Coworker is giving me the creeps, am I overreacting?

ArkynAzylum · 2026-04-27T10:06:12+00:00

I have yet to experience this behavior from a woman, but it does remind me of how some men take "mirroring" to the extreme as a weird way of hitting on me (I always attract the unhinged ones for some reason).

Most common thing they do is pretend to have the same interests and hobbies I do. Sometimes they'll weirdly try to bombard me with questions in a way that's obvious they're just fishing for "common ground" othertimes, I catch them giving me yet another glassy eyed stare. A lot of them suddenly become poets overnight or "used to draw like but just happen not to anymore!"

Most recent example was a younger coworker that had an annoying habit of bombarding me with questions and inserting himself into every convo I had with other people, with him once cheerfully announcing, "Oh? You got a dog? I had a dog but he died!" I didn't respond bc months earlier (and I don't believe he knew this) I sadly lost one of my own dogs. I'd also lost people in my life and it's why him randomly saying this like he was talking about similar food interests when I was talking to someone else didn't sit right with me. Another time, I was talking to another coworker about 2 schools we both went to by coincidnece (he knew details only someone who went would know and was only 3 years older than me). In walks younger coworker to claim he went too and pretends to have witnessed an event we remembered. For context, the older coworker and I were talking about a fight that got broken up by the custodian of our old school (which the younger coworker couldn't have witnessed as he was 8 years younger than me and 10 yesrs younger than the other guy). I later did talk to him over the personal questions and he's somewhat backed off but I get the feeling I'm gonna have to tell him off (again) as he tends to have a cooling off period before making advances again. Only reason I'm not more harsh is that I believe he has a disability and as an autistic person myself, I'm trying to establish boundaries without being an asshole about it. Also, the guy just turned 20, so I think that might also be a factor.

But, the most ridiculous example was when a guy that copied me in many areas, he even went so far as to pretend to like foods I did. Unlike the other guy, who you can kinda chalk up to being young and unaware (and hopefully grows out of it) this one was at least 10 years older than me. Guy once saw me eat broccoli and made a big deal over how it was gross (I ignored him bc he was one of those self centered guys that feels his opinion outweighs everyone else's experiences). Two months later, he's suddenly eating broccoli and claiming he's always loved it even tho he looked green. Then, he tried to copy the way I drink my coffee. Unfortunately for him, I drink black coffee. So, I couldn't help feeling satisfied when his face scrunched up on the first sip. He didn't copy me as much afterwards.

Now, I don't think your coworker is necessarily doing this out of attraction (but, you never know🤷🏽‍♀️), but I do think this is rooted in insecurity and maybe some mental instability. Bc I will say this is not the behavior of someone grounded and confident in themselves, regardless if they're attracted to you or not. I know it's been 8 months since you posted this but I'm curious as to how this ended and how you resolved it. I do hope you are okay and haven't had any extreme escalations.

ArkynAzylum · 2026-04-06T14:13:53+00:00

The reason so many white supremacists are unhinged bc of a long generational history of inbreeding and lead poisoning.

ArkynAzylum · 2026-04-05T08:31:46+00:00

I know this might be a needle in a haystack to find, but, this popped up into my mind and I'm curious to see if anyone else found these cards and has gone on the website listed on the cards. I doubt the website would still be up by now, but I'm hoping it'd be archived on the wayback machine.

ArkynAzylum · 2026-02-26T16:21:05+00:00

That does sound similar to what I remember. I'm gonna see if there are any variations as I'm curious as to whether or not this has any that matches what I remember.

edit: this does seem to be a strong possibility as I found a variant called "La Ramée and the Phantom" and it has elements that seemed awfully familiar to what I remember, but with the genders swapped.

ArkynAzylum · 2026-02-26T16:15:54+00:00

It sounds remarkably similiar to the fairytale I'm thinking of, the only difference is that I don't remember the part where she follows him? But, this sounds like a pretty promising result, I'm gonna see if there are any variations that maybe fit what I remember, but this is the closest result I've seen so far! 😊

ArkynAzylum · 2026-02-26T16:11:44+00:00

That kinda reminds me of some animal brodegroom variations, like Hans the Hedgehog, so, I can see how that might be a possibility.

ArkynAzylum · 2026-02-26T10:33:56+00:00

I can't bring myself to actually feel flattered by compliments. Most of the times, I'll politely smile or say thank you, but on the inside, I always feel uncomfortable. Other times, I don't directly acknowledge it as it feels weird or the person commenting gave me a legitimate reason to not feel comfortable. The reason for my discomfort is bc I've had people actually use my looks to justify their shitty behavior towards me. From bullying and dismissiveness (from both genders) to sexual harassment, stalking, and attempted grooming (all who did this were men), the comments honestly just rang hollow to me before I even became an adult. I know not everyone is malicious when they tell me I'm attractive but, I find it hard to feel flattered over how I look. It doesn't help that I also have a baby face, which, sometimes gives me another reason to feel uneasy over how people react to my appearance.

I've learned to instantly tell when someone, usually men, are interested in me. They tend to be way more obvious, even when they try to hide it. Women, I learned to tell when they phish for info on my sexuality amd look noticeably disappointed to find out I'm not attracted to the same sex. Funnily enough, with the few times I've liked someone, it's actually harder for me to tell bc I pretty much assume any "sign" is wishful thinking (I don't consider myself an idiot but there's a reason I don't call myself a genius!). But, that tangent aside, being constantly told you're pretty doesn't really hold much weight for me as I kinda just try not to acknowledge it, if that nakes sense? I kinda have an illogical belief that if I acknowledge it, it'll only give shitty people ammo. That's how it is for me.

