So, I just got off a call about ghosting and I wanted to extend this idea to a strategy that has actually worked for me when you come across new people or when out of the blue stuff like ghosting happens. Capitalizing off of @Elizabeth Ingalsbe and her post, this is a similar type of thing but removing a scale entirely. People are just that people at least to me. Anyone can lie, cheat etc. Just like anyone can also do good giving, caring etc. I think the razor here is consistent behaviour and wether the do eventually respond because people also get wrapped up in personal shit. When you stay in a neutral state and don’t hold people up when it isn’t warranted, then I feel like the pitfall is less harmful, not that you shouldn’t care about them, but that you should prioritize and respect your peace before letting someone in. Any thoughts on this?

First thing—relief. Real, immediate relief. No noise. No pressure. No expectations. No one draining you. You stop explaining yourself. You stop reacting. You finally breathe. Then comes the part no one talks about. Silence. And that silence can feel uncomfortable at first. Because you’re not distracted anymore. No chaos. No drama. No constant input. It’s just you. Which means you start facing yourself. How you think. What you tolerate. What you’ve been allowing. What your life actually looks like without everyone else in it. That’s where most people fold. They run back to the same people just to fill the space. If you don’t, something shifts. You start getting your energy back. Your time becomes yours again. You stop bending to people who never bent for you. You stop over-explaining, over-giving, overthinking. And you start seeing things clearly. Who was draining you. Who never respected you. Who only showed up when it suited them. Who you were pretending to be just to keep them around. That clarity is uncomfortable—but it’s clean. Then comes the real turning point. You stop asking, “Why are they like this?” And start asking, “Why did I keep allowing it?” That’s where control comes back. From there, you rebuild properly. Not by letting everyone back in—but by being selective. Ruthless, if needed. Because the goal isn’t to isolate forever. That’s just another extreme. The goal is to reset your standards so the wrong people don’t get access again. Cutting everyone off doesn’t magically fix your life. But it removes the constant interference so you can actually see what needs fixing. And once you’ve felt real peace—even briefly—you won’t tolerate the old chaos the same way again.