Using super emotional responses to things you don’t like is not as straightforward as it may seem. In fact, there can be many things hiding behind overreactive behavior.
Have you ever wondered what’s hiding behind exaggerated behavior? Just in case you didn’t know, overreaction is basically an increased emotional response that occurs when something out of the ordinary happens.
Most of the time, if you spill your drink on the kitchen floor, you’ll grumble a little and clean it up. But when it comes to overreacting, spilling your drink could trigger a tantrum. Have you ever wondered why responses can be so different from each other and related to the same situation?
What is hiding behind your behavior?
Overreaction is much more than just a present emotional response. There are several reasons why you may react in an acute manner when dealing with a small problem. It’s very normal to overreact because there is a lot of stress in the world today.
However, although it may be common to overreact, it is not healthy. So, let’s take a look at what’s hiding behind exaggerated behavior.
- Manipulation
Let’s just get this out of the way first. Overreacting is sometimes a direct manipulative attack. When someone overreacts, we are surprised and then try to calm the “offended” person. However, this fuels overreaction behavior, and makes it worse.
More often than not, you know if you are using an overreaction to manipulate another person. But there are rare cases when this tactic is used so often that it becomes part of your personality.
In such cases, professional help is needed. As for the victim of this manipulative behavior, read a little about body language so you can tell the difference between a common overreaction and a manipulative overreaction.
- You feel threatened
It is human nature to experience the fight or flight response. It helps us to properly deal with environmental threats. However, it is a problem if you are in combat mode over something that does not warrant such a response.
The only thing you may be hiding behind your overreaction is a feeling of threat. It is not always due to some personality disorder.
Did you know that overreacting is part of evolution? correct. Sometimes animals kill intruders before they even know if the new animal is dangerous or not. So, sometimes, we humans make these assumptions too, and overreact before thinking things through.
Thus, whether it makes sense or not, we have neutralized what we perceive as a threat.
- You suffer from insecurities
You are more likely to overreact if you are experiencing insecurities. But remember, not all disagreements stem from insecurity, as many people in relationships assume. But dealing with self-esteem issues will make you more emotional.
This heightened emotional state will also make you more likely to overreact to situations where you feel your self-esteem is at risk. It’s just one of the things that hides behind exaggerated behavior.
- Loss of sleep and rest
Sleep is very important for your health. Lack of sleep, or constant sleep, can cause you to feel bad both physically and mentally. When you habitually ignore criticism, fatigue may cause you to overreact and lash out.
In fact, sleep deprivation literally disrupts the connection between the medial prefrontal cortex and the amygdala, causing an overreaction to negative stimuli.
- Food deprivation
Could a lack of food be the reason behind the overreaction? Why, yes, it can. When you don’t eat properly, your blood sugar level drops. When this happens, hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol pump into the bloodstream in an attempt to return glucose levels to normal.
We know what cortisol and adrenaline do. That’s right: this mixture creates more stress and energy. Now think about how you react when you overreact, and you can see the active stress involved.
- You have been motivated
There are still a lot of people who are not familiar with Triggers. To make a long story short, a trigger is something that reminds you of a past negative event or traumatic situation. Therefore, it is easy to see that stimuli, whether it is a sound, a person, or a place, can cause an over-response.
Walking into a room and smelling whiskey may seem senseless, but for someone aroused by this smell, it can cause severe emotional disturbances. So, if you’re overreacting, take an inventory of your triggers and see if that’s the reason.
- She suffers from an anxiety disorder
We all face normal amounts of stress. But some of us deal with anxiety disorders, and this is different. Anxiety can cause a person to overreact to trivial problems, and it may even cause panic attacks as well.
The reactions of those suffering from anxiety are difficult for loved ones to understand, but they are very valid and real. Therefore, anxiety may be hiding behind exaggerated reactions.
- Repressed emotions
There’s another reason you might be overreacting, and it’s a simple one. If you don’t express your feelings about a certain situation, and it still bothers you, those feelings will remain stored away until later.
When these feelings grow too big to stay inside, they will explode into an overreaction.
The funny thing about this is that you may not be overreacting to anything related to your repressed emotions. Let’s just say it was the last straw.