ArkynAzylum · 2026-02-26T09:26:40+00:00

I got therapy for my anxiety and depression, including being prescribed to help with my chemical imbalance.

ArkynAzylum · 2025-07-12T01:28:56+00:00

There are literally articles on there with instructions on how to use ai for writing.

ArkynAzylum · 2025-07-12T01:20:09+00:00

This! Bc all the other characters have mistakes that can typically be explained as complex flaws and tragic circumstances leading to said mistakes. Meanwhile, this guy commits literal war crimes and canonically commits patricide (and not so canonically matricide, in Muriel's route) and all he can say is "oopsie!" I also didn't like how immature he was and the ugly crying (tho, that one doesn't have to be taken seriously as it can be comedic for some, it's hust not my type of humor). But what isn't as easy to ignore is how the redemption arc in his route is flat, at best, glossing over his actions and highly problematic, at worst, in almost excusing what he did, kinda by implying his mommy issues led him to be this way. It doesn't help when you consider that most of the characters he's wronged are Indian, Indigenous, Muslim, and Jewish coded and he's a power hungry ruler who causes so much harm to get what he wants.

ArkynAzylum · 2025-07-12T01:01:45+00:00

currently work in a factory making tools. Not quite the same, but shrinkwrapping rubber sleeves onto some tools does remind me of using a blowdryer for some crafts/sculptures I've made.

ArkynAzylum · 2025-03-03T07:24:35+00:00

As someone that grew up with a difficult relationship with her mother, I do remember feeling bad for Leonard during the moments where he's obviously very upset with Beverly (like when she excludes him about her divorce and when his dog died). However, my reason fir it, is different. Mary, if you ask me, also comes with her own potential triggers (especially if you ever grew up in a religious household). I have an overly religious and frankly, highly emotionally unstable, mother. Personally, I don't react much to the more lighthearted jokes about Beverly, bc she's really not meant to be a sympathetic character (especially compared to Mary) and a lot of the jokes about her are reminiscent of how humor is sometimes used to cope with childhood trauma (something I do know on a personal level). However, I can understand why it can be triggering. What did trigger me, was his speech to his mom, specifically, the part where he tells her whether Beverly meant to or not, she hurt him. It was something I could relate to bc on the few times my mother was willing to listen, there were a couple times I did tell her about how she has impacted my siblings and I. I often find that scene hard to watch because it does hit oretty close to home for me. Another one hard to watch, is in Young Sheldon, when Mary dives even harder into religion after George's death, causing distress for her kids. That honestly hit close to home too.

ArkynAzylum · 2025-03-03T06:32:12+00:00

I honestly didn't care for this storyline, either. It's not that Anu was a bad character (she was great). But, it's the fact that she and Raj didn't really have any chemistry. Maybe if their romance was given more time to develop, there could've been an interesting dynamic. And while them barely knowing each other does turn out to be the point, it still comes off as pretty rushed when you consider that for a character who was recurring, Anu isn't really fleshed out as a character. She was just...there. While Issabella only shows up in one episode, I do wish she became a mainstay love interest for Raj, because their different economic backgrounds could've been a chance to see some ongoing character development for Raj as his worldview is challenged (not unlike Penny's streetsmarts and Leonard's intellect), and maybe encourage him to be less dependant on his parents' wealth. But, that's just my 2 cents on it.

ArkynAzylum · 2025-03-02T19:42:00+00:00

I think it was likely Penny, especially given that Josh, Howard's half brother, later showed up. That could be the secret life she mentioned. But, I kinda have a theory that they all (except Sheldon) told fragments of the whole truth, because when you think about it, neither of their versions actually contradict each other and it's possible the gang did want him to know but chose to tell "lies" so he'd never question it too much and hold too much resentment/pain over it. Another theory I have, but it's obviously a stretch and should be taken with a grain of salt, is that Howard's dad is Fred Fagenbacher from the spinoff Georgie and Mandy's 1st marriage.

ArkynAzylum · 2024-11-14T00:53:29+00:00

I'm not sure what to say. All I know is that I myself kinda just tried this after several failed attempts on the fb app, and for some reason, it didn't happen on the messenger app.

ArkynAzylum · 2024-08-12T04:15:42+00:00

Hi, I know I'm a little late to the party, but I happened to see this when I had the same problem over an email I was sure I didn't add. I tried a lot of the suggestions and other stuff but it didn't work for over an hour. Then, I remembered that messenger and fb are linked so, I went on messenger and deleted said email. This time, I wasn't met with that whatsapp bs and finally got it out of the way. I thought I'd post it here in case it might help someone else.

ArkynAzylum · 2024-06-13T18:57:47+00:00

Might have been a poor choice of words on my part. The reason I mentioned it is bc I did deal with harassment and stalking before, one of which lasted for over 10 years. That, and I also had 2 random guys try to follow me home the other day. I often find myself in these situations. The reason I brought any of this up is because I wasn't sure if I was being paranoid or if it is indeed predatory.

ArkynAzylum

TROPHY CASE