I read the blog post Do You Ever Feel the Need to Be Alone? where the author writes, among other things:
It’s not that I don’t enjoy socializing, but I feel like I have a battery that runs out. And when it does, I need time alone, sometimes even sleeping all day, just to recharge.
It wraps up with the question: Do you ever feel this way too? Or is it just me?
Yes, I do. It’s not just you. I recognize myself exactly in what the blogger describes and have chosen to call it a “social hangover”.
Although I’ve improved at explaining this to others, it still seems like people don’t quite get it. It’s often met with a response like:
“I understand exactly. I can feel that way too, wanting to just be home alone after work sometimes and watch a movie.”
But what I mean, and what I think the blogger agrees with, is something completely different. It’s another level. It’s about feeling socially exhausted in a way similar to physical exhaustion after an intense workout, and the need to truly recover and regain strength.
It might sound like stress or depression, which can manifest similarly, but that’s not what a social hangover is to me. It’s about excessive impressions, at least that’s my theory. It’s about absorbing and processing so much that the body’s “hard drive” overheats — a mental mud and a need to be still and let it settle.
I also think that the same factors are the reason why I’m often interrupted when I talk. I don’t have time to absorb everything, process it, and then answer at the expected pace. It would be interesting to hear if the mentioned blogger experiences the same thing.
To manage these social hangovers, I’ve found that allowing myself periods of solitude is essential, focusing on quiet activities like reading or writing. That’s why I love to write; it provides the time and space I need for reflection.