Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Sociopaths vs. schizoid, etc.

This clever anecdote was send to me by a reader, originally appearing here.
If you really want to know who you are, just ask yourself "Why am I doing this and what do I want out of it?"

If your answer is, "I don't know, does it matter?" you're a schizoid.

If your answer is, "I want to rule the world, or at least a portion of it," you're a psychopath.

If your answer is, "I am scared," you're an avoidant.

If your answer is, "I want attention...I want them to love me," you're a narcissist.

If your answer is different every three hours you're a borderline.

Personality disorders are only confusing when you think in terms of behavior. But any good psychologist knows, all behavior originates from thought. What is the overall theme of your thoughts? Simple.

23 comments:

  1. This is pretty pretty, and in my experience accurate.
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  2. ah . . . pretty 'funny', I mean.
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  3. Ha, I got that Eric Lee guy banned from that site, then seeded the comments here with a prominent name from the ASPD forum, in case anybody searched. I wonder if you got any new readers from that?
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  4. That was months ago, by the way.
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  5. Pretty funny.

    "Why am I doing this and what do I want out of it?".
    Just for fun, taking THIS to mean here... to better understand myself, see what it feels like to have someone see through me (narcissistic? was going to hedge around that), and play.
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  6. Daniel BirdickJan 14, 2010 07:15 AM
    Now that's funny! And like HL said, somewhat true too.
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  7. Daniel BirdickJan 14, 2010 07:33 AM
    Oh and Zoe, who sees thru you here?
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  8. Hi Daniel, I just replied and my comment vanished so here I go again.

    What I wrote was that no one see thru me here but me (Zoe me). I was playing around with the concept.

    Words are dead things until we give them meaning and it's a bit like looking in the mirror, being willing to do so, and avoiding the narcissistic and delusional trips along the way, avoid turning it into a funhouse. writing is like meditating for me, theraputic. I like ME's posts. so for now I am here.

    that's more or less it.
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  9. The diagnostic criteria for Borderline fits me well, for the most part. I really don't mind being alone, though, nor am I suicidal. Most of the time, I'm happy with who I am, but I wish I could be more consistent.

    Other than that, it's a pretty good fit.

    *shrug*

    I've suspected that for quite some time, though.
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  10. A subtype of the WHO's version:
    F60.30 Impulsive type

    At least three of the following must be present, one of which must be (2):

    1. marked tendency to act unexpectedly and without consideration of the consequences;
    2. marked tendency to quarrelsome behaviour and to conflicts with others, especially when impulsive acts are thwarted or criticized;
    3. liability to outbursts of anger or violence, with inability to control the resulting behavioural explosions;
    4. difficulty in maintaining any course of action that offers no immediate reward;
    5. unstable and capricious mood.

    Is that me? Could it be me?
    Oh pretty please, tell me it is.
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  11. Pan you're just another attention seeking twerp who is unable to control his Internet dribbling. Why are here all the time? Stop dreaming up ever more exotic excuses (now you're borderline huh) why you haven't put your face in the wind. Pathetic, Peter.
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  12. Ever more exotic excuses, eh? Wow, what was I last time? My memory must really be shit.
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  13. “why am I doing this and what do I want out of it?

    The real truth, to find others like me. I don’t connect with most people, and I think the only reason I have close friends at all is due to the large amount of effort I put into finding people I relate to. I’m always looking. It’s become a habit. I will try almost anything once and am drawn to anything challenging or extreme. I’ve worked my way through a lot of friendships. Looking back, it was worth it. Compared to the alternative.

    I am pretty good at reading people. The hard part has been learning not to, learning what was meant to be seen and what wasn’t. In an effort to not be misunderstood, or maybe to feel a connection, I would become them. It always felt wrong, disgusting somehow, to wear someone else’s skin like that, and was always a relief to get away afterward. It took a while but I can now be around others and hold my own, for the most part.

    Being able to see through people is an advantage, but I think you risk becoming delusional to the point where you think you can control everyone, or that you must, that it’s your responsibility. If you have a sense of a real self, it’s lonely – it was the reference to this in one of ME’s posts that drew my attention. That resonates.

    The fear of being discovered doesn’t. I just don’t get that. I feel that whatever I do, I can always undo. That’s a bit delusional, though, I guess.

