Difficulty accepting praise

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I like praise, but sometimes I don't know how to respond to it.

Online, this comes up when someone highlights a post that I've made, I feel like I should say thanks or something, but I don't want to just post "thanks." I don't know if people expect that, and I don't want to leave them hanging if they do. I would feel like an attention hog if I did that without adding anything else to the conversation.

IRL, I've tried to learn to just say thanks, but if I disagree with their assessment of my performance, I might find it difficult to just drop my objections. I also wonder a bit whether the person has some ulterior motive, as I have encountered that from time to time.

Does anyone else have a problem with receiving praise or compliments?

I do ok most of the time at accepting praise. The problem is that if it is unexpected, I usually don't t say thank you in time. But if I think I did at least ok on something, then I can remember to say thank you.

It has always been hard for me to accept praise. Most of the time, I can a least manage what sounds like (I hope) a sincere thank you. But I've only learned to really make an effort to do this in the last 5-6 years, and only after having well-meaning people tell me repeatedly "you need to learn to take a compliment".

I'm deeply embarrassed by praise but still crave it at times. I have trouble accepting gifts as well.

I've learned to force myself to simply smile and say thank you at the very least. And it took YEARS to get myself to do that instead of arguing why their praise is misplaced or point out all the small little details that were wrong... On the flip side, I am quick to give praise and try to find even the smallest good point to help encourage other people before handing out criticism. That was also learned but much sooner. The bluntness was a big challenge for me because others challenged me on it so often.

Don't even get me started on bluntness vs. social lying...

I like to receive praise that's tailored to people my age. If I'm praised the way that you would praise a small child or a teenager, I detest it.

Whenever I receive praise, I simply say, "uh, thanks", since I've learned that replying kindly to the person is what is socially expected and acceptable behavior. Internally, however, I shrug the praise off, never knowing if the person was just being nice for once, or if they were truly sincere with their praise.

Also, another reason that I have a hard time accepting praise is because I've been bullied by too many people in the past. Even if these bullies say they're sorry for what they did to me years ago, I still keep my guard up. You never know when another person will produce the next insult.

Yeah... I always used to argue with people when they'd give me a compliment. I eventually just started getting in the habit of saying "thanks", even if I don't think it was warranted. Before I started that, though, I can say that I've gotten a full range of people that have accused me of being arrogant to suffering from a lack of self-confidence.

Absolutely - I always struggle with how to respond to praise...not that praise is a bad thing, of course!

I always assume they are blowing smoke up my butt to get a laugh out of everyone or they are setting me up for something.

Be the recipient of praise means getting attention, and I don't like to be noticed as it makes me uncomfortable.

I have a specific situation at an art studio. The instructors there are extremely nice and pleasant to be around. One even decided to put my drawings in a frame. Another (A cute woman and instructor) told me how much she liked my drawings. It was very flattering. I just said thank you and smiled. I think thats all you have to do.

I used to have trouble with compliments because what I did was never up to my own exacting standards, so obviously the person passing out the compliment was guilty of bad judgment. I had to learn to be a lot easier on myself and my fellow man to get the point where I could say, "Thank you" gracefully.

When I am praised I feel people have an ulterior motive in doing so.. I generally be nice and thank them but I am very skeptical... Not because I am insecure but I hate to feel crushed when their motive is revealed..

i hate being praised if its for something that i dont think deserves it. i also tend to respond to praise with a quick thanks - though that's better than ignoring it, which i used to do

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Smile

Excepting praise for me is a big no. I always think there is some ulterior motive behind it or that the giver is being sarcastic or they are just saying it out of politeness. I especially dislike my manager at work because he insists on shaking my hand which is another thing I don't like or understand.

I also get told that I need to learn to accept a compliment a lot. I just treat people who say this to me the same way I treat people who are praising me: I smile and nod.