It is not always about what was actually said Someone close to you says something ordinary. “You forgot to do the dishes.” Or they send a short text back. Or they go quiet after dinner. And something in you shifts, fast and hard, and the feeling that follows does not match what just happened. If [...]

Does any of this feel familiar? You re-read the email three times before you send it, checking every word for anything that might be taken the wrong way. You over-prepare for a meeting so thoroughly that there is nothing anyone could possibly pick at. A colleague makes an offhand comment at the end of the [...]

Someone makes an offhand comment. It was nothing. They have already forgotten they said it. But you have not. It is replaying in your head on a loop. Your chest tightens. Your face burns. You feel like you have been punched. Welcome to Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria. When you understand what is happening, the spiral gets [...]