    I just realized today for the first time that the reason I find communicating online like this so terrifying is that it requires giving up that control. Here, I’m going in blind. I’m not used to that. Playing with metaphors, playing around, makes it easier, and is a way for me to feel things out. I always knew it was the fear that drew me, the need to get the better of it, but had no idea where it came from, what it was about. I can’t believe how slow I am sometimes.
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  14. look at your thoughts to know yourself, look at actions to know other people though...
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  15. what do you mean by actions, Disney?
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  16. Zoe

    People's actual behavior.
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  17. Well, I'm definitely a schizoid based on this-which is actually pretty accurate. I don't understand a lot of the things on this site because I tend to be remarkably apathetic (to the point where the sociopaths on this site actually seem overly emotional to me, lol). I find a lot of comments on here to be petty, over-analytical, and superfluous. I'm not very observant (of others or myself), so all the psychological games on here seem horribly pointless and I can't figure out why anyone would even care enough to manipulate someone. I don't have enough energy for that...but I do think the sociopath's is an interesting perspective (although somewhat obnoxious). I'm pretty unempathetic, but I feel absolutely no need to harm people (emotionally or otherwise) because of that...I don't think that logically follows from a lack of empathy. What I'm basically saying is: I don't understand even remotely the sociopath's motivations (or anyone else's for that matter, lol).
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  18. Not all sociopaths want to harm people, and not all empaths are harmless. But you get predators in both groups.
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  19. look at your thoughts to know yourself, look at actions to know other people though...

    i know them better when i can look in their eyes. or Disney, are you saying to look past that?

    the pattern of my thoughts leaves comet trails of emotion.
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  20. Zoe
    Eyes can lie. The effect of people's actions on other people is an example of what I look at when judging people. Actions actions behavior behavior. ACTUAL behavior,;which can be hard to observe for most people. Look at people with great distance and upclose, when those pictures are very different ask yourself why.

    And O above: ehm no point in manipulation?! If you dont get that you are bound to be used hard some day. lol. And it can be a game without harming other people to really.
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  21. Eyes can lie. The effect of people's actions on other people is an example of what I look at when judging people. Actions actions behavior behavior. ACTUAL behavior,;which can be hard to observe for most people. Look at people with great distance and upclose, when those pictures are very different ask yourself why.

    Okay good point. I observe actions too, but I can’t always tell if something is off by pure observation. There is too much information there. I wouldn’t be able to tell you what it was only that it was, that something doesn’t add up. I’ve tested it out, ignored the intuition now and then, and it’s always been dead on. People get played because they see what they want to see. The times that I have been fooled, I’ve fooled myself because I wanted what I wanted what I wanted and no amount of logic could divert me.

    But it’s still good to watch the eyes. Are they cold and fixed, deep mysterious pools, looking away, boring through you, or jumpy? Is what’s in them out of context? How does it make you feel? Is there something in them that flinches, ripples, or slithers away when you look back? And body language. Too close, too touchy, too far? Do they inhabit their body or live in their heads, carrying the rest around like some unfortunate luggage? And the voice. Playful, whiny, monotonous, or too smooth? Do the signals all add up or do some contradict?

    When you have to interact with someone at work and don’t have a choice, all of that lets you know more about who you are dealing with and how best to approach things.
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  22. Zoe

    "But it’s still good to watch the eyes. Are they cold and fixed, deep mysterious pools, looking away, boring through you, or jumpy? Is what’s in them out of context? How does it make you feel? Is there something in them that flinches, ripples, or slithers away when you look back"

    Ok what does each of those described eyes tell you?
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  23. okay, without any other context, from my own personal experience:

    1. cold and fixed, angry, dull, no life, boring through you, not really seeing you – predatory narcissist or predatory sociopath though I’m betting narcissist
    2. glassy, not cold, not looking right into you, no sparkle, looking inwards – probably narcissist
    3. deep pools, maybe a ripple now and then of something below the surface, leaping out at you, intense, warm or cool, like you could fall into, looking right into your soul, something watching you – could be sociopath or sociopathic type (eyes of people I’ve dated, known, and a friend who once convinced someone he was the devil (they deserved it))
    4. empty, abyss, swirling fog, pulling you in, like you’re standing on the edge of a cliff and about to fall - schizophrenic (the ones I’ve met)
    5. jumpy, flinches, something rippling or slithering – could be lying, hiding something or just nervous
    6. warm, calm, not leaping out at you or hiding, you feel relaxed, at ease – probably ok, someone to get to know further
    7. waves, glowing, excited, eager, begging, very alive, inviting – emotional types, could be okay or annoying

    But I agree with you Disney, ultimately it's the actions that give people away.
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