These behaviors compensate for impaired eye contact and are the typical symptoms of ‘mental illness’:
- talk to yourself
- talk too loud
- say dumb things
- repeat dumb jokes
- silence, shyness
- stutter
- awkward, dorky laugh
- offensive statements
- ‘unintentional’ insults
- haughty know-it-all
- quibble with friends
- side with friend’s foe
- interrupt frequently
- apologize frequently
- annoying habits
- return things
- very cheap
- complain about noise
- smile at nothing
- roll eyes
- gross habits in public
- pick nose
- chewing loudly with mouth open
- pluck out hair
- walk very fast
- absurd fashion
- sing out of key
- poor hygiene
- offensive odors
- aggressive or disgusting pets
- depression, anxiety
- psychosomatic symptoms
- transgender
- school shooter
We unconsciously adapt such behaviors to stigmatize ourselves to distract from our fundamental flaw (lack of eye contact) and to telegraph our disability to avoid the inevitable disappointment of scorn and rejection.