Plan on sitting next to people at the train station

[EricJones]

In regard to my body movements, I plan on testing out my theory that people will look at my body movements and dislike and disapprove of them. What are your opinions on that? Do you think people will be offended by me moving around a ton and potentially being over alert around them?

[ACE135]

Yes, of course people will be aware of your body movements and may get irritated by you 'moving around a ton'. It will put people on guard if you start behaving weirdly and being over alert, which would be a completely acceptable reaction to you behaving oddly. Why do you want to test this theory?

[EricJones in reply to ACE135]

because I need to rejoin the public sphere so I can be around people and make connections.

[ACE135 in reply to EricJones]

I apologise, I didn't realise you have a physical condition that doesn't allow you to sit still. If you have parkinsons or a similar condition that involves trembling etc, strangers will be understanding and won't be irritated by you moving around a lot. Obviously, they will notice you moving a lot though and may stare. Unfortunately, this can be difficult to handle, but you can find coping strategies to deal with that. I wouldn't let it stop you from leaving the house though, even though it is tough to deal with stares. Why might you be over alert?

[EricJones in reply to ACE135]

I'm afraid that people will judge me for overhearing people's conversations and paying attention to their body language.

[ACE135 in reply to EricJones]

You said in your post about body movements. What body movements do you make that you think might offend people?

[ACE135 in reply to EricJones]

And what do you mean by paying attention to people's body language? If you stare at someone's body, they will notice and will find it creepy. Apologies if I'm not understanding what you mean. Hopefully someone will have an appropriate answer for you.

[EricJones]

I pay attention to people's body movements through my peripheral vision. I feel that someone might be offended by the way I move around a lot and copy move to their movements. When they move, I usually move. I'm wondering if they'll just ignore that, or will they take a look at me mirroring their body language?

[ACE135 in reply to EricJones]

Perhaps reading some books on psychology, including body language and CBT, might help you predict how people will react and help you deal with those excessive thoughts. Mirroring someone's body language can be taken as you taking the mickey. Mirroring someone's body language when talking to them can imply you like them. I was curious to know more, so checked out your other posts to get more of an idea of where you're coming from. It seems you ask the same question a lot about whether people notice your behaviour. I think maybe you should test the theory as all the answers you've received on this forum have not given you the reassurance you need. Let us know how you get on when you test your theory. I hope you are able to start socialising soon without all those stressful thoughts.

[EricJones in reply to ACE135]

Yeah, I just always feel like punishment will come to me, if I move in response to someone else.

[ACE135 in reply to EricJones]

I understand. It sounds like you may have experienced trauma in your life and this has caused you to be hyper alert. Any kind of stress can manifest and create unhelpful pathways in the mind. I think it would help you to analyse your thoughts and provide reassuring answers for each concern you have. Writing them down in a journal or sticking them up on the wall might be useful. It might also help to say affirmations to yourself to keep you calm and looking relaxed; like "I am safe and I look good" - just some words that put you in a better head space. Why do you feel like punishment will come to you if you move in response to someone else?

[Timas]

It's hard to answer this question without understanding what you mean by "body movements" and knowing how different these movements would be from the people around you. If you're behaving in a way that isn't all that different they may not even notice. If it's more noticeable and extreme then I would expect different people to feel to feel different ways: some might be curious, some confused, some worried, some surprised, some offended....

Edit- I wrote this before I saw your recent post

[EricJones in reply to Timas]

All but one terrible response lol. I mean me just moving my body around when someone else moves.

[Timas in reply to EricJones]

Have you ever seen a mime when they start copying somebody? I don't think you mean that, but it's really hard to understand exactly what you mean. Also, what is the purpose of your experiment? Are you trying to learn something about yourself? Are these things you feel like you have to do when you're around other people?

[EricJones in reply to Timas]

I'm trying to test my irrational theories to see if they're in fact irrational and not true or to see if people actually care about my movements and my irrational fears are in fact true. and rational.

[Timas in reply to EricJones]

Has somebody told you that the way you behave and move around other people doesn't really stand out? Or, have you been told that it's noticeable, but people won't have negative reactions like you think they will?

[EricJones in reply to Timas]

I believe it's noticeable. No one has told me it's noticeable. It's because I can hear people's conversations. So I assume that they'll eventually find out I was hearing them.

[Timas in reply to EricJones]

When I'm in a public place and people are talking loud enough for me to hear I usually listen too. I don't really mean to, it just happens. Sometimes what they're talking about makes me uncomfortable so I move away if I can. Sometimes it's interesting. I know some people are oblivious to conversations around them but I don't think listening is all that unusual. Just don't stare.

[EricJones in reply to Timas]

So, you do pay attention to people's conversations? Interesting. I'd say most people don't. I have no interest, I'm just hypervigilant and can't ignore it

[Timas in reply to EricJones]

Yes, I frequently pay attention to other people's conversations, body language etc. and would say that I am hypervigilant, but maybe not for the same reasons you are. I'm not really sure how much other people do it and that's something for me to think about. I guess why would also be an important thing to think about too.

[EricJones in reply to Timas]

Yeah, I'd think about that a bit. It's not a huge deal but it can be a little rude if you do it on purpose.

[Timas in reply to EricJones]

Sure, it can be rude to watch and listen due to interest rather than hypervigilance, it would really depend on a whole bunch of factors. But I think it's pretty common. Have you heard the phrase "people-watching"?

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peopl...

[EricJones in reply to Timas]

Yeah, but isn't that watching people not hearing people?

[Timas in reply to EricJones]

I think most people's understanding is that the activity of "people-watching" includes hearing as well. The link I included above says " Eavesdropping may accompany the activity" and "This includes speech in action".

[EricJones in reply to Timas]

So, are you telling me you pay attention to people because you have to or because you choose to?

[Timas in reply to EricJones]

Both! It really depends on the situation. But I'm pretty much always aware of what's going on around me.