what tricks or hacks do you have to protect your peace?

[xXSufferingXx]

i actively avoid the news. i get enough current events thrown in my face already just from social media in general.
i don't need to know about more misery in the world than i already know about and feel.

if someone tries to get a rise out of me i completely ignore them as if they were never born.
i don't entertain them.
i look right thru you as if you were made of air.
that's what pisses them off the most.

i'm not afraid to say "i don't know" whenever i don't feel like answering something.
even if i DO know, but i just don't feel like engaging with that topic or request or whatever.

i have always been extremely overly overly honest, and it got me nothing but trouble.
so i had to kinda re-raise myself to not be afraid of white lies.
if a stranger knocks on my door and asks to borrow my toilet; "oh sorry dude, it's totally clogged, i'm waiting for someone to fix it"
i feel bad morally on that one, but i also have boundaries,
and i know that such a person could be a theif trying to get into my home.

if i didn't do these things, i would be coo coo for cocoa puffs already in a straight jacket lol.

 

[Forever Sleep]

Similar to you- I avoid the news. I avoid people too. My job can be really demading so- that's a good excuse. A lot of the time, I am genuinely working. I also live hundreds of miles away from friends and family. I'll pass the time of day with neighbours but, we're not social.

I've become better at not engaging in certain topics here that always end in bad feeling.

I also maintain boundaries now. I suppose I've actively let friendships drift and not sought out new deep connections. Definitely not in person.

I really value the freedom of being alone and being free to make my own choices. I remind myself how awful it was to have to work and be around others and I enjoy the peace of not having to do that.

 

[Pluto]

 

[Spit On My Grave]

More privacy chasing money

 

[Forveleth]

i actively avoid the news. i get enough current events thrown in my face already just from social media in general.
i don't need to know about more misery in the world than i already know about and feel.

Massively this! This is one of the reasons I deleted all of my social media a few years ago.

if someone tries to get a rise out of me i completely ignore them as if they were never born.
i don't entertain them.
i look right thru you as if you were made of air.
that's what pisses them off the most.

I learned something like this working in retail. The louder they yell, the bigger I smile, and the angrier they seem to get. Kind of made a game out of it after a while. How nice could I be to someone who wants a refund for something they obviously broke?

Letting bullshit roll off you is a valuable skill and ignoring the people who create it does worlds for one's overall mental health.

i'm not afraid to say "i don't know" whenever i don't feel like answering something.
even if i DO know, but i just don't feel like engaging with that topic or request or whatever.

I am too helpful of a person to resist this. If I know the answer, I will attempt to give it. If it is something simple, however, I am not afraid to tell someone to go Google it instead of bothering me.

i have always been extremely overly overly honest, and it got me nothing but trouble.
so i had to kinda re-raise myself to not be afraid of white lies.
if a stranger knocks on my door and asks to borrow my toilet; "oh sorry dude, it's totally clogged, i'm waiting for someone to fix it"
i feel bad morally on that one, but i also have boundaries,
and i know that such a person could be a theif trying to get into my home.

I am also overly honest but I am also not afraid of saying a cold "no" and leaving it at that. Probably a character flaw of mine more than an asset as I tend to not be entirely thoughtful when I say it. I should probably learn to be a little kinder with "white lies" myself.

Valuable skills to have, all of these, honestly. Good for you!

 

[EmptyBottle]

Sometimes ignoring my name if said once, and only responding if said twice (or once with actual urgency, or there's door knocking)... helps filter out the urgency of requests, and gives me a second to be ready to reply.

Then there's also using headphones when there's background noise and it's unlikely I'll be called upon.