I feel the emotions of others quite strongly but not my own, is this an ADHD/RSD thing?
For my whole life, but especially as I (18) have entered my teen years, I feel hyper aware of others emotions and often highly empathetic toward them. It's to a point that I let people treat me badly because I can understand how they feel about me and why it makes sense to them and therefore feels right for them if that makes sense. I also struggle to watch TV shows and movies when something bad happens to a character (specifically animals for some reason) like I literally have to turn it off or skip it.
On the other hand, I don't really feel many emotions (especially negative) about my own life. No matter what happens I kind of have a "oh well" mindset because I know I can't change it. Got sick and missed prom? Not like I could have done anything to change it so why worry? I've been going through a rough period of my life recently and people keep asking me how I'm feeling or coping and I'm honestly just fine. I guess I just feel like nothing ever bothers me no matter how big or small. Sometimes I get worried that I wouldn't care if someone I loved died, even though that's not true (I hope).
Do you guys experience this at all?
Posted Jun 23, 2025, 4:18 AM UTC