Why Do I Take Things Personally, And Is It Necessarily A Bad Thing?

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Conversations May Go Wrong

Are you grappling with the question ‘Why do I take things personally’ in life?

Conversations between people are almost always healthy.

They resolve conflicts, make people understand each other, and deepen human bonds and relationships.

But they don’t always go as expected.

Sometimes, they lead to misunderstandings, disagreements, and even quarrels.

A big possible reason behind these conversation issues is the habit of taking things personally.

When you take things to heart while in a conversation, it jeopardizes your rapport with the person you are talking to.

Also, it gives you mental pain & suffering.

And when you become normal, you wonder if something is wrong with you.

If you are that person, you must be looking for the possible reasons behind your habit of taking things personally.

We will give you an exhaustive list of the possible reasons that would help you find your reason for taking things to heart.

But one thing should be very clear in your mind.

You should not assume that it’s you who is at fault for taking things personally during a conversation.

There is a possibility that the people whom you talk to may also be at fault.

Thus, keep an open mind before trying to judge yourself so that you can be fair with yourself.

Let’s find out the possible answers to your question ‘Why do I take things personally’.

Why Do I Take Things Personally?

why do I take things personally

So, what are the possible reasons for taking things personally?

You Have Anxiety

The first possible answer to ‘Why do I take things personally’ is your anxiety.

Anxiety may be general or specific.

You may be anxious generally in your life or you may get anxious while talking to somebody due to a variety of reasons.

When you are anxious, you become vulnerable in many respects.

Taking things personally may be a sign of your mental vulnerability due to your anxiety.

It’s like you are looking for things that can be taken personally.

But it’s not your fault, it’s your anxiety that makes you do it.

Thus, your anxiety may be an answer to your question ‘Why do I take things personally’.

You Are A Loner

why do I take things personally

The second possible answer to ‘Why do I take things personally’ is you being a loner.

A loner likes to stay in his own company.

He or she enjoys staying away from people and they rejoice in their personal space.

And when they come in contact with people and they have to converse with them, they get bored or annoyed.

So, to go back to being in their own company, they develop a natural “defense” mechanism within themselves to take things personally.

Doing this allows them to find a reason to drop out of the conversations they become a part of.

It allows them to go back to enjoying their me-time.

Thus, your being a loner may be an answer to your question ‘Why do I take things personally’.

You Are An Introvert

The next possible answer to ‘Why do I take things personally’ is your introverted nature.

Introverts do not like to share their personal information or let people know their thoughts or feelings.

But when people accidentally or on purpose get to know something about them, introverts don’t like it.

They feel their personal space to be hacked or violated.

Introverts are too secretive and over-protective about their personal space and life and when it gets breached, they take things personally.

Thus, your introverted nature may be an answer to your question ‘Why do I take things personally’.

You Are Too Emotional

The next possible answer to ‘Why do I take things personally’ is that as a person you are too emotional or sensitive.

A sensitive person gives quick and heavy reactions to the things he or she doesn’t like or expect to happen.

Things that are quite normal for other people may be things that are very “charged” for a sensitive person.

It’s just that the personal space for a sensitive person in their minds is larger than what it is for other people.

So, the possibility of taking things to heart is a lot higher for a sensitive or emotional person.

Sensitive and emotional people also expect a lot from the people around them which is why they take things personally when things go wrong.

Thus, your being too emotional may be an answer to your question ‘Why do I take things personally’.

You Have An Uncleared Past Trauma

why do I take things personally

The next possible answer to ‘Why do I take things personally’ is that you have an unresolved past trauma.

When you have a past trauma that you still haven’t let go of, it may make you take things very personally.

Any kind of trauma makes you mentally fragile.

It instills within you a constant sense of fear and concern for your safety.

So, taking things personally is like a “protective shield” you build around yourself to stay unharmed.

For you, this protective shield keeps you safe from any kind of trauma that may be inflicted upon you by someone.

Also, for a person with some past trauma, taking things personally becomes a natural reaction in every situation.

And when someone talks about anything close to that trauma or wants to know about it, the person takes it too personally.

Any person with a past traumatic experience holds onto it very tightly.

He or she neither wants to let it go nor do they want to talk about it.

This painful state makes them habitual of taking everything personally in their lives.

Thus, your unresolved past trauma may be an answer to your question ‘Why do I take things personally’.

You Are Unhappy With Your Life

The next possible answer to ‘Why do I take things personally’ is that you are unhappy or dissatisfied with your life.

Everything that we do is a smaller reflection of our lives.

If we are not happy or satisfied with our lives, we always remain sad and uninviting.

We do not like to talk to anybody or engage with anyone in any way.

And when we have to do it for some pressing reason, we tend to take everything personally while dealing with other people.

Every question and every word of people seems to be sarcasm on our failures or painful memories.

It’s nobody’s fault.

