Being misjudged?

I hate being misjudged. We all do. What do you do when someone tries to tell you “you did this or that, you are like that, you said this etc etc.” (which you may have done or not but never intended it the way it was taken). It sucks even more coming from a person who VERY WELL knows how much you care and love that person. I am mentally exhausted having to justify myself to someone close to me. This person is having uncertainties about me and wants me to ‘clear’ them but I find that I get really overwhelmed and dumb when someone tells me my misgivings in a very frustrated tone. It’s like I can’t prove myself anymore because this person’s vocab is much stronger. I am hurt.

PS: I am considering whats being said very closely. I am working on it too and whatever I feel is true, I genuinely accept it but I am unable to show it/or tell this person that I am not like this. I am just not being given a chance or time.

(guys..please refrain from lashing at this person in any way. I did not open this thread to feel good by making someone else look bad. I just want some opinions on HOW I CAN improve my communication in this aspect)

My boss always says that everyone needs to assume the best of everyone else, instead of jumping to the worse conclusions. Maybe you can talk to this person and ask them to try to assume the best of you, and if they question one of your actions/words, that they ask you about it right away so you'll have the opportunity to explain yourself? Sounds like this person is making a lot of negative assumptions without actually having an open conversation with you about why you say or do things a certain way.

Re: Being misjudged?

It's normal to get upset when someone is discussing their concerns with you in an accusatory manner especially when you had no deliberate intentions to hurt them. So the "hurt" party...as hard as it can be....should communicate their issues calmly.

Hmmm, maybe what you can do is to tell this person that, "I love you very much and I would never intentionally hurt you. If I have, then more than likely i wasn't thinking and I apologize. And I have taken your points into consideration and will try working on myself because I value our relationship. However....at the same time....I feel hurt by your accusation. In the future, if you have doubts about something I've said........please ASK me what I meant by my words/actions so that I can clarify myself....as opposed to jumping to conclusions that may not reflect my intentions in the first place."

When I say that "How come you never brought these points up with me earlier", I get an answer "I did..I brought it up so many times but it doesn't seem like you get it", while I have NO clue when they were brought up. I am not trying to act 'naive', I just didn't get it.

Apparently the issue seems to be over some text msgs where I asked this person that if he/she wants to give advice, then do it in a proper manner, not making it feel like continuous taunting. And one more time, I spoke a bit harshly because I would feel this extreme frustration in his/her voice when talking to me. It's just too bad that I did this right away (like right after his/her txt msg) instead of waiting a bit (I accept my mistake there). I feel like because of this I am being held as 'impulsive, emotionally reactive, assuming etc." I don't get it...if I slip even the slightest, I am always held responsible. That bothers me. I am allowed to get atleast a little break or space.

Yes, I have let this person know that I accept my mistake, whereever I slipped and will definitely work on it. But the kind of response I am getting in return is "ok, good you realized your mistake but we just dont fit together or understand each other". I am honestly feeling so hurt. I know this person has put a lot of effort into this but so have I. How can we not understand each other when our lives have so many parallels. We have gone through exact same pain in life and our lives are photocopies of each other. Just because I slip sometimes in verbally communicating a point, it is always held against me.

Unfortunately, this is what I AM being told. When I bring up a point (for example, smtng that I felt hurt by just so he'she can clarify), he/she takes it as an accusation and that I jump to conclusions in my head :S. Here, I become the accusing one. I know very well his/her intentions..and never ever intends to accuse. Most of the time I am just re-assuring or clarifying something but to him/her, it seems like I am accusing. This is when he/she gets frustrated and I am told that I make up all the stuff in my mind and accuse, when I have absolutely nothing clogged up in my mind.

For example, we once had an arguement and this person talked about leaving. So in a panic mode, I just wanted some reassurance. So I said "Are you just gone leave me because of a communication flaw" (my eyes were full of tears at this point)..and this person took me as I am accusing him/her of being a heartless person who will just leave all of a sudden. While I was trying to say it with love..like in a sense, that I wont be able to do without you if you leave. I know there was a slight slip in communication there, perhaps wrong use of words or tone..but I have to pay such a huge price for that?

Hmmm..........."Are you just going to leave me because of a communication flaw?"....................NOTHING in this sentence implies that you think he's a heartless person. And if he........God knows HOW........connected this sentence to the idea of being "heartless"...............then he has a problem with over-analyzing and attaching every comment to his own self. And that's not healthy. If he does this all the time.......I can imagine it straining the relationship.

Here's a suggestion. Try to avoid using the word **"you" **when trying to resolve conflicts. When we use the word "you" too much such as "You did this to me"...."You did that to me"........"Why can't you do this?" "Oh so now you are are going to do that".........."What is your problem?" .............It makes the other person MORE DEFENSIVE and the discussion becomes a heated argument.

So, try using "I" instead. Limit your use of "you" and see if that helps. Instead of saying "Now you're going to leave because of a communication flaw." Try saying "I think WE can both work together to sort this miscommunication problem because it wasn't intentional."

