out of me but someone as empathetic as me I actually need those short bursts of intense social interaction to fuel my energy, the pandemic was robbing me of the choice to interact with my friends and was causing me to get fairly depressed.
Also didnt help that I need physical exercise to channel out my massive anxiety energy I have and the pandemic royally fucked me getting serious with Boxing.