Extroverts

Hello everyone and welcome back to Deeper Waters where we are diving into the ocean of truth. Lately, I’ve been going through the experience of being an Aspie in honor of Autism Awareness Month. I have received feedback that this is being helpful to some and I am indeed trying to be as transparent as I possibly can. While most of what I’ve dealt with has been directly about us and our relation to the world, I am going to write tonight about an external response to us.

When I go to a new place, someone who is an extrovert can scare me. At a job I had at a grocery store, there was someone who immediately came up to me upon finding out about my joining and wanting to greet me and shake my hand and find out everything that they could about me.

It’s the kind of thing that makes us want to run screaming.

Of course, people can’t know this about us in advance which can be a disadvantage and I do realize some people are this way naturally. However, while we all must practice self-control about some personality traits, I urge you that if you are outgoing and very talkative that you do your best to avoid this behavior when seeking to minister to an aspie.

It is ironic what happens in these situations and the same can happen in marriages with a wife who is talkative and a husband who is more quiet and analytical. (Our marriage is not like that. We’re both introverts.) In fact, this could be a good tip for those who are in marriages like that. (Note I’m not saying that extroverts and introverts shouldn’t marry. By all means do so. Just like any marriage, be aware of difficulties. Two people can’t live together without them)

Here’s what happens. The wife wants to have a good talk with her husband about just anything. The husband doesn’t really want that at the time. He’s not comfortable with it. The wife will start talking and talking and the husband will get nervous not wanting to talk as that’s not his personality. This makes him be more quiet. Unfortunately, the wife when she gets nervous talks more. As a result, she talks more and he talks less. Of course, this could be reversed in most any case as there can be talkative husbands and quiet wives.

This is the way it is with us as well. If you come out being really exuberant and excited, we will just wonder what to make of you and in fact, not trust you. Picture it the way you picture a salesman who really wants to talk to you a lot. “What’s the pitch?” Does that mean we really think there is a dark ulterior motive behind your wanting to talk to us? No. It just means that we can’t understand that kind of behavior and it makes us nervous.

Remember, slow and steady wins the race. To reach your friend on the spectrum, you will have to move slowly. That person is worth it however.