{"id":2875,"date":"2014-10-11T14:24:29","date_gmt":"2014-10-11T14:24:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jenniferswhite.com\/?p=2875"},"modified":"2014-10-11T14:24:29","modified_gmt":"2014-10-11T14:24:29","slug":"how-to-care-for-a-reclusive-extrovert","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jenniferswhite.com\/how-to-care-for-a-reclusive-extrovert\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Care for a Reclusive Extrovert."},"content":{"rendered":"

\"8643854292_b417a3facc_o\"<\/a><\/h3>\n

I smile and laugh and playfully enjoy the company of others.<\/h3>\n

I cringe at some of the things that just pop out of my mouth when I\u2019m too at ease in conversation. I buckle under lonely, heartbroken legs when I feel isolated and not cared for by friends.<\/p>\n

I shine and come alive <\/a>in the presence of people who matter in my life.<\/p>\n

Yet when I\u2019m sick and not feeling like my sunshiny self, I pull back\u2014I crawl back into my active imagination and, like a sensitive child on a rain-drenched day, I curl up inside of my lonesomeness rather than seeking playmates.<\/p>\n

So what should we do when those we love don\u2019t return phone calls or texts?<\/p>\n

What should we do when we want to give someone we care for space while still making them feel loved and supported?<\/p>\n

We do this:<\/em><\/p>\n

1. Call me and text me, but don\u2019t take it personally if you don\u2019t hear back quickly.<\/p>\n

2. Make sure to tell me that you adore my company, even when I\u2019m gloomy.<\/p>\n

3. Understand that, though extroverted<\/a>, I\u2019m a whole person and I am okay on my own, just like someone who is deeply introverted. While I might garner energy from spending time with others, I too enjoy and need my alone time in order to be a healthy individual.<\/p>\n

4. Ask me what I need. Don\u2019t assume that I want to be left alone. Don\u2019t assume that I want to be bothered either. I\u2019m human and my needs vary, so don\u2019t be afraid to ask me what exactly it is that I need from you.<\/p>\n

5. Understand that simple interactions are meaningful. That hug you gave me; the smile from your eyes to mine; the text that succinctly said \u201cI love you\u201d\u2014all of these made me feel supported and loved when I also felt under the weather.<\/p>\n

6. Don\u2019t hold back.<\/a> You\u2019re in my life as a friend or partner because I\u2019ve chosen you to be there; I\u2019ve trusted your judgment as a person and I respect and value the way that you decide to react in situations. In other words, follow your own instinct in our relationship too.<\/p>\n

And as the days go by and I return to my more typically joyful self, I\u2019ll remember who it was that held my heart up high for me when I wasn\u2019t up to it\u2014and I\u2019ll thank you with love in return when these tables are reversed.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Photo: Flickr\/Plum leaves<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I smile and laugh and playfully enjoy the company of others. I cringe at some of the things that just pop out of my mouth when I\u2019m too at ease in conversation. I buckle...<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2876,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[2,367],"tags":[282,194,96,283,76,555,556],"class_list":["post-2875","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-how-to-love-be-loved","category-self-discovery","tag-extrovert","tag-family","tag-friends","tag-introvert","tag-love","tag-reclusive","tag-sick"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/jenniferswhite.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/8643854292_b417a3facc_o.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4dYEp-Kn","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jenniferswhite.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2875"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jenniferswhite.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jenniferswhite.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jenniferswhite.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jenniferswhite.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2875"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/jenniferswhite.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2875\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2878,"href":"https:\/\/jenniferswhite.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2875\/revisions\/2878"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jenniferswhite.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2876"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jenniferswhite.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2875"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jenniferswhite.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2875"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jenniferswhite.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2875"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}