The Difference Between Pessimism and Deeper Relational Patterns
Facing Fear, Finding Direction, and Going the Distance
November 27, 2024
dialogue

The Difference Between Pessimism and Deeper Relational Patterns

La diferencia entre el pesimismo y los patrones relacionales más profundos

A student shares the experience of moving into a new home and notices a recurring tendency toward distrust and pessimistic thinking, particularly in close relationships. The teacher distinguishes between surface-level pessimism and the deeper dynamics that arise in intimate connections.

The Difference Between Pessimism and Deeper Relational Patterns

A student shares the experience of moving into a new home and notices a recurring tendency toward distrust and pessimistic thinking, particularly in close relationships. The teacher distinguishes between surface-level pessimism and the deeper dynamics that arise in intimate connections.

I just moved this weekend into a new condo, and the journey was intense. I went through rejections, halfway-through processes, disappointment. In my case, I landed in a beautiful outcome. I'm at a place where I really love, and I'm excited. It's my first home.

I was really appreciating the conversation about taking the jump and seeing where it goes, because it felt like everything was already in motion. Not doing it would have been like trying to swim against something.

I don't have a question, but I wanted to share that I arrived at this little middle-island destination. I've been realizing how much hyper-independence I carry, this sense that I have to do it all by myself. So when I came and shared here, it became important to me. It was really beautiful to share with all of you, and I'm grateful for the support.

I'm still surrounded by boxes, but it's already taking shape. I came from a smaller one-bedroom apartment and thought it would take a while before it really felt like home. But I put whatever I had in place, and it already feels like home. And the cat is loving it. Her favorite part is the fireplace. I don't think I can ever get her out of there.

Very well.

Something that's been coming up a lot and is very present in my awareness, maybe it just turned into a question: I've noticed that when something could go either way, I tend to give much more weight to the idea that it's going to go the wrong way.

What do you mean by "attach"? You said you tend to attach.

I don't actually dwell on it. I give more weight, more probability, to the bad outcome. At the same time, if it goes the wrong way, I don't spiral. And if it goes the right way, I just think, "Oh, it went the right way." But I have noticed this pattern clearly. It's a pessimistic tendency, and there's another one that has really hooked me: blaming others, not trusting. Distrusting.

I'll give you a silly example. It was innocent, but it was meaningful to me. A friend of mine helped me move. I hired movers, but two friends helped as well. One of them helped me unscrew my bed so it would fit in the elevator. We get to the new place, he's helping me screw the bed back together, and there are some screws missing. He says, "Oh, I remember there were screws missing when I was taking it apart." My first thought was: he's lying, he lost the screws. I even asked him, "Are you sure? Didn't you put them in your pockets?" He said no. We put the bed together, I forgot about it, no big deal.

Then I go back to the old place and find a box of tools, and there are the extra screws. I had never put them in the bed. I'd had them in a bag for whatever reason, maybe from when I originally bought it. I was holding that bag thinking: why do I go to that place? He said there were missing screws. It could be as simple as that. But I had to distrust. And it really made me think that I do this a lot.

You're bringing up something significant, because this isn't just some random situation. It's a relationship. This is an ex of yours, right?

Yes.

Closer relationships, deeper activation

What you're addressing has to do with everything that comes up in relationship, especially in closer ones. When there has been romance or a sexual relationship, it's going to bring up deeper material. The more intimate the relationship, the deeper the patterns that surface.

I say that to give this its proper weight. It's not some small, random thing with a random person. If the mover had done the same thing, you might have had a similar thought, but it probably wouldn't have been as activated. You likely felt it much more intensely because of who it was. It's bringing up dynamics that go back to deep things: upbringing, relational patterns, all of that. The trust issues, the blaming, the distrust, it's not just a tendency to be pessimistic. There's more there.

Surface pessimism versus relational wounding

There's the natural, superficial pessimism with things: your mind tends toward catastrophic or worst-case thinking. You can see that and start to adjust by noticing, "Oh, that's just a pessimistic thought," and not giving it too much importance. But the example you brought up is not that. It's something much deeper.

I love that you're helping me separate these two things. Some of the catastrophic and pessimistic thinking does happen, but you're right, it's easier for me to manage. I don't enjoy it. I wish I could just choose positive thinking instead. But I don't dwell too much on those things.

You could be positively delusional instead: "Oh, this person is great, they're amazing," while they're taking advantage of you.

Right, exactly. But separate from the relational stuff, because you're right, that is different. I'm noticing a lot of this at work too. When people at work trigger me, I think, "Why this level of trigger?" It's just work. Nothing bad is really happening. So why this intensity?

It's probably unconscious.

Yes, but there's also this element of preparing for the worst. Like, in case the worst thing happens, can I handle it? Can I handle those feelings? It's been interesting because at different moments in life, we become aware of things that are arising. Over the past months, I've been so aware of this pattern. I didn't realize I was doing it so much, but the level of awareness has been striking. Obviously I need to be looking at this.

For sure. Thank you for sharing. It was helpful.