I was walking down the street today when I passed a middle-aged man and woman. I was in a hurry to get to dinner, so I walked quickly in front of them. Just as I walked past, I heard the man behind me seemingly spit, but I wasn't sure where he had spit. Since I was in a hurry, I didn't think much of it and just walked on. But when I sat down to eat, I began to regret that I hadn't double-checked that my clothes hadn't been splattered, and now my heart is still particularly diaphragmatic.
I do this every time, I think nothing of it when it happens, but I'm always paranoid and sick to my stomach afterward.
Should I have gone back to him then to clear the air?
Hi friend ~ I can relate to the confusion and discomfort you feel after going through this.
This reaction is actually quite common, especially when it comes to such uncomfortable things.
So why are we so skeptical and disgusted after the fact?
When hearing that someone may have spit at you, an act that carries disrespect and aggression in itself, even if there is no real evidence, your brain automatically goes into defense mode. It's an innate protective mechanism that helps alert you to potential danger.
So, you may not react immediately at the time, but afterwards your brain will go back over the details, desperately trying to make sure that no threat existed.
And, when we're busy (like rushing to dinner), the brain takes care of the urgent matter at hand first and puts other information aside for a while.
But then when you relax, like at dinner, those overlooked details come back to the forefront, drawing a bunch of suspicion and worry.
It's actually a delayed stress response, a quiet protection from your brain.
As for your mention of being paranoid after every similar incident, this could be related to deep anxiety.
Ongoing misgivings are not just a reaction to one thing, but more of an accumulation over time. Sometimes this recurring feeling of nausea can stem from an internal lack of trust in your own safety and environment 💐