The social interaction difficulties

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I am looking for something to explain the social side of things as I don't think the mental illness fully explains that.
I have always had poor social functioning and difficulty interacting with others from a very young age. In 60 years I can count my friends on one hand. I had one friend for a few years before developing a mental illness ,but lost him when I went from prep to public school, whereas for many people they have a better social network before mental illness but may lose it when they become mentally ill in their mid/late teens or older.
The only real friend I had since developing my mental illness was my wife. The relationship happened by kismet/fate rather than any conscious effort at a courtship ritual/pulling the bird (to put it crudely)on my part. I wouldn't know now how to form a platonic or even deeper relationship.

A subtle pointer to the development of full blown severe mental illness or a sign that something like ASD(traits) may be going on or additional to the SMI?
Some people with SMI have ok/good premorbid functioning while other's don't.

As far back as I can remember I have had social interaction difficulties ie long before the paranoia and social anxiety.

I don't really know how to form relationships be they acquaintances or at a deeper level friends. The whole process is a mystery to me. I expect people to react in a negative fashion towards me because I don't know the unwritten rules of the interaction game.
Some might say I am socially odd as well as being socially awkward and both make you targets for cruel minded people.

I agree. I'm a tool for the most hostile of manipulators. My excessively poor social abilities make me a target for ridicule and mockery. I've never understood it. No matter how much intellect or rationality is applied to the situation I continue to have difficulty. Sometimes I just look at the labels they give me and think to myself that the problem may not be with me, but perhaps with them. People are afraid of those who are better than them. I scare people and I don't even realize, I just do what I love. I anger people purely by reading intellectual books while they sit there drowning themselves in music about sex and guns. When I was really young I remember myself reading this book about the founding of a country and I had it taken away by another student who wanted to read it. They looked at it for a moment then threw it back to me and called me a nerd. I've never understood this behavior. Shouldn't everyone value progress and intellect? Shouldn't everyone think the same because we are all the same on a most basic level. Well, it turns out we're not. We're one of the few, and I wish the world would change but it won't I believe. We're just too rational for this insane world.

Having an unusual personality type or being highly sensitive can interfere with one's ability to interact socially.

You might look into HSP (Highly Sensitive Person) or some of the personality typing systems (Myers Briggs, Enneagram) to see if any of the descriptions apply to you.

Myers Briggs I usually come out as INFP.

You are most likely a type 6.

Taking wings into account, you seem to be a 6w5.


My top 2 wings were

Wing 6w5 - 16.2
Wing 5w6 - 15.4


Therefore 6 and 5 are most prominent.


Enneagram Type 6 - The Loyalist

Conflicted between trust and distrust

Enneagram type 6 - The Loyalist People of this personality type essentially feel insecure, as though there is nothing quite steady enough to hold onto. At the core of the type Six personality is a kind of fear or anxiety. This anxiety has a very deep source and can manifest in a variety of different styles, making Sixes somewhat difficult to describe and to type. What all Sixes have in common however, is the fear rooted at the center of their personality, which manifests in worrying, and restless imaginings of everything that might go wrong.

Enneagram Type 5 - The Investigator

Thinkers who tend to withdraw and observe

Enneagram type 5 - The InvestigatorPeople of this personality type essentially fear that they don't have enough inner strength to face life, so they tend to withdraw, to retreat into the safety and security of the mind where they can mentally prepare for their emergence into the world. Fives feel comfortable and at home in the realm of thought. They are generally intelligent, well read and thoughtful and they frequently become experts in the areas that capture their interest. While they are sometimes scientifically oriented, especially with the Six wing, just as many Fives are drawn to the humanities and it is not at all uncommon for Fives to have artistic inclinations. Fives are often a bit eccentric; they feel little need to alter their beliefs to accommodate majority opinion, and they refuse to compromise their freedom to think just as they please.




https://www.eclecticenergies.com/enneagram/test.php
__________________




6w5 - Seeking Security and Knowledge

LifeExplore

Sixes with a 5 wing are generally introverted and somewhat intellectual. When healthy, they often have many realms of interest as well as surprising competencies and skills. May have an original and idiosyncratic point of view. Can be bookish; some are interested in history or feel rooted in the past or related to a long tradition. Also good at predicting the future. May test potential friends for a long time but once you're in, you're in - a friend for life. When more entranced, they may project a willed remoteness. Have a "tip of the iceberg" quality - they show little but you sense hidden dimensions, intensity and activity. Tension between needing to be seen and withdrawing for protection. Might act arrogant or cryptic or cynical when afraid. When phobic, can be diplomatic and say things without saying them. Entranced counterphobics are either cool and loners or argumentative, tending towards violence. Can brood over injustices to them, entertain conspiracy theories, spend time alone building cases. Paranoia in private. May like secretive behind-the-scenes group activity. Sneaky vengeance, passive/aggressive toward others, self-attacking and self-destructive at home.

http://theenneagram.blogspot.co.uk/2007/09/type-6.html


5w6 - Seeking Knowledge and Security

LifeExplore

The 6 wing brings an orientation to detail and technical knowledge, along with the tendency to think in logical sequence. Especially intellectual, far more analytical than Fives with a 4 wing. Can be loyal friends, offering strong behind-the-scenes support. Kind, patient teachers, skillful experts. May have a sense of mission and work hard. Sometimes project an aura of sensitive nerdiness and have clumsy social skills. When defensive, they can be unnerved by the expectations of others. May like people more but avoid them more. Especially sensitive to social indebtedness. Could have trouble saying "thank you." Fear of taking action, develop "information addiction" instead. Ask lots of questions but don't get around to the decision at hand. When more entranced, they develop a suspicious scrutiny of other people's motives but can also be blind followers. Misanthropic and Scrooge-like when defensive. More able to keep their feelings cut off in a constant way. Can be cold, skeptical, ironic, and disassociated. A Five's 6 wing can be phobic or counterphobic. Counterphobic 6 wing brings courage and antiauthoritarian attitudes. When defensive they may mock authority, or angrily tell others off. Tend to "push the envelope," experiment, find what the limits are.

http://theenneagram.blogspot.co.uk/2007/09/type-5.html

Well, do your Enneagram results match your self-perception? Type 5 has the most difficulty with social interaction.