#avpd things

[astrangerthatlovesyou]

Remember that not everyone with AvPD is conventionally quiet.

We all avoid things differently, and some people may talk a lot in some or all situations because it makes them feel less vulnerable. That doesn’t mean they don’t have AvPD or that their AvPD is less “severe.”

AvPD isn’t social anxiety plus. Because of that, the type of interaction often plays a major role in our fear. For some, the only situations that bring them fear are ones that involve personal connection. For most, all situations are terrifying, but we’ve had to learn to hide it or overcompensate in most. If we can’t hide it, it means we are completely unable to cope.

The impact a disorder has on a person can’t be determined by its visibility.

[avpd--culture-is]

avpd culture is knowing everything about everyone but no one knowing anything about you

fr

[therapeutic007]

🌟 How to Practice Self-ERP and CBT for AVPD

Step 1: Identify Your Triggers

What situations do you avoid (e.g., speaking in groups, meeting new people)?

Write them down and rank them by how much anxiety they cause.

Step 2: Start with Small Exposures (ERP)

Pick a low-anxiety trigger and plan to expose yourself to it.

Example: Say hello to a coworker instead of avoiding eye contact.

Resist the urge to “escape” or self-criticize during the exposure.

Celebrate the effort, not the outcome.

Step 3: Challenge Your Thoughts (CBT)

When avoidance or anxiety strikes, ask yourself:

“What’s the evidence that my fear will come true?”

“What’s a more realistic way to view this situation?”

Replace critical self-talk with affirming statements: “I am learning and growing. Perfection isn’t required.”

Step 4: Track Your Progress

Keep a journal of your exposures and thought challenges.

Reflect on your wins, no matter how small.

Step 5: Practice Self-Compassion

Healing takes time, and setbacks are part of the process.

Treat yourself with kindness, as you would a close friend.

💡 The Path to Healing

While AVPD might make the world feel like a scary, judgmental place, it doesn’t define your future. Self-guided ERP and CBT give you the tools to rebuild your relationship with yourself and others, step by step. Over time, those walls of avoidance can come down, revealing a life where connection feels possible—and safe. 🌱💛

Start Your Recovery Plan Now 🐾

[sluggishcognitivetempo]

"quietly slides this into your inbox" 🌸

if you’ve ever felt like relationships are a minefield of "what if they hate me?" and "I’ll just disappear before I embarrass myself," you might relate to avoidant personality disorder (AvPD) traits. here’s the tea:

✨ main AvPD vibes:

crippling fear of rejection (even a slightly delayed text can feel like the apocalypse)

avoiding social stuff not because you don’t care, but because caring too much hurts

feeling "not enough" (even when people do show up for you)

intense self-isolation → loneliness feels safer than risking judgment

relationships can feel like trying to pet a feral cat—you want closeness, but your brain goes "DANGER! ABORT!" 😭

good news? you’re not broken, and healing is possible. 🌱 this Avoidant Personality Disorder Workbook is a gentle, self-paced way to untangle those fears and build safer connections.

you deserve love and peace.

[ppd-culture-is]

Some people have the belief that having two personality disorders together with counteractive symptoms isn't possible. E.I.: a pwNPD also has AvPD. This usually comes from the belief that the presentation (rather internally or externally) is absolute with a continuous idea.

With NPD specifically, it is believed that the presentation is to show as wanting all positive attention, belief of feeling superior, and the need to be perceived by anyone in a positive light. This is an extreme presentation that is not inclusive towards the other symptoms that occur due to the strong feelings of superiority. NPD is the constant state of waves that include low self-esteem and high self-esteem that is caused by the fragility of one's ego. I put emphasis on the low self-esteem and fragility of one's ego here. I'd argue that if a pwNPD experiences severe bouts of negative episodic symptons, then they would qualify for AvPD (traits modifier). Especially if their positive episodic symptons of a high is as fragile as anything else, a simple feeling of insecurity due to AvPD would make someone crash harder than ever before.

Having AvPD with NPD makes the 'lows' feel more possible to occur and more severe. Someone with NPD can have that brief period of trying to rationalize that perception of any negative connotation towards themselves with anything they could think of (e.g. 'Why would this person's opinion matter if they are beneath me?'). Someone with both disorders will end up not having that brief period of salvation and instead have the complete opposite. This is where the AvPD is seen most prominently.

AvPD can even present during the highs of a positive episodic sympton occurrence in regards to NPD, but it is more present internally than externally. That reach for the need to be perceived as nothing but positive and treated as such makes the insecurity and avoidance seem small. The symptoms of AvPD will gradually get louder and harsher because of the combative feelings and thoughts shown otherwise. An example of this is how pwNPD can intake any positive compliments towards themselves, but even one small remark that they see as negative starts the spiral of rumination.

What I'm saying is that the symptoms of both disorders play into each other rather than contradict. NPD will experience a couple of symptoms predominantly, whereas AvPD will combat that by playing on said symptoms. It also works vice versa.

The disorders seem to counteract each other - and they do. That is the whole framework of the presentation. It is to cause severe 'high' and 'lows' to extreme ends of the spectrum, resulting in the instability of many aspects of oneself.

