I'm finding myself needing to lay down in a dark/quiet room before going to functions alot more often now than when I was younger. In fact, it use to be a habit for me to do this after an event rather than before.
Anywho, I am just curious if others feel like they need quiet down time right before or right after going places or seeing alot of people. How important is recharge time for you? And what does recharge time look like for you?
For me, the amount of time depends largely on how much stress I can expect to receive from the place I'm going to. If I'm going to be around a lot of people, and I know those people are going to stress me out, then that requires a lot of mental preparation and a long period of downtime. If it's with people I like or to go to an event that I'm actually excited for, the pre-charge time is going to be much shorter, but the recharge time can be even longer depending on what we're doing.
I think a hot beverage and spending some time with my bird are usually staples of my recharge time, but the important part is mostly that I'm left alone.
It depends on the event, who will be there, and how many people will be there. For a small family gathering, I don't need much time before hand but I do need recharge time afterwards. The amount of recharge time I need depends on how long I was at the gathering. For something huge, like a convention where I'll be surrounded by strangers, I need some prep time before I can face the crowd, frequent breaks where I find a secluded corner or walk outside a bit, and a few hours of downtime back at the hotel room afterwards. And then, if I will be forced to speak or interact with people I'm not particularly close with, like a work event, I need a ton of prep time and also a good amount of recharge time afterwards.
Prep time for me consists of thinking about all the potential things that could go wrong and making contingency plans for those scenarios as well as rehearsing conversations in my head because I am really bad at talking off the top of my head.
Recharge time for me just has to be a quiet space where I can think, read, play a game, or watch TV in peace. It's okay if my husband is there most of the time, unless I'm really overwhelmed, but no one else.
It more has to do with the people than the amount of people. I have no problem talking to random people that I meet on the train, for example. I’ve met so many people traveling even though it was just passing by. I’m not in contact with any of them, and they were just fellow travelers.
I’ll be more stressed going to see two people who are likely to stress me out than ten random strangers. It’s very important for me to have preparation time. My anxiety levels will go up when I am stressed, so it’s important for me to have that time.
MEEEE. Oh man. I've never had to do this until lately, after work as soon as I get home I lay down in bed for like 10-20 mins. I dont sleep, just lay enveloped in bed and process the day. I like to listen to ASMR to decompress. My S/O comes over and asks me about my day and I word dump for the entire time and he just listens which is so great.
Recharge time is very important for me before and after social events. How much depends on the interactions I will receive or how long I will be there. For example, if I don't have to socialize and/or I don't have to be there for long, recharge time usually takes about an hour. If the event takes a few hours or I know I will be forced to socialize a lot, it takes a lot longer. Far longer if I have to deal with rude people. Recharge time itself usually consists of me pacing to give my body something to do while I mentally process and prepare or sitting or laying on the floor cuddling my plushes if I need that physical energy saved.
I'm an ambivert, so I'm constantly switching between craving social interaction and needing personal time. I do have to recharge after large gatherings though. Dealing with a lot of people is overwhelming for me, especially since I have to follow scripts for small talk. When I do I often read a book or play a video game. Even if the entertainment is intense I still feel relaxed from doing it.
It's not really so much before functions as it is after. I'm introverted so being social for long periods of time makes me tired and anxious. It's especially bad after work, where I just basically go on autopilot to eat dinner and get ready for bed. Once I'm settled in for the night, you couldn't pay me to get up. I mostly just play my Switch Lite for a bit (been playing Disney Dreamlight Valley lately, it's very relaxing), or watch videos on my phone until I get sleepy.
recharge time is more after the event for me, both with my friendos and/or with strangers. my friendos are defo more talkative / a bit less shy than i am. get sort of tired and stuff afterwards
usually involves me watching some youtube cahntent / britcom stuff on my phone or listening to music whilst im in bed. chill vibes baybee
I always need some time to recharge after being social. I like to lay in bed and watch videos. Or just enjoy a slow day alone with a hot beverage. Or take a leisurely walk outside!
This is the most unexpected difficulty in starting a family: I get almost 0 time to decompress. Every minute is filled with activity or planning. It is exhausting.
That said, there are sweet quiet mornings or evenings where I can steep my tea, scroll through some art, and listen to some soundtracks.
having time to relax/prepare before going somewhere and then having time after to recharge is extremely important for me and my mental health. recharging for me usually looks like spending time alone in my room, listening to music, laying down, scrolling through social media, smoking etc. i don’t do anything that requires much energy or brain power, because i want to save the little i have for wherever i’m going, or because i don’t have any left when i get back and i don’t want to frustrate myself by trying lol.
it’s especially important that i’m able to recharge after doing something. even just going to the grocery store wipes me out most of the time. if i’m not given time to recharge, that leaves me irritable and even more tired the next day.
I don’t need to recharge immediately before or after an event, but I do need to incorporate some self care activities at some point in the week or my productivity will go down. I like curling up with my cat, drinking tea, or reading a book.
