Are you a Hermit?

[Billy Batts]

I'm a hermit when it rains, when I'm depressed, when I have projects due or when I'm hiding from someone.

It's good though sometimes, stirs the creative juices.

 

[petite]

Do you classify youself as a hermit? Compared to how social I used to be, I would say that I am.
Do others classify you as a hermit? I don't think other people would consider me a hermit. I go out when I'm invited out, but that isn't very often. I just don't know very many people here.

What are your habits? I decline to answer the question.
What do you think caused you to become a hermit? I moved away from my friends and family and I know almost no one here. We don't live in the same environment I am used to living in. I lived downtown where there were many places to socialize near my apartment within walking distance, so I knew my neighbors. Now we live in the suburbs and everyone must drive to go anyplace to socialize, so no one knows their neighbors at all. We wave at each other when we fetch the mail or if I'm walking the dog, but I don't know what most of their names are and I know absolutely nothing about them. When I lived in the city, there were neighborhood coffeeshops and bars and just walking down the sidewalk I would run into people that I knew and friends from the neighborhood coffeeshops and bars that I have had beers with, or watched the Daily Show with every night at the bar down the street, or played scrabble or chess with, or or talked to about books and ideas sitting outside a cafe. I miss living like that. I hate the suburbs. How do you make friends in the suburbs?

I'm not a hermit, I'm a "homebody".

I like this better! :biggrin1:

 

[zp28]

Following a definition of a hermit as a person who has withdrawn from society and lives a solitary existence; a recluse...I would say no, I am not a hermit because I have a job and interact with society pretty intensely through work.

However, the older I get the more isolating I am becoming in my non-work life. I don't necessarily seek out solitude...but social options do become more limited as you grow older and peers get married and have families. I also have a diminishing tolerance for "bullshit", be that defined as people that take and never give back, or people who use others, or people who are not what they seem, or people who are generally negative and waste my time and energy. I think most of the time I would rather stay at home alone than spend time with people I really don't like being around.

On the other hand, I do have bouts of loneliness...which is cool because it is an indication to me that I'm not totally an anti-social hermit. In a perfect world I would have a great friend who lives two doors down who walks in my house at whim and we grab a pizza or watch a movie. That how the sit-coms work...but that situation does not exist for me. :wink:

That's pretty much how I feel!

 

[tttcarr]

I haven't left my house in two years, so yes.

 

[Enid]

I haven't left my house in two years, so yes.

My ex was similar to you, his longest period was 6 months though so not quite as long. His agoraphobia stemmed from other neurological issues and thankfully he eventually found help through medication and therapy. Do you think that's something which would interest you, or have you tried? Apologies for intrusiveness, you can answer either way.

I have strong unsocial tendencies myself and little tolerance for folks I don't like, so I tend to stick with a handful of trusted people in more intimate social settings (less crowds, I dislike crowds) or solitude.

 

[tttcarr]

My ex was similar to you, his longest period was 6 months though so not quite as long. His agoraphobia stemmed from other neurological issues and thankfully he eventually found help through medication and therapy. Do you think that's something which would interest you, or have you tried? Apologies for intrusiveness, you can answer either way.

I have strong unsocial tendencies myself and little tolerance for folks I don't like, so I tend to stick with a handful of trusted people in more intimate social settings (less crowds, I dislike crowds) or solitude.

I am interested in therapy, but the situation is almost comical.
I can't leave my house without the help of therapy, but I need to leave my house to get the therapy. It's a strange situation.

 

[petite]

I am interested in therapy, but the situation is almost comical.
I can't leave my house without the help of therapy, but I need to leave my house to get the therapy. It's a strange situation.

Someone told me about an online service whereby you can talk to licensed therapists for less than it would cost to see a therapist in person and you have the option of talking via email or chat room or probably by cam if you wanted. It sounded ideal for people who are very busy or who feel unsure about talking to a therapist in the traditional way or who were concerned about the cost of therapy.

I can't remember the service I was told about, but it appears that there are a lot of them.

therapy online - Google Search

 

[Bbucko]

I isolate for several reasons.

First off, I'm an incredibly slow riser. Even when I was much more outgoing (read: younger), I required a minimum of two hours between the time I rolled out of bed and the time I felt confident about actually doing anything constructive or interacting in a positive way with others. Health issues can now stretch that time out to encompass an entire afternoon. I work nights, so I'm never up before 1:00 and am incapable of setting any kind of appointment before 3:00. preferably later.

Second, I live with chronic pain due to cervical disc disease (arthritis in the neck). It takes a great deal of energy and focus (along with Ibuprofen) for me to overcome this and be the happy-go-lucky bon vivant people expect. When I cannot overcome the pain, I can get extremely cranky and prefer to withdraw.

Third, I've always made myself excellent company and deeply appreciate solitary activities like reading. Writing is, by its nature, an intensely solitary activity and I write a great deal.

Fourth, I work in an intensely social situation (a gay bar) five or six nights per week, so I get all my socializing down there. If it weren't for my job I'd be a complete hermit.

 

[Rikter8]

I have strong unsocial tendencies myself and little tolerance for folks I don't like, so I tend to stick with a handful of trusted people in more intimate social settings (less crowds, I dislike crowds) or solitude.

X2
I do too. I can't believe nobody scooped you up yet. You are a beautiful woman.

 

[fratpack]

On a very serious note, yes, I have become a hermit. The events of the past two years in my life have caused me to withdraw more and more from the world at large.
I work part time and each morning I leave the apartment and go to work and then return as soon as the day is over. I seldomly go out any more. Mostly friends will come over but I stay. My partner is incredibly understanding and it is nice to know he is there and at least tries to understand. I try to get my footing back into the world but it is hard. Thanks for listening.

 

[B_Hung Jon]

I would LIKE to be a hermit more but where I live (right on the beach) and my life style precludes it. There's a part of me that would love to dump everything and go up into the mountains, build a small cabin and hang out without internet access for at least a year. But it's just a dream. Maybe at some point I'll be able to experience that sort of life, but for now I'm immersed in SoCo life and don't have a lot of free time to just veg out.

 

[B_Yeah69]

Following a definition of a hermit as a person who has withdrawn from society and lives a solitary existence; a recluse...I would say no, I am not a hermit because I have a job and interact with society pretty intensely through work.

However, the older I get the more isolating I am becoming in my non-work life. I don't necessarily seek out solitude...but social options do become more limited as you grow older and peers get married and have families. I also have a diminishing tolerance for "bullshit", be that defined as people that take and never give back, or people who use others, or people who are not what they seem, or people who are generally negative and waste my time and energy. I think most of the time I would rather stay at home alone than spend time with people I really don't like being around.

On the other hand, I do have bouts of loneliness...which is cool because it is an indication to me that I'm not totally an anti-social hermit. In a perfect world I would have a great friend who lives two doors down who walks in my house at whim and we grab a pizza or watch a movie. That how the sit-coms work...but that situation does not exist for me. :wink:

This guy is smart



For me, could be. Loud partying and clubbing is bull after a while...things change when you hit the big 30!
BTW a Hermit is someone who basically lives in caves and has withdrawn from society to such extremes he has no job e.t.c. and lives off the land in the wilderness. Think extreme.

 

[LaFemme]

I could be. I really have to make myself be social and I actually work to maintain contact with friends. Everyone thinks I'm really outgoing, but I actually am quite happy with my own company. TV, the internet, books and my cats - I'm happy. Not really a hermit, but as someone said earlier - a homebody.

 

[surferboy]

i'm not a hermit. i'm just carless