((( NoChildSupport )))

Am I the only person around here who's beginning to think the word "insecurity" has become this mindless virtual cudgel that people whack each other over the head with? (and oh yes I've bought into the same social programming garbage, I finally realized).

It is N O R M A L to seek and enjoy comfort and affection when we are feeling like used gum on the bottom of a shoe. (It's nice to get it, but of course there's no guarantee it will be forthcoming). That's true of everyone if they have ANY average social feelings, it just varies by degree. When we feel vulnerable, is it WE who are somehow "wrong", or is it other people around us who actually have the relative empathic capabilities of a great white shark during feeding time?

I'm absolutely not saying that desperately looking for reassuring hugs and absolute validation in an overtly emotional way is a good thing either, because this can set other people off and leave a person dangling from whatever invisible "strings attached" anyone else wishes to apply. So give yourself a break - you're human, you have valid emotional needs (regardless of any diagnostic labels you may have), just don't leave yourself open for being used or attacked.

As for people who genuinely don't "get it" - it's no crime to realize they may be simply ignorant. They aren't stupid, they aren't bad, they just seriously don't know. That being said, why give them the capacity to make you feel worse? If their reactions are genuinely toxic to you, admit that and remove yourself from their presence.