I don't know how effective this strategy will be. It's comforting to just forget the formalities and be yourself...even during stressful times....around the people you love. If this is happening often enough where he refuses to trust you or give you the benefit of the doubt no matter how many times you clarify yourself......maybe it's time to evaluate your relationship.

Re: Being misjudged?

^that is exactly my point redvelvet. I cannot be this formal. If we are together and I am always trying to patch up things, then atleast TRUST me on that I wana fix things and sort out the miscommunications. He/she wants to as well. But what happens is when he/she starts talking about it, it turns out, it is not just one miscommunication but a combination of many bottled up. Usually, he/she discusses things by beating AROUND the bush and then coming to the main point. In this whole scenerio, I get totally lost and get even more confused and as a result, there is more miscommunication. So when I try to clarify further, it's like "OH MAN..you just don't get it!.." and his/her frustration kicks in, as a result I feel hurt and I sit there cry for hours.

It is not fair to me that things were not spoken up about at the right time. Now I am being bombarded with one thing after another, confirmed guilty until I prove myself innocent. It is so overwhelming that I am unable to justify myself. If I can't justify myself, he/she leaves because we can't communicate at the same level.

Sit him down AND talk to him. And this time, please KEEP IT SIMPLE. All you need to tell him is:

1) I have taken your points into consideration and I'm trying to work on myself.

2) I apologize if the things that I said hurt you. I want to assure you that I had no intentions to hurt you.

3) In the future, I request that you please address issues with me when they occur. Keeping issues bottled up and discussing them with at a much later point when I might not even remember what I said won't help either of us.
When you have doubts about something I said, just ask me what I mean and I'll clarify it.

4) We both need to have trust in this relationship. For example, if you clarify something or apologize to me......and if I doubt your sincerity and words....then how will we move past issues. We can't tell what another person's intentions are. Only we know what our own intentions are. And so there should be trust. If we can't even trust each other when we apologize......then that's not healthy. We have to pick and choose our battles and learn to assume the best of each other. Imagine if we jumped to negative conclusions about every single thins said by our parents, siblings, coworkers. It would be difficult to maintain relationships. Let's work toward ending arguments....as opposed to making them bigger.

Just plan out what you want to say in advance......this way you won't sound jumbled up and confused and going off on all different topics. Discuss the above 4 points with him.....and listen to what he says. If he gets mad....and starts to accuse you/not trust you/..........kindly tell him...."I had this discussion to solve problems and not to put blame or create another argument. I think we need a break to sort out our feelings and think about our relationship and how we're handling issues."

And then give him a break. If he starts yelling at you...accusing you...simply tell him,** "Sorry, but I'll be more open to communication when it can be done calmly and without hurling blame."** Then leave him alone. Do this when you see him getting in your face. This way, he'll know what behavior is not acceptable to you....and he might even think about how he conducts himself. He has to understand if he wants to be understood....there's a proper way to communicate it.

Is this recent behavior or was he always like this? Is he a friend or a boyfriend or a fiance? If you're so afraid that he's going to leave you, I'm assuming he's not your husband. Hula, if this is a persistent problem....you have to decide whether this relationship is worth the stress.

"Confirmed guilty before proven innocent".

If you have parallel lives, then he/she should understand you better. Do you really want to be constantly justifying yourself and proving yourself to someone who assumes you are guilty all the time? If you apologise sincerely, he/she should accept your apology. Do they accept it or not?

Being bombarded is not easy. It DOES end up making you confused and probably your head feels literally heavy too. I'm not surprised you end up crying. I hope this person is decent towards you when you end up crying.

Revelvet: He is my friend (now). We were considering each other for marriage. He liked me a lot and overtime I did as well. Things were really well for a year or so. He never complained about anything so i always thought, alhumdulillah, things are going well. Then I have no idea what happened. I was going through a life threatening surgery, my mind was just so overwhelmed that at times I felt like I did not want to face ANYTHING OR ANYONE. I would avoid my own family members. I think in this time period, he also went through a lot. Because he lives alone, it is possible he needed me to share things but found that I was not there for him. I wish I was there for him. Maybe that would've kept things on a much better scale.

yes MehnazQ..he is very kind to me when I cry and otherwise. He is just going through a really rough patch and I myself went through the roughest patch of my life with a huge surgery. In this time, he wanted to say so many things but couldn't because of my health. Then, things got piled up. When i started to get better, he brought up a few points but because I could sense the frustration plus I was VERY scared of losing him, I would just start crying at the mere mention of "something's wrong". Then he got frustrated that he can't even have a proper discussion with me because I keep crying. So when the discussion finally took place, I just could not take it. I started to get really sick again..lost my appetite, couldn't eat, and had abnormal uterine bleeding from the stress. At this point, I let him know that this is too much for me to take but the build-up was KILLING him, so I asked him to just let it all go and that we should just move on with our lives.

I feel like I have lost the most amazing person I know. I could've just heard him out or be there for him. My life just never gave me a chance.

Re: Being misjudged?

