Personal space

[user9247612]

Does anyone else find that since lockdowns/covid that they struggle with people standing close to them. My colleague has a habit of standing right beside me when doing something and it make my blood boil.
I also can't stand been in a room with too many people and too much going on. Is it just me have I turned into a grumpy old woman 🤣

Oh god yes, the space invaders seem to have come back bigger and better (and closer!) now all the publicity about 2m apart and mask wearing etc has gone.

@Bahhhhhumbug

glad its not just me 🤣

Oh no its definitely not. I'm in grumpy old woman age group (early sixties) but my dd in her forties and l regularly swap outrageous stories on this subject. It's become a bit of a competition actually.
My DDs best one was she was sat having a quiet coffee looking out the window in a almost empty cafe. She was sat on a bar stool at a long bar that ran the full length of the large window on her side and the other side of the door with lots of bar stools on the window side and her side. No one else was sat in either 'window bar'
A woman came along and shuffled herself along between the window and the bar and stopped and sat at a bar stool right in front of my dd so dd was now looking straight at the woman who was completely blocking her view out the window now. My dd said something like 'you're having a laugh aren't you ' and got up and moved to the other window and sat again so she could look out the window. Woman starts to get up and dd shouted 'Don't even think about it' so woman moved instead to another regular table and chair behind dd. Dd said she felt really uncomfortable whole time being unable see her. She said she seemed very 'normal' in her exchanges with cafe staff etc.
.. so who knows, some people are just strange.

Yeah I feel pretty odd when people stand close to me. I'm not worried about becoming ill or anything I'm just not used to close contact anymore. I hate crowds even more than I did before too. I get agitated and panicky walking through town. I used to go into work one half day a week during the first lockdown and it was usually only a few police officers, me and the birds I used to feed on my way. It was bliss.

Have you tried saying "could you give me a bit of space please? I'm still used to all the social distancing?"

These are the people who park their car really close to yours when yours and theirs are the only two fucking cars in the car park and you have parked miles from the shop/pedestrian exit - what the fuck is wrong with them?

Yes I'm like this and also I'm just feeling more anti-social in general. I do like meeting up with friends for lunch etc but am much less keen on nights out or seeing too many people at once. Part of me just feels that I can't be bothered and I'd rather just have time with the family or by myself. I am 47 and perimenopausal so I'm not sure if it's related to that or the pandemic.

And yes have always had a bit of sensory overload in crowds and it all gets a bit much.

I hate it. But I've always hated it.
Only people I let in my personal space is family. I just don't understand why people need to be right up close, there's plenty of space!

Have never liked people getting too close.

I genuinely don't mind the space thing. But I really struggle with the noise. I've worked and commuted by public transport throughout, and can't seem to adjust from the near silence of train and streets to the constant chatter. I don't notice people getting closer, but I think they're definitely louder.