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while highly sensitive men he
interviewed from North America were frequently or always
teased. “So a lot of it is very cultural — the same person who is
told, ‘Oh, you’re too sensitive,’ in
certain cultures, it’s considered
an asset,” he says.
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4. They prefer to exercise solo. Highly
sensitive people may tend to
avoid team sports, where there’s
a sense that everyone is watching
their every move, Zeff says. In his
research, the majority of highly
sensitive people he interviewed
preferred individual sports, like
bicycling, running and hiking,
to group sports. However, this
is not a blanket rule — there are
some highly sensitive people who
may have had parents who provided an understanding and supportive environment that would
make it easier for them to participate in group sports, Zeff says.
5. It takes longer for them to make decisions. Highly sensitive people
are more aware of subtleties and
details that could make decisions
harder to make, Aron says. Even if
there is no “right” or “wrong” decision — for example, it’s impossible
to choose a “wrong” flavor of ice
cream — highly sensitive people
will still tend to take longer to
choose because they are weighing
every possible outcome. One exception: Once a highly sensitive person
has come to the conclusion of what
is the right decision to make and
what is the wrong decision to make
in a certain situation, he or she will
be quick to make that “right” decision again in the future.
6. And on that note, they are more upset if they make a “bad” or “wrong”
decision. You know that uncomfortable feeling you get after you
realize you’ve made a bad decision? For highly sensitive people,
“that emotion is amplified be-
HUFFINGTON
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