Hulahoop Queen- i have been reading this thread because i can relate to the way you are feeling.

My ex ( im assuming he is ure ex, im a little confused by the he/she thing) used to act in exactly the same way, and in our relationship, i was going through a bad patch due to other things in my life and i shut myself off and he had to constantly reassure me without me being there for him, there were many many other flaws in our relationship and in him which i see now. ( different story)

But when i was with him and he used to constantly judge me and tell me to do things this way and that way and have frustation in his voice and when i used to fight back i would still be the bad one becaus i was too emotional it just made me feel insecure!

What im trying to say is dont be so harsh on yourself, dont think that you are always wrong, do not put this man on a pedistal and think whatever he says about you is right. Look inside yourself and find all the good things about you, once you start feeling secure and confident sticking up for yourself wont be an issue and his words will no longer affect you.

I used to be the same, from the fear of losing this man i would try and mould myself into what he claimed he wanted me to be, not being myself actually made our relationship worse because i was never happy.

I dont know if i have got the right end of the stick! so i am confused then ignore my post.

Re: Being misjudged?

^I dont know alvena. At this point, many things he brought up make sense. I just want to learn from this so I don't repeat the same mistake. First of all, I need to learn to put myself behind even if I am going through rough times just so I can be there for someone else. Hard to do, but I guess that is how relationsips are maintained and kept.

I also need to figure out how to deal with something hurtful and so emotionally sensitive like this. I need to be able to confront smtng sensitive like this without crying. I don't know. He is so close to my heart that just the thought of losing him would KILL me. And thats exactly what happened. I am so crushed and to top that of, I am guilty of losing him.

Re: Being misjudged?

Oh and one more thing...he ALWAYS told me good things about me. He has a huge hand behind my confidence and self esteem. He went through a lot in the past 5-6 months that he had reached his threshold.

Did I do the right thing by letting him go for his own sake? He wanted to have the 'discussion' but he was not discussing things without being frustrated and that was really hurting me. He was hurt and in the process I was hurt because he was hurt..:S

So, we have decided to move on with our lives. I decided that i will not give up contact with him because I sincerely intend to try and be there for him in this hard time without expecting anything in result. I know I am not going to get him but if I can be there for him, even in ONE thing, I would feel grateful.

Re: Being misjudged?

Hey hoolahoop, when you are going through a rough patch, you are number 1. Do not feel any guilt in putting yourself first. All humans do it and you cant be superwoman. How can you sort someone else out when you arent sorted out yourself. You were not being selfish.

Remember what doesnt kill you makes you stronger, this whole experience will make you stronger.

With my ex, who used to start his sentance like...'there is something we need to talk about' and the tears would start flowing just because of fear he would let go of me.

But now i am stronger, i am stronger because i was able to let go and work on me, and learn my mistakes on my own.

I know what your talking about when it comes to guilt, if i was like this..then it would be different. if i didnt do that he would still want me...etc.

But that guilt goes with time because you have to realise that it wasnt all your fault, im sure of that from the way you are describing things, its not like you cheated on him.

I know how your feeling honestly because not too long ago (2 months back) i was in your shoes ( i have a huge thread on here if you want to read it).

You will not die without him, you do not need him to make you feel good, you do not need him to approve of you because you are worth it, yes we all have improvements to make to ourself but the person you are with brings out the best in you not puts you down constantly and if it hurts you, you have reason to fight back.

If he pointed out things and you think oh thats true....then change them, but for you not for him, for you because it will mean nothing and wont last.

Lots of people told me this, and i used to think, no the only thing that motivates me is him....but i am so thankful to those who pushed me (on this forum) and my friends and family who encouraged to me love myself and change and improve myself for me.

PM me if you want to! i know what you are going through.

Re: Being misjudged?

Take what he says about you with a grain of salt. Sometimes, they say things that simply are not true. You do not need to tell your friends what happened, but ask them if they think you are selfish. Just to give you some perspective if this is just him saying this or if other people feel the same way about you. Other than that, listen to Alvena.

One other thing I want to point out is that when you are sick, then the other person should be there for you. You should not be expected to be there for him when you can't even take care of yourself.

Re: Being misjudged?

^I asked every single person in my life..close friends, far friends, relatives, even MY BOSS, if thats how I am. My best friend and mom agreed that i need to work on the 'crying' thing. But I have been like that since I was a kid. I used to cry rivers watching movies. I used to cry when I would get in trouble with my fav teacher. If my mom gets upset at me, I get all teary eyed. I cannot hold bk my tears when I feel hurt over smtng...it's just a 'physically' impossible thing for me to do. Noone agreed on the other aspects and things he mentioned. I feel bad though..like I shouldve just let him say what he wanted to, afterall, I always said everything I wanted to.

Anyways, I am hurt but InshAllah I know I will move on.

Re: Being misjudged?

I can understand how you feel. My reaction to someone asking me to prove themselves is simply none.

The people who dont love you will constantly ask you to prove yourself to them...the people who do love you...never have to.

Dont take things so personally, so quickly. :)