It’s just that sometimes the difficult circumstances we find ourselves in life make us take everything personally.

Thus, your unhappiness with your life may be an answer to your question ‘Why do I take things personally’.

You Cannot Bear The Truth

The next possible answer to ‘Why do I take things personally’ is that you are not in a position to bear some of the bitter truths of your life.

Truth can be bitter sometimes.

Even thinking about it may give you chills.

And when someone throws it into your face, there is nothing less you can do than take it personally.

You expect a lot more from your friends and family in difficult times.

You do not expect them to say things that give you pain and mental torture.

You just want time to heal your wounds.

But you don’t have control over what people say.

And when they do, it’s obvious for you to take things personally. 

Thus, your inability to bear the truth may be an answer to your question ‘Why do I take things personally’.

You Have Low Self-Confidence

self love

The next possible answer to ‘Why do I take things personally’ is your low self-confidence.

Confidence is like a magic pill for many difficult situations.

It makes you a lot more stable and perceptive.

Nothing can shake you or your beliefs when you have that confidence within yourself.

But when you don’t have the necessary confidence in life, you start doubting everything you are and everything you have.

You are constantly living in fear of losing important things in life.

But you are somehow managing things and trying to move ahead.

In such a knife-edge situation, if someone says something negative or questions you, it’s natural for anyone to take it personally.

Thus, your low self-confidence may be an answer to your question ‘Why do I take things personally’.

You Have High Self-Respect

The next possible answer to ‘Why do I take things personally’ is that you have a high sense of self-respect.

Self-respect is a very important thing in life.

It is very important in building your personality and giving you success in life.

Self-respect is also an important cog in your self-love journey.

Thus, if you do not respect yourself, you cannot start loving yourself.

Self-respect is also the tool that protects and safeguards your dignity.

Thus, self-respect is needed at every stage of your life and it helps you in moving forward with surety and confidence.

And when somebody questions or tries to harm your self-respect, you can’t help but take things personally.

Thus, your high self-respect may be an answer to your question ‘Why do I take things personally’.

You Prefer Healthy Boundaries

The next possible answer to ‘Why do I take things personally’ is that you like keeping healthy boundaries in life.

Boundaries are healthy when they are made to keep things simple and clear.

They also tell people their limits which they shouldn’t cross.

Healthy boundaries tell people what they shouldn’t say or shouldn’t do.

They protect people’s privacy and ensure that people are not violated or embarrassed. 

Thus, boundaries keep human relations meaningful and beautiful.

But when these boundaries are not respected and the personal space of people is violated, you are left with no choice but to take things personally.

Thus, your preference for healthy boundaries may be an answer to your question ‘Why do I take things personally’.

You Are Not A Social Person

being social

The next possible answer to ‘Why do I take things personally’ is that you are not a social person.

Whether we are social or not defines our lifestyle or the way we live.

The people who have remained very social right from the start, know how to deal with people.

They know how to react when someone says something that they may not like.

So, social people have less chance of taking things personally.

But people who haven’t been social for a large part of their lives, may not be able to deal very well with people and their behavior.

Since they do not have social experience or the required social skills, they may take a lot of things personally.

Not being social is not bad or wrong, but it’s a possible reason why people may take things personally.

Thus, you not being a social person may be an answer to your question ‘Why do I take things personally’.

People May Be Insensitive

The next possible answer to ‘Why do I take things personally’ is the prevalence of insensitive people.

There are many people who either don’t know or don’t care about the feelings of other people.

So, they may constantly say or do things that violate personal space and hurt the feelings of other people.

Some people are compulsive and they can’t help entering into the personal spaces of others.

Thus, they may do personal attacks on you and your feelings on purpose, forcing you to take things personally.

Sometimes, the personal space of a person is a very thin line that people are not able to see or respect.

So, it’s also possible that even wise people may hurt your personal feelings and beliefs.

In such cases, you are not at fault for taking things personally.

When people get too personal, you have the right to take things personally.

Thus, people being insensitive may be an answer to your question ‘Why do I take things so personally’.

It’s Okay Sometimes To Take Things Personally 

It’s important to find the answer to the question ‘Why do I take things personally’ in your life.

But we should also be careful while trying to do so.

Do not judge yourself too harshly if you find yourself taking things personally in life.

That’s because sometimes, life requires us to take things personally. 

When people do not stay within healthy boundaries and start violating your personal space, you have to take things personally.

Also, when it’s a matter of your self-respect and honor, it’s not wrong to take things personally.

So, when you take things personally to protect yourself or your self-respect, that’s more than understandable. 

The only thing you should take care of is that taking things personally should not be an outcome of your compulsiveness or your weakness.

Thus, you need to steer yourself clear of anxiety, past trauma, dissatisfaction, and low self-confidence, if you happen to have any of them.

Thus, take things personally only when you need to.

At other times, live life to the fullest and keep loving yourself a little more than yesterday.

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