Introversion and exhaustion

[rNOW]

Does anyone relate to this problem? 

I have a high degree of introversion and I am in a situation where I need to go and meet people for work. I don't have social anxiety though I used to have a 'selective social anxiety' earlier (anxiety around selective people), but it isn't so anymore. I like meeting people and talking to them, especially if it is something that matters to me. My problem is - interacting with people leaves me extremely exhausted - mentally and also physically. I find I need to eat more and sleep a lot more after I meet people. Example - I interact with someone for two hours in the evening and I need to sleep 9 hours that day instead of my regular 6 followed by a lethargic morning the next day. 

This doesn't apply when I'm interacting with people who are working WITH me towards some common goal. It only applies when I am talking TO them, either in a social setting or while pitching a project or even just being surrounded by other people without interacting with them. I have always had a few extroverted persons do the talking on behalf of me, but the situation has now arisen wherein I need to be the one who does that. And it is exhausting me and taking up a lot of time regaining the lost energy. Does it get better with practice? Or is there something I need to be learning/ doing differently?

Note: I have tried designing my day such that I plan all interactions in the afternoons/evenings, and I keep the mornings for solitary work, but it still isn't enough. 

 

Edited November 23, 2018 by rNOW
Grammatical Error

[Consilience]

Ive dealt with this yeah. Im an introvert but am working as a personal trainer so Im literally in contact with people all day long every day haha. 

 

What’s interesting is at first it was exhausting, but it eventually got to be no big deal. Two things really helped me: 1) I had it in my mind that I was going to learn how to be more effective at my job and adapt. So you need to really cement the possibility for your ability to adapt and change how the job affects you. Genuinely opening up this possibility for growth gives way for eventual transformation. 2) I stopped labeling myself as an introvert and worked towards transforming that identity. Introversion, at the end of the day, is a concept about ourselves and the more you study the self, the more you see how relative and arbitrary characteristics are. So introversion is just a concept or a story the self tells itself. So practically speaking, try to deeply contemplate why you’re clinging to your introversion, find those limiting beliefs and assumptions, find out why these specific social interactions drain you, and then if you have the courage, let them go. This sounds simple on paper but I promise both 1) and 2) take real work to figure out, but, at least in my experience, it can be done.

[rNOW]

50 minutes ago, Consilience said:

2) I stopped labeling myself as an introvert and worked towards transforming that identity. Introversion, at the end of the day, is a concept about ourselves and the more you study the self, the more you see how relative and arbitrary characteristics are. So introversion is just a concept or a story the self tells itself. So practically speaking, try to deeply contemplate why you’re clinging to your introversion, find those limiting beliefs and assumptions, find out why these specific social interactions drain you, and then if you have the courage, let them go. 

@Consilience Thanks for the response. You're right. When I think about what I need to do, my identity doesn't matter. Introversion is a concept, but my exhaustion is very real. At least for now.  And I agree I have quite a few limiting beliefs, which I've sourced from the past, and I've often wondered: What if I start believing that interacting with people energizes me, then will that be the case?!

[aurum]

@rNOW

It's not because you're an introvert!

The reason you're exhausted is because you are in your head. You're not present.

Period. End of discussion.

Stop thinking and analyzing  so much and watch this problem just "magically" disappear.

 

[NoSelfSelf]

Yeah analyzing every single detail and trying figure out everything in the room will leave you exhausted as hell +when you are intuitive you predict alot of unnecessery stuff

[rNOW]

@aurum That makes sense! Thank you!

@NoSelfSelf Yes, I may not be doing it consciously though, but I do.