Schizoid & Empathic?

I mean... not really, but at the same time, kind of? I feel like I can understand people sometimes, but even when I do, it still doesn't matter. They're all so annoying and tedious that I often feel like flat out laughing in the face of the few people who ever try to engage me conversationally. Just because I "get" a thing or two doesn't mean I give a f-ck. Humanity is still repugnant - I think the few observations I've made regarding how people act over the years has reaffirmed this belief.

...so I guess what I'm getting at there is the difference with sympathy and empathy. There's often a lot of crossover, but there doesn't necessarily need to be. Empathy? Meh, not really. Sympathy? Not bloody likely!*

* imagine that part was spoken in a ghastly English accent. And the word "ghastly," too.

I do better on sympathy than empathy. I'm not great at it, but if someone is upset, I can talk them down from it. I can be a sounding board for someone who wants one, but if they're ranting or upset I tend to try to offer solutions, because other people showing emotions makes me uncomfortable and anxious. I try to "fix" it.

I used to have a high degree of empathy. Far too much of it as well, I found it hard to be happy when I knew half way across the world somebody was dying of hunger this very second. I think I've matured in my own way now. I acknowledge that terrible things happen every day but I don't get sad - at least not like I used to. Now I more just sigh internally and shake my head, I can't change it and things aren't going to get better for some people and there simply isn't anything I can do to change that.

My Grandpa and Grandmother died the same year 3 years ago i didn't even react. Other than knowing that dying is sad and so i acted like i gave a damn.

I stumbled onto this post, because I searched for schizoid and empathic - I basically find myself in the same situation! I match nearly all the descriptions for being schizoid except for the one that says that people with SPD are bad at recognizing emotions. I have trouble expressing my own emotions, but I do know what I’m feeling and I recognize feelings in other people well - it’s one of my main defensive mechanisms. It’s actually a little annoying at times: because I read what the person is feeling instead of what they are saying, I will have trouble communicating with someone who is lying for any reason (even if it’s just being polite) - I get stumped as I decide whether to answer their words or emotions. As for helping people - I trained myself a long time ago to ask myself if I have the energy to help them without sabotaging myself (sorry for all the “myselfs” in that sentence). Because of this I have noticed that I now experience more cognitive empathy rather than affective - it used to be more affective, but that’s more dangerous.

As for being schizoid - it’s strange to read about your own thought processes on Wikipedia and other places written out so well and on one page. I never thought that those seemingly unrelated things could add up to schizoid. (And shame on the people who imply that you’re just trying to fit yourself into a group - as if there is anything pleasant in this diagnosis - they don’t offer a cure for it!)

I’m guessing there are different types of empathy and different levels of schizoidness and they can combine in unique ways.