Do you hide a part of who you are?

I am an open book, but we have to be close for you to be able to get to the best chapters :-) Not everyone is supposed to be privy to the intimate details of your life, that's why they are intimate. It's okay to hold back some and let people earn your trust; sharing should be gradual.

Yes, I think this is something we all are, anyways. There is always that part of ourselves that only our closest family knows about us, our bad habits, the bad things that is us and so on. I mean we can be this kind of person when we are at home, but all our bad characteristics, we do not bring those with us when we go out. We are actually different with our friends - we put up a different person for every one to see, right? I think it is very hard to always be you when you are not at your home, especially. =)

I hve always been a naturally shy person and would suffer from so much embarrassment in case I was not dressed appropriately for an occasion etc. But over the years, I learnt to hide this fact and now have developed a persona where I hide my shyness - no matter what the situation is. But this took time but life is so much more fun when I socialise. I cannot be shy as meet a lot of people because of my son being in politics. So I have learnt to be welcoming and pleasant to everyone. Many blessings in this New Year.

I tend to think that I am just like you. I would also like to think that I'd do anything for another person if I truly cared for them. But the problem is that it would take a lot before that person could get to that stage for me. And the reason is similar to yours because I also hide behind a lot of masks. Not because I want to, but because I'd like to protect myself from un-necessary (heart)aches which I'd like to think that I've already learned from.

We are similar in a way. And I guess the experiences we had has something to do with what we have become. Trusting issues? Maybe. But I just want not to be hurt again that much.

I understand it must be hard to open up to anyone after heartache. It affects us all differently, i'm sorry for what you had to go through. It makes sense to feel hiding yourself will prevent you being hurt again. I suffered depression in my teen years and did likewise, but now i've moved forward. I don't hide myself, but i'm not an open book either.

I am very generous....and I hide that at times. I have found in the past that people have a tendency to take advantage of someone that loves giving to others....ex....my son just got a divorce...I helped them by cosigning for their house and helping with the down payment...I also bought alot of thing for them in their house....I went halves on a camper then halves on a brand new one.....I lost quite a bit of money on the deal....now my son has a new fiance....I do like her. But the last marriage I gave alot to my now ex DIL.....things I gave willingly but now I am very hesitant about doing to much again...anyway....

Aha, I hide that part too. Don't want the whole world coming around wanting something, when I only have so much to give. I want to choose who I give to and who I don't.

I think we all do this. Some are born with more protection than others, while others are born very open and accessable. The pain that we feel when others judge us seems to depend on how open we are. Those who are open often have no protection, the adults in their lives never really understand just how painful a life like that is. I don't know why this understanding is lost or hidden from adults, surly many of them were also born open. I think that adults who remain open are few and far between, isn't that a shame and wouldn't the world be a better place if the ability to love and care openly for each other remained open for all of us? Even if we can regain our open feelings from the hurts of childhood we never seem to get back to the place we were when we were born. It seems to be that if we can remember that we are all one, then we will attract others who also remember. Blessings

I tend to hide the critical part of me . . . only the ones who are are truly closest to me see this part. I think most people think I'm pretty open, social, and happy-go-lucky . . . but that's definitely my outer shell. People tend to be quite comfortable around me from the get go as it may seem that I mutually comfortable with them, but most times they don't know the "whole" me as much as they think. Inside, I can be negative, a hermit to some degree, and very emotional. But I won't show that side until a person becomes a trusted friend - and that for me is rare.

I think we all have our private selves which we don't want others to invade. Sometimes while watching or looking at presentations there is that part of me that critiques the whole thing and nobody knows about it. I would be having my observations to myself only because saying them would hurt others. Yes, there is that part of me, the critique in me that I have tamed over the years just to be at peace with others.

I am starting to be the same way as you and its the same exact thing that I am trying to only let certain people see and know. If they know I am too trusting or too nice they will take advantage of me easily. That is how I am having to think now as sad as that is to say... It mostly started with the room mate we had a long time ago that stole from us. For some reason I trusted him and thought better of him than that. Then we just let my cousin stay and although she didn't steal from us she could not be trusted just the same... Each time we help someone it seems we get crapped on. It stinks that we cannot be who we truly are but if we do we get hurt in the process... Just the way the world is now I guess, maybe I was meant to live years and years ago when you still could help people and they would truly appreciate it.

I feel that I hid certain things from certain people because I don't want them to know certain things about myself. I feel that they have no need to know about it and the only one that does is my husband because I do trust him with a lot of things but there are some things that I don't tell him. I also think part of everyone hides things at times from everyone if not someone.

I will not always tell everything about myself. I also faced some ordeal when I was younger and i always feel that I need to protect myself. I do love helping people, but will not give too much of myself.

I can't think of anything yet at the moment. I normally prefer to listen to others than telling others about myself. So, maybe that is the thing that I rarely shared. However, if someone I trusted, I will automatically shared everything - my joy, happiness, sadness, my dreams and visions. It is good that you hide that part of you because people might take advantage of you. We would not know who are genuine friends and who are not.