Do you get a sense of disapproval from people?

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I sometimes go to reunions with law school graduates. The problem is that I didn't go to law school, I went to the other department represented at these gatherings. The lawyers seem to form a mass in the center while the other non-lawyer and I circle around, occasionally finding someone to converse with. Once, there was someone I wanted to meet, but I couldn't get his attention and he left. When law students attend, it's easier, probably because they want to connect with anyone who may be of help.

When I was an undergrad, I was in the student government. I somehow managed to get elected with heavy, non-Greek support. As part of my duties, I went to a freshman orientation. The Americans seemed to have organized themselves into cliques and acted standoffish: averting their gaze when I looked at them and often sneering at me. I don't know whether it was my AS, skinniness, or some other difference they were picking up on. I did, however, find the students who were alone and introduced myself by way of welcoming them and easing their loneliness. Although my position could be a conversation starter, I never got a response beyond a formality. I ended up with the international students, who were less conformist and judgmental. After all, if students of several nations have gathered together, how are they to reject someone of a different nationality.

Yup I have that sense myself.

I'm sure sometimes I am wrong and other times Well errr Im right. I know I've been accused of shoplifting and I suppose they thought I was loitering *actually my car needed fluid on a constant basis so I checked it and looked through the magazine rack* and this butthead rude cop totally embarassed me in front of the whole store. The trooper was local and a REal jerk, but I think he has retired by now thankfully Looking back on it now I wish I would've tried to report him...

People have told me that I've imagined disapproval as well. If I tell someone something and they don't seem to react then I think they must disapprove of what I said and want me to be quiet. However my mum told me that people are reacting, they are listening...I'm just not realizing it.
This probably comes from a combination of expecting people to dislike me and not being able to read subtle social cues, even though I think I can at the time.

Of course!

As I always tell people "the only cues I can pick up via body language from other people are when they don't like me...and I get that quite a lot! Usually, either they don't like me, or they don't care."

I get a sense of disaproval whenever I start to interact on forums like this.

I also tend to perceive people as pissed off at me whether they are or not. I think because I mix up facial expressions. Angry, concentrated, or neutral look a lot alike to me.

Thank you everyone who responded in this thread

Reading over the thread again is very interesting and raises some questions in my mind.

When you sense disapproval, is it before or after you've interacted with the person? I think in my case, it's split about evenly between both. This question can be difficult to answer, because oftentimes we don't really know if the disapproval that we sense is really there or not, and there's no simple way to find out.

I also wanted to ask how it affects you personally. To me, it's devastating because I don't like conflict of any kind. I guess I'm way too thin-skinned, but a "disapproval episode" can throw me into a tailspin for days, during which time I'm tentative and hesitant to approach anyone.

How about you guys?

I often feel like an intruder when I try to say something to someone who didn't officially provoke me.

My solution was to just come to care less about people not approving of me. Have become more of a rude jerk as a result.

I always feel as though I'm intruding, and frequently feel disapproval from people. Even those people that I shouldn't care about (like the mailman for instance) and even when I haven't directly even done anything to feel approval or not from. Its as if they look at me and I get a feeling from how they look at me.

The way I deal with it? I avoid it. I don't interact with many people outside my home, or even put myself out there.