How To Stop Being So Sensitive In a Relationship
Most, if not all of us, have moments of being too sensitive in our relationships. We take things that someone says or does to us personally, even if they meant no harm by it.
Being in tune with your emotions and feelings about things in your relationship is fine. It’s when it gets to a point you react to every little thing a person does that it can be a problem.
You don’t have to be a prisoner to your initial reactions. It’s possible to help yourself see and do things differently and not be so hurt. Here are some tips to help you stop being too sensitive in your relationships.
1. Practice CBT
Cognitive-behavioral therapy is a good technique for questioning your thoughts and alleviating anxiety. There are specific thought patterns that can be counterproductive. Some of them include:
Taking time to understand your poor thought patterns can help you have a better interpretation of your reality. The more based on logic your thoughts can be, the less sensitive you can be to everything.
2. Meditate
Meditation can help train your mind to be calmer and less reactive. You can be more able to disconnect from your thoughts and emotions and observe them. According to the Mayo Clinic, some of the benefits of mediation include:
- Gaining a new perspective on stressful situations
- Increasing self-awareness
- Reducing negative emotions
Practice meditation to be more relaxed with the moments that happen in your life. You can also look into autogenic training as means of relaxation too.
3. Laugh more
Maybe we all tend to make everything serious sometimes. While there are moments where things do need to be taken seriously and addressed, sometimes you just need to laugh things off.
You can decide whether you want to let something deeply affect you, or you just want to move on quickly. I’d rather move on quickly to keeping my day good than let what someone says or does bother me all day.
So you can choose to laugh off whatever happened or find something funny to watch to help you move past the moment. Laughing can be one of your handy tools to minimize your level of sensitivity. It’s a technique I’ve used regularly whenever I’ve seen very harsh critical comments.
4. Directly communicate your concerns
If you directly address your concerns with your partner and they listen and change, then logically, there’s less for you to be sensitive about. But when we just let things pile up, pretty soon, we might begin to overreact to things.
Don’t let your concerns go unheard. Sit down and talk with your partner during a calm time, and respectfully communicate what you’re feeling sensitive to.
Ideally, your partner will try to listen and understand and will work to improve their behavior. You two could perhaps decide on some action steps to help limit the thing you’ve been consistently feeling sensitive about
5. Practice self-care
We may be in a heightened state of sensitivity in our relationship because we’re not taking care of ourselves properly. Maybe you haven’t been eating well lately or getting enough sleep.
It’s possible you may be underestimating how much other things are influencing your state of mind. Make sure you’re doing what you can to help yourself feel your best physically, mentally, and emotionally. Some tips that Mental Health America suggests include:
- Practicing good hygiene
- Spending time with loved ones
- Living well through proper eating, sleeping, and exercising
You have the power to use your thoughts and actions to limit your sensitivity to things. Take some steps today to start handling your emotions better.