Who the hell wants to read an article about being paranoid? Fuck it, I do. So, here are 5 (quick) signs you are/someone you know is paranoid.
First, I am not a psychologist, so I am not using the term “paranoid” as a clinical diagnosis. This is just my observation of a few traits that share similar themes.
If you recognize these traits in yourself, this is an area where you need to improve. You need to work on your trust issues, fear, and anxiety, among other things. Paranoia, as we will define it, is not the best mindset to use in the world or to manage your relationships.
If you recognize these traits in someone else, there are two scenarios.
If you care about this person and you want to keep your relationship with them, you need to understand this about them to manage your relationship with them in a better way. If you don’t care about this person, you probably should reconsider what this person contributes to your life.
Disclaimer
I didn’t write this article to judge people or belittle them. Yes, I have come across people who are paranoid. I have dealt with my own paranoia and saw how these traits manifest in my life.
We all have a shady side. It is full of evil, dark, and weak traits we are not proud of.
Do not read this article to feel morally superior; read it to understand this dark side (inside you or inside others). This will help you defeat it and know how to deal with it.
Also, be careful when you look for these signs. First, you need to make sure there is a pattern. We all slip sometimes and do things we don’t usually do. So, make sure the behavior happens more than once and in different situations.
Second, make sure you find all (or at least most) of the signs. The existence of multiple signs suggests that there is a pattern of behavior that points in a specific direction.
In other words, don’t be a dick and label people just because you read an article online that contains stupid signs.
Let us start. This will be a quick read.
#1 They are excellent lie detectors
Paranoid people pay attention to even the subtlest indication of threats (real or imaginary, as we will see). They are on the watch. They are literally watching everything.
Although they sometimes overreact, it is actually difficult to lie to them. They detect inconsistencies in your story faster than a fire alarm detects smoke. They watch your body language like a hawk. They listen to your voice tone like a detective. And they are very good at spotting the subtlest signs of deception.
In short, it is very difficult to lie to paranoid people. They will hear it in your voice, see it in the way you avoid eye contact, and feel it when you do something you think is innocent.
#2 They misinterpret situations
Yes, they can be great deception detectors, but all they see are lies, deception, and danger, even when these things do not exist. For example, if there were 5 lies in a given situation, they would see 10.
They suffer from distorted cognitive distortion. This is when you interpret things in a distorted way that matches your distorted beliefs about reality.
In other words, they see a distorted reality. They might exaggerate the impact of a situation. They might accuse you of having malicious intentions.
Usually, their reality is pessimistic, dangerous, and toxic. They assume the worst and are prepared to see it, so they end up seeing it everywhere, even when it doesn’t exist.
#3 They have trust issues and will test the shit out of you
Paranoid people have serious trust issues. Their paranoia is about thinking that other people are out to get them.
They find it difficult to trust people. And this is not surprising, given that they see the world as a place full of threats.
They usually put people (especially those close to them) through tests to see if they are telling the truth or to confirm if a suspicion they have is accurate.
Those tests are problematic for two reasons. First, they make the relationship unsafe and unhealthy. Nobody likes the idea of being tested and mistrusted. If my friend doesn’t trust me and is always testing me, I will not feel good about this friendship.
Second, those tests are endless. You think they will stop testing once they realize the threats they are worried about are just in their minds. But that usually never happens.
They never feel safe. A test leads to another and then to another. Their minds tell them there always must be a threat and that they must be prepared.
#4 They are self-consciousness to the point of grandiosity
The type of self-consciousness I am talking about here is the negative one. It is when you cannot look beyond yourself. And it is when you are focused on your flaws, problems, and safety to the point of obsession.
People with social anxiety, for example, are self-conscious. They are too aware of themselves. They overthink how they look and sound. They think people are focused on them. They exaggerate their flaws. As a result, they cannot relax in social situations.
One of the best things they can do is to shift their focus outward. In other words, they need to stop focusing on themselves; they need to stop being self-conscious.
Paranoid people have a similar type of self-consciousness. They forget that the world doesn’t revolve around them and that people really don’t give a damn about them as much as they think.
#5 A predator is always threatening their lives
There is a common theme between paranoid people and those playing the victim role. A predator (a person or a set of circumstances) is always out to get them.
In other words, they almost always have an enemy. Someone out there is trying/tried to screw them up. They are in bad luck because of an oppressive force they cannot control.
Their world is incomplete without predators and enemies. After all, they see the world as a place full of threats.
Look, life is difficult, so everyone struggles in one way or another. Everybody has challenges. There is no shortage of predators. But it is about how you view and deal with these predators and life’s struggles.
Paranoid people (and those playing the victim’s role) give up a part of their responsibility. I am saying this because you will always find them telling stories about how someone/something has screwed them up.
In their story, you will hear little to no accountability. Not to mention that you will always find them telling similar stories about different people and situations. Their life (or at least the area they struggle with) is not progressing. They are (always) screwed up, but they have a story about why that is the case.
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I hope this was helpful
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