Blinking as a coping technique

Has any of you guys ever used eye blinking as a technique while talking to other people.
I know most of us rarely if ever blink while talking to people but, today I noticed while I was having a conversation the other party blinking at a very high rate so I started to, it helped me make eye contact with less frustration and still be in touch with the subject being talked over. Maybe try it and see. It fills the empty mind with an activity that seems very normal to others. For me I will use it as long as I remember to.

One of my tdocs was specialised in ptsd. The therapy sessions where through counseling for combat vets. VVCS (vietnam veterans counselling service). Dad was a vietnam vet and therapy was free to their children. Anyway one day she was talking about EMDR: Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing for one of her clients who was a vet. I mentioned something similar on rapid blinking seems to lessen some of my SZ symptoms when I remember to do it. She wasn’t that surprised. Hardest thing is being well enough to remember to do it.

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Quit interesting, I think we need to set a reminder for that as it really helped me do eye contact for the first time in years. Thank you for your input

Supposedly, in conversations, women blink more often than men.

And people with contacts.

I’m going to try the blinking if I look at someone long enough to do that.

I have been told by my psychologist and friends that my level of eye contact is very strange. I stare into people’s eyes and hardly blink. Like the entire time one of us is speaking. I find it offensive if someone doesn’t look me in the eye. It makes me think that they are weak.

I don’t know what this means. I should research it.

I read that news anchors are trained to blink about once a second because this “makes them look trustworthy.”

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I have autism (if someone could clarify whether or not I’d still be classified as autistic after being diagnosed with schizophrenia that would be great) and sometimes it’s just really difficult for me to maintain eye contact. I believe lack of eye contact is also a negative symptom of schizophrenia. For me it just feels too personal sometimes, like I might be giving off the wrong sort of message by looking them in the eyes the whole conversation. Then anxiety will creep in and I don’t know where to look. It was worse when I was younger, though. Now it’s not really a problem unless I’m feeling anxious about who I’m talking to.