About that blushing. . .

Are you a "blusher" like me? Do you hate it when people tell you you're blushing? Do they think you don't know?

I can tell you exactly when I'm going to blush - when I'm unprepared to be put on the spot. I can be walking down the street, when someone I know (especially when I haven't seen them in a long time), taps me on the shoulder to say hello. I will turn bright red. I'll even turn red if I'm the one making the contact.

Maybe it's about being self-conscious, about not being prepared to talk to this person, and so I feel "on the spot." Always, being called on to speak without notice will cause me to turn red, even when I know the topic and am happy to share. Sometimes I do feel a little embarrassed about attention on me, even though as an extrovert, I also enjoy the attention.

Here are some interesting articles on blushing that shed some light:

The Physiology of Blushing

Tips to Avoid Blushing

I've discovered that I can prevent my blushing in certain situations. Take the example above about running into someone in public. If I see them before they see me, I can prepare myself mentally for talking to them by going through the emotional discomfort before I speak to them. If this makes sense, I actually create the emotional discomfort by imagining talking to them - I feel the adrenaline rush and the heat in my face. Once I've done that and gone through it, then I'm completely fine to walk up and say hello - blush-free.

It's weird when an outgoing person like me blushes. People don't understand why I, this confident, outspoken person, would turn red, and they find it funny - and need to point it out. All I can say is that I can rarely control it, so I must live with it. And most of the time, I just point out that, yes, I'm now turning red. Ha ha.

How do you handle blushing?

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