Introvert or extrovert?

Interesting.  My report came in as xNFP (my I and E were both extremes, and cancelled each other out).  It completely fazed the Myers Briggs interpreter who I had a consultation with after getting my results.  To me the extreme E and I scores were completely logical. 

Of course, this was done before I got my ADHD diagnosis; am still on the waiting list for my autism assessment.  Had the MB interpreter known I was neurodivergent it might have steered her understanding somewhat.

For those of you familiar with Myers-Briggs: I’ve done this several times in key points in my life and always xNTP off the the scale, but tge:  I and E always variable and fluid. 

Introvert until I drink enough alcohol to make social interaction bearable then I overshare and tell my entire life story.

Not to confuse autism with being introverted. They are two different things.

I actually don't know.

At times, very introverted, but at times in my life very extroverted (mostly when younger). I get a lot from social interactions, but I also shun them. It varies over time, and in intensity. I'm not sure I buy into the classification, though its the personality trait that has the most evidence. I'm just not sure it makes much sense for me personally.

I've always scored 100% introvert on MBTI and similar tests. I do willingly seek out company on some occasions, but regard interactions with others as a "nice to have" part of life, whereas adequate solitude is essential. If I go a full day without any solitude then by the end of it I am exhausted, drained, and very likely to have a meltdown. If I go 2-3 weeks without talking to another human I sometimes get a little bit bored.

I agree that introversion/extroversion is on a spectrum - although I'd clarify that I believe it to be a very moveable scale for some of us, given the circumstances at any one time.

For me, I'm naturally extrovert, though I suspect much of that is because of my ADHD.  Against that, I need a huge amount of downtime to recover and recharge, but am not good at recognising when I'm becoming over-stimulated, so get burnt out very quickly.  It is a constant balancing act trying to harness my ADHD extroversion which is on a constant quest for stimulation against my inner (autistic?) self that rails against this and is begging to retreat.

Totally relate to your 'spent years looking into psychology and self-help books to work out why I never seemed to fit in...' experience.  I'm only now starting to remove a lot of these books from my shelves, 30+ years on from investing in them.  Time and self-recognition / self-acceptance can be invaluable.

That's me to a T.  I used to get a lot of my energy from being around people - almost needed to bounce off them - but would tire suddenly from over-stimulation.  In the past I could cope with this, as I was able to spend most of my time on my own, and could rebalance.  But since having a child (almost 24 years ago!) I have found that increasingly difficult, as I just don't get recovery time (for context, lone parent with daughter only dx'd as autistic two years ago aged 21).

It's sometimes hard to know how much my feeling permanently drained is down to age (I'm 59), but I'm dx'd with ADHD (awaiting autism assessment) and used to rely on my huge energy reserves, and could recharge sufficiently enough in my 20s and early 30s.

Now I can get by on a single interaction with a till assistant in Sainsbury's; that'll last me a good few days.  

What makes it worse is that my ADHD-self still impulsively engages with others when I'm in company (eg at choir), but I can feel myself pulling backwards at the same time, from almost feeling that my energy is being physically drawn away from me, like a twisting liquid thread.  I've become a push-me-pull-you, except I don't feel like I'm the one doing the pushing

I can be running on high-octane fuel during engagements even when, and perhaps especially when, things are going badly in a formal setting. Instead of slowing down and trying to calmly dig my way out of the mire, I accelerate and dig myself deeper and deeper into it. At the end of such sessions I am running on empty and it can take several days to refuel. Combine that with the several days before such events as I engage in anxiety management, it can be quite an exhausting process. So much so that I sometimes wonder why I engage in this way - and the answer seems to be that I fear even more turning in on myself and doing nothing at all!

Perhaps you are selectively extrovert. there can be a possibility that you are most comfortable around a selected group of people, who share identical traits and personal values. According to psychology today, the introverts are defined as the people who prefer the inner life of the mind over the outer world of other people. So, naturally what you may consider to be inner life can vary significantly. The buzz that you get from connecting people is perhaps due to the fact that those people are relatable to you. Being introvert or extrovert is not binary in nature, instead it is a spectrum. As highlighted, by the articles in eduhelphub, the Big Five model can be used to identify the personality traits of an individual, where the extraversion-introversion spectrum suggests that you can be categorized within a spectrum from extreme extrovert or extreme introvert. So, just do what makes you feel happy and satisfied. You can be both an extrovert or an introvert, depending on you personality trait.  

Introverts are often seen as deficient or depressed - and vice versa - anything other than 'normal and social' is a problem

Life is a fluid and constantly changing.  Like another post said, it depends on the situation. Right now, I definitely don't feel "autistic" . Tomorrow morning when class starts I won't feel like an "introvert".

Yeah I agree with defects being hidden in some cultures, although being introverted isn't a defect (I'm sure you agree here!). I also feel there's a desire from some people to need a label to define who they are. Going back to being introverted in other cultures. ..I think what I'm trying to get at....some cultures place more emphasis on lived human experience rather than explaining through science. I feel it's possibly in these cultures,  being introverted isn't seen so much of a "difference" to the norm because they haven't categorised people in this way in the first place.  

In a lot of cultures, any defects are hidden to not bring shame upon the family - you're never going to get true figures from them.      The difference in the West is there's often cash available for being special - and that's an incentive to declare anything for the money - and it attracts fraudsters too.    There's also the whole industry built around servicing those people - and it's union-driven so bigger numbers = more political power.

My privately educated daughter was classed as underprivileged because we only have one TV and no i-pad and only one parent working.    It creates jobs-for-the-boys.

I was reading a report ,saying there are the same amount of people with autism in China  per pop as in the west ,I think that as a society's structures break down they  put more labels on difference . In china which has more stucture only more extreme differences are labelled .   Just a thought. 

That's an interesting point. Didn't occur to me that this need to categorise people might only be a western rather than a global thing. 

I have a really mixed thing about our need to categorise people. On one hand it irritates me that society needs everyone to be neatly labelled, and that people get nervous if the person then changes so that they no longer fit with their assigned label. On the other, I have spent years looking in to psychology and self help books to work out why I never seemed to fit in, why I couldn't think how everybody else seemed to, and find out if there was a label for me. 

I'd also like to add, we really do love putting people into neat little boxes don't we. I think again,that's the western world idea....to categorise in a scientific manner. Maybe in other parts of the world,  people are just seen for who they are.

Although humans are sociable animals. ..this weighing up of other people might be a constant through the history of humans and wherever they live in the world. I don't know Sorry I'm rambling now but I do find it interesting.

I can relate to many of the things that you've said - making someone else laugh makes me feel pleased, I guess. My sense of humour tends to be a bit different than most of the people who are around me and when someone else gets it, it does give me a nice feeling. The people watching is relatable too but I would say that on balance, I would much prefer to be on my own and get more out of introverted activities; I think that's what makes being out in public interesting: the fact that it happens only occasionally.

I think the distinction is really do you find interacting and proximity to others gives you more energy or less? As a general rule. I don’t understand people a lot of the time. I can sometimes be quite anxious about social situations. However having fun and interesting conversationS leaves me feeling full of beans. Make someone laugh can be a real thrill. Sometimes I go walking through shopIng centres just to be around people. To people watch. Makes me feel more ... like a person who lives not just a living person.

i enjoy introverted pass times too. But on balance I don’t find them as invigorating as extroverted ones. For example I’d rather go to a cinema than watch a boxset. Or a restaurant than get good meal delivered. Tbh I’d rather go to a library than read at home ... lol although that me be because the library is probably quieter than my home.