Overly Aware of Others

Post Reply New Topic

I was at the supermarket today with my mum and sister and I watched her wander around and my mum gather stuff for the weekend. My sister kind of noticed me staring at her and my mum a lot and because of this, I wonder if I am overly aware of others. I just kind of focus on other people or an object, but then I totally forget what I am doing.

Can you explain a little more?

I think it's a stimmy sort of thing but not a full stim? I do this too. I latch onto people's movements often without realizing it really and I just follow their movements with my eyes, like I often do watching cars go by. I also stare past moving things because I like the motion in my peripheral vision. If someone is too close to me, like within 5 feet of me the motion actually bothers me often. It's like it's too close to be tolerated, too harsh maybe? Just too much and it's more unpredictable or feels less controllable?

I also do watch people's interactions with each other and watch their expressions both facial and bodily, especially if I am trying to figure someone out, like whether or not they are a "safe" person. I watch for how observant a person is, like those who do less chatting and more watching are ones I am more likely to "attach" to (have to be careful with that as it can turn obsessive and I will avoid people so that I don't show too much interest). I watch very animated people too, as long as they are genuinely animated and not trying to "sell" themselves or their ideas, and think about how they do it. If I move that much it's jerky, half-movements or quite repetitive, but I don't care anymore. It helps me regulate myself so I can actually interact better verbally.