I think a lot of people are upset by this but speaking from a place of honesty I feel understood by this take. I& #39;m sure it& #39;s not the same for all people with trauma but I find my likeability feels often like a kind of masking, and regulating my reaction to rejection sucks https://twitter.com/myeshxa/status/1386386725698682881">https://twitter.com/myeshxa/s...

"I& #39;m" very likeable because crafting a charming persona is a defense mechanism stemming from some shit. Whenever that mask starts to slip I feel like people think I& #39;m too much— because I often am! And it makes me feel like a manipulative person to mask like this so constantly

I understand that this is not the case for all people, but I also feel like as a traumatized person I& #39;m often seeking communities and relationships I hope to behave authentically in but often find I am just not able to be fully safe or myself

And that& #39;s not always down to anything other than me and the pain and fear I& #39;m still carrying around. I often feel frustrated that it feels like I can& #39;t just say "I& #39;m afraid people won& #39;t like the real me because the real me has been scared and upset for like thirty years now."

I don& #39;t know that the mask isn& #39;t also me, though, isn& #39;t the part of me that I like and want to aspire to be for the people around me. I do often feel like people like a version of me that I& #39;m not always embodying, like I& #39;m split into many pieces and layers

It& #39;s hard to explain and I don& #39;t think it& #39;s true for everyone, but idk, it& #39;s a feeling I go through