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Uwu_Oocoo2

Let's all just pretend I no longer exist
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Here's a random question for you guys that I've been asking people (typically with the same response, interestingly enough)

If you were cursed so that for the next week you could only speak the truth, and you must answer any question you are asked, do you think you'd go about your week and hope nothing bad happens or hide out in your room until it's over?
 

TheGreatCthulhu

The Eyes of the Nile are opening.... You'll see.
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Very much a dude.
Here's a random question for you guys that I've been asking people (typically with the same response, interestingly enough)

If you were cursed so that for the next week you could only speak the truth, and you must answer any question you are asked, do you think you'd go about your week and hope nothing bad happens or hide out in your room until it's over?
Oof, be prepared for an answer, lol.

Yeah, for me, that's just a result of me being autistic.

Because of it, I have a compulsive need to tell the truth, and to make sure facts are clearly understood and correct. As I say, I don't argue to argue, I argue so that facts are correct.

Let me tell you, it leads to a lot of misunderstandings and social consequences.

Add into that alexithymia, which is having difficulty intuitively identifying your emotions and the emotions of others, you are constantly bewildered why people get upset with you even when you state things matter-of-factly.

More specifically, people are quite vague when they communicate. Like, for some, apparently "wash the dishes" means "wipe off the counters and clean the sink."

And here I am thinking, "If you wanted the kitchen cleaned, you should have just said that."

But that phrase is something people don't much like. People, in my experience, don't want honesty, they don't want true individuality, and that manifests in different ways.

First, they don't communicate directly, so you have to guess what they mean. There's a reason I practiced scripting as part of masking for so long.

Second, when they say "honesty" they really mean "things I believe or agree with." Not what the truth is. Especially common amongst those that are deeply religious or deeply ingrained in politics.

Third, common social cues you're expected to just know. For example, if I answer the question, "Hi, how are you?" honestly, as if it's a genuine question, people don't actually want that, they expect to hear "I'm good thanks, how are you?"

Fourth, this impacts relationships and romance. A lot of the "dating advice" I see will only work if you or your partner is neurotypical. "He should just know," or, "If he wanted to, he would," or anything in that vein completely will get lost on someone that struggles with social cues like I do.

Fifth, even when people are trying to be understanding, and they know you're working on it, they get annoyed that the change doesn't happen fast enough. I masked for close to 31 years (yeah, I learned to mask at 3 or 4 years old), and in order for my mental health to improve, I have to remove the mask, then learn new ways of approaching an issue without masking. That's going to take time, as demasking is, itself, a process, and especially if it's this ingrained into who I am.

Sixth, mention you are autistic, and people either ignore your disability, or they infantilize you, so you get two different kinds of ableism.

My whole life has been, "Be honest! But not like that," or, "Be unique and different! But not like that!"

So in regards to the question, hardly anything would change for me. That's my normal.
 
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OGSniper

Sharpshooter for Hire
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Here's a random question for you guys that I've been asking people (typically with the same response, interestingly enough)

If you were cursed so that for the next week you could only speak the truth, and you must answer any question you are asked, do you think you'd go about your week and hope nothing bad happens or hide out in your room until it's over?
Definitely goin' to go about my week. I have nothing to fear.
 

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