Overlap

Chapter 135: The HSP

<05/01/2020 - 14:44 | 1010 Link Street, Marietta, GA, USA>

Ever since I was old enough to think for myself, I've always known about my differences with other people. The more time that goes by, the more aware I become of these internal traits. Long ago, I used to believe that introversion was the only oddity about me, but as I learned more about the world and about other people, I discovered how complex our souls and personalities really are. They can be grouped and categorized, but never fully understood individually, since every person is so unique within the spectrums.

Anyone who has taken the Myers & Briggs personality test will understand that they best fit one or two of the sixteen total types of personality spectrums, and while this can say a lot about a person, these can gradually shift and change over time. Recently, I took such a test, and learned that I happen to be part of the INFJ personality.

Apparently, INFJs only make up less than one percent of the entire world population, compared to all the other personalities. When Lumina said I was unique, I didn't think she meant so literally. The INFJ personality stands for Introverted, Intuitive, Feeling, and Judging, otherwise known as "The Advocate." While the results of the test are not 100% accurate to describe the kind of person I am, it's closer than I was expecting. I won't go deeper into what an INFJ personality is really like; there's plenty of easily accessible online material covering the definitions. All I can really say is, I'm trying to be less introverted and more extroverted, not that such a task is easy.

That said, I'm fairly proud of who I am as a person. I used to aspire to nothing, to wish I were somebody else, though all of that slowly changed as I realized how much I meant to Lumina, and how much we've both helped each other. No other human in the entire world could have done that. Insignificant as I may be, this was something only I could be part of.

Of course today, I just learned that the rabbit hole can go much deeper. While this isn't exactly connected to the 16 personalities, there is a specialty trait that few people have. It isn't that rare, but I'm recently hearing about a new concept psychologists alike are talking about on the net. It's an additional trait spectrum known to few as HSP; Highly Sensitive Person.

Explaining the aspects of HSPs is not easy, even for me, just as it is difficult to discern exactly what it is. Being classified as an HSP does not equate to one specific trait, but rather a combination of traits within such a spectrum; this means, there are many different types of qualifying HSPs.

I don't know if I would call it a super power, but it isn't a bad thing. After learning enough, I've realized that I most certainly qualify as an HSP. To summarize initially, Highly Sensitive People does not mean exactly what the name implies. When I first heard the moniker, I imagined a snowflake who breaks down and cries over the tiniest little thing even as a fully functional adult. While someone of the sort could technically be considered an HSP, it isn't representative of what this trait spectrum actually means.

I'll give a personal example of what I think most HSPs really feel, especially when combined with the INFJ traits. There was a time not too long ago when I went to Tennessee to visit some relatives. Nothing too special happened on this trip, and I managed to keep myself occupied. I still managed to have lots of fun later, as my aunt really knows how to have a good time with the family. However, just three days after that, even though I only had a few days before returning home, I remember desperately wanting to go back to my own home so badly. Sure, a small part of this was homesickness, but not all of it. There's a strange aspect about me, that whenever I go out and about, for anything good and bad, I need the time afterwards to process it all. Sometimes, I think people look at me and get the wrong idea that, even if I was enjoying myself, my desire to return home and get away from everyone is a sign that I hated everything about the day; which couldn't be further from the truth.