[drifting-bones]

if i don't get attention i'm going to fucking explode but if i do get attention i'll make it awkward and fuck it up or just get overshadowed and ignored again. i can never fucking win.

[dandelion-system]

Genuine question:

People with avpd, are the things you experience because of it constant and ever present? Or is like background noise?

We’re questioning if we have it, and while sometimes it’s really obvious, sometimes it’s like it’s not there at all.

Like, if I go out in public I spend the whole time considering it, unless i do certain things to quiet the noise. If I listen to loud music it shoves the thoughts to the back of my mind.

And if I’m just sitting minding my own business, in my own home or an empty room somewhere, it’s fine. I’m paranoid about cameras, but otherwise, I’m okay. I’m not policing myself. But as soon as someone else is nearby it’s like some sort of fugue made to make us the best, most likeable version of ourself. And sometimes I don’t even realise I’m doing it because it’s second nature.

And I don’t get panic attacks in the moment, I usually get them afterwards. Unless it’s online, and I’ll spend a few hours crafting the perfect reply to someone if I know that I’ll have to continue communicating with them.

And if I know that at a moments notice I can cut them out of my life, I can just… do whatever. I can be much more of myself because I don’t care about them that much (I lie to myself) and they don’t care about me (I’m convinced) so we can just never talk again if I screw up!

… anyway. Are these avpd things? Or are they something else? /genq.

There are other things but this is what I can think of right now

[nebuvoid]

i want avpd to be the next new trend. like yeah its annoying how everyone is adhd autism this and that right now but at least its spreading awareness. i need people to know just how debilitating it is im constantly ruining my own plans, standing in my own way and unable to fight the urge to avoid like this can and will ruin your career and social life and yet even within mental healthcare its often unknown or disregarded

[astrangerthatlovesyou]

Having AvPD is like: I’m so open, everyone knows everything about me. That’s terrifying, everyone must hate how much I share. God I feel so exposed I feel sick. And the last time you opened up to someone was October of 2021 when you told your mom you were a little stressed.

[whalesung]

• avpd/dpd baizhu icons - self indulgent

can be used with credit!

flag used

[avpd--culture-is]

avpd culture is typing the post/message and then deleting it halfway because of anxiety and fear of being perceived, and what if all this shit is useless and illogical—

.

[therapeutic007]

🚀✨ The Totally Accurate Chronicles of Exposure Therapy for AVPD ✨🚀

So, I’ve been doing exposure therapy to tackle my AVPD (Avoidant Personality Disorder), and let me tell you, it’s a wild ride. Imagine trying to train a cat to fetch, except the cat is your self-confidence and it’s currently napping in a box labeled “NOPE.” 🐱📦

Yesterday’s challenge was to have a casual conversation with someone I don’t know well. Easy, right? Except my brain decided this was the perfect moment to stage a dramatic reenactment of every social faux pas I’ve ever imagined. I ended up discussing the weather with a stranger for 45 minutes. Not just the weather—THE WEATHER. 🌦️🌪️

Then came the “meeting new people” part of the therapy. So, I went to a social event, and as soon as I walked in, my brain immediately decided that I was the human embodiment of a “Don’t Talk to Me” sign. I’m pretty sure I managed to achieve the world record for most awkward “Hi” in a single night. 🤦‍♀️👋

And let’s not forget the best part: confronting my fear of criticism. My therapist said, “Write a blog post about your experience.” Well, here I am, writing a blog post, and my internal editor is currently screaming “THIS WILL BE THE WORST BLOG POST EVER!” 📉🖋️

So if you see me out there, chatting about the weather or pretending to be super chill while internally flipping out, just know I’m on a journey. A journey where I’m discovering that maybe, just maybe, being awkward is my superpower. 🌟😅

Here’s to conquering fears one awkward moment at a time! 🥂💪 _________

Highly Recommend this ERP Workbook

[cemetary-shifts]

srry for not responding to u i completely forgot and then thinking about having to message u after accidentally not messaging u for a while made me nauseous so i just did the only thing i knew how to do and i ran away but then i got back and the idea of talking after ignoring u made me want to bang my head into the wall so i just ignored you again and i made the cycle even worse and now i dont know what to do other than fake my death and go live out in an isolated cabin up in the mountains where no one has access to me at all. oops?

[puppiebat]

your my reason to live , your the only one i can trust in this whole world . i hate you , i love you , your the only one i can care about , your the only person who understands me , no one else understands me , so they should just die

[everbluem]

Telling somebody about AvPD can seem so scary. Especially with the word disorder attached.

But I’ve been thinking about it more and more, thinking of the people I’ve met who are the same.

And so many of us are just so beautifully empathetic. Careful to consider, earnest to compliment, eager to connect. Incredibly thoughtful, creative, supportive. Even if we hold ourselves back from sharing those things with others, it doesn’t mean those parts of us don’t exist.

And I know that doesn’t apply to everyone, that some people can act out or be cruel for whatever reason. But of everyone that I’ve met, it seems so clear that we’re all just trying in whatever ways that we can.

[errrr-vent-blog]

cant take criticism + wouldnt want to, im unstoppable