im not sure where else to post this. it’s a bit of a vent, but I’m not gonna take too long

I’ve been on mastodon for 7-8 years now. mastodon has been pretty cool because unlike other social media, it allowed me to form closer ties to the people there. but this also made me realize how hurtful I can be to people who care about me

making a long story short: mastodon gave me a sense of security about expressing myself, so I went all out. just said whatever came to mind, responded to people honestly, etc. most of the time I always try not to insult anyone, especially when replying to people I care about. one friend made me realize I was being too combative for no reason sometimes and then I decided to take things easier

still, that didn’t prevent me from hurting people I care about, which led me to be blocked by people I interacted a lot and who I considered to be friends a few times. one of those times, I was soft-blocked and saw the guy subtoot about me, so I knew what it was about and had the chance to reach out and apologize. he accepted my apologies, but said I sometimes come across as needlessly aggressive, which, according to him, contradicts what people who know me personally say about me. the other times I wasn’t so lucky, so I just got blocked and have no idea why

all this reminds me of my childhood, when people constantly told me I’m annoying and that I should be quiet, which probably rendered me into a very quiet and shy teenager. I remember taking the piss out of people and enjoying it, so maybe people are right

not sure what to think of it. in the flesh world, people around me say I’m one of the nicest people they know, that I’m very caring and kind. some people say that about me on mastodon too, but I wonder if it’s all just a mask and the true me is the annoying kid I suppressed early in my life.

  • ashinadash [she/her]@hexbear.net
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    2 days ago

    mastodon gave me a sense of security about expressing myself, so I went all out. just said whatever came to mind, responded to people honestly, etc. most of the time I always try not to insult anyone, especially when replying to people I care about. one friend made me realize I was being too combative for no reason sometimes

    Aaaah when did I write this post? Except I just did all of this here in the span of a year, lmao. There’s somethin fucked up about talking online I swear.

    I learned a longasd while ago that there’s still a difference between “not masking, cool and good” and “just being an asshole”, like there are things I should not say because genuinely it would be a shit thing to say, even if I am always trying not to be an asshole. No goofy social norms involved.

    I blame neurotypicals for fudging the distinction as the reason why I learned this shit so late.

      • prole [any, any]@hexbear.net
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        3 days ago

        Absolutely. I didn’t realize how bad it was until I had some content get out of my niche and got thousands of comments on a video. People are incredibly confident in their own opinions and refuse to investigate or think twice about anything. They’ll make the same comment as hundreds of other people, asking the same question that’s already answered in the description. I don’t know how they do it, but people legitimately say whatever comes to mind and then never ever think about it again

      • Blockocheese [any]@hexbear.net
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        3 days ago

        Entitlement and a victim complex mostly, which goes hand in hand.

        For most of those people, they think things just happen to them unfairly, and without any input on their part

    • beleza puraOP
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      3 days ago

      I’m not sure I understand exactly what you mean, but my post isn’t me saying “oh shit, I’m an inconsiderate asshole”. it’s more like “oh shit, even though I try to be kind to people I somehow end up hurting them in ways I don’t understand whenever I feel comfortable with myself”

  • WafflesTasteGood [he/him]@hexbear.net
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    3 days ago

    Just wanted to say you’re definitely not alone in this. Straddling the line between “not communicating” and “asshole” is one of the few major hurdles I’ve had in my otherwise stable relationship with my wife.

    I don’t have a whole lot of advice necessarily, just that it the struggle is real, do your best, and cherish the people that are understanding and patient with you.

    • beleza puraOP
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      3 days ago

      thanks for the message

      wife told me i might be blowing things out of proportion and that some people on there, regardless of how much they shit talk mainstream social media, are still too influenced by the way twitter normalizes conflict all the time without any room for conciliation. maybe she’s right

      i’m feeling a lot better about this than i used to. i’m at a point where i don’t care about bothering people I don’t care about, it’s just when it affects people i like that it really makes me feel bad

      thank you again and good luck. the struggle is hard, but it gets better, i feel

  • Lemister [none/use name]@hexbear.net
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    3 days ago

    My realization with my social issues came when it dawned on me I might have autism. In fact it actually helped me being a less inconsiderate person (not that I wasn’t before. A lot of times I accidently insulted a person on a very deep ego level)

  • I basically got told I was an insufferable prick by my dad in my mid 20’s before it dawned on me that I was being pretty uncool. But there’s two ways that people go when confronted with this - they change or they don’t. I changed and people like me now. If your response to this feedback is “oh crap, am I a jerk?”, you’re one of the people that will change for the better. 😊

  • mbt2402 [none/use name]@hexbear.net
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    3 days ago

    in my view the idea of “the true me” smells a lot like woodstock era burger individualism. one’s identity is something which is socially determined and not essential. There isn’t a formula for eudaimonia. both striving for virtue and for authenticity can become toxic. i suggest you trust the people you hold close.

    • beleza puraOP
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      3 days ago

      it’s less a question of “who is the true me” and more of “who i really want to be”. it’s a struggle especially because, after years of having my autonomy questioned, it’s hard to trust my own judgement on things

      but “trust the people you hold close” makes perfect sense. thank you