Fleeting

[Division56]

It seems with INTPs, all emotions are fleeting. We can't seem to pin them long enough to sustain them.

For example, when I get angry, it's more of a very bright flash in the pan. Intense emotions quickly followed by emptiness.


The only time that I'm really able to have strong emotions for a long time is when I'm depressed. And even then they're not too noticeable, I just can't think for shit and I feel lethargic.


Any opinions?

[CosmicDust]

Every once in a while, I can sustain a mood for more than 24 hours. It's a rare event, though. More often I'll have moods/emotional states that last several hours/a good portion of a day, but short lived states are much more common.

I doubt what I describe is just an INTP thing. I'm disappointingly non-weird sometimes...

[paladinoflunaria]

Every once in a while, I can sustain a mood for more than 24 hours. It's a rare event, though. More often I'll have moods/emotional states that last several hours/a good portion of a day, but short lived states are much more common.

I doubt what I describe is just an INTP thing. I'm disappointingly non-weird sometimes...That's on the button.

[shaytana]

Every once in a while, I can sustain a mood for more than 24 hours....

:o 24 hours for a single mood?

I have a constant mixture of subtle moods with me at all times. The only time that there is only one mood present is when it is the flash of rage that div mentioned, but that only lasts a few minutes at the most (more often just a few seconds)

[CosmicDust]

Well, the mood may recur and be part of the mix for more than 24 hours - e.g., I could be somewhat hyper for a few days, but there is variation on top of that, the energy/excitement mixing with other stuff. Again, it doesn't happen often. My background is usually neutral gear.

[alex]

I'm pretty much the same. Neutral most of the time and if anything lasts it's going to be melancholy.

From a zen point of view this is pretty advantageous... I think a lot of people have to work very hard to get rid of emotional charging in order to be more objective.

Despite that, I'm actually quite jealous of people who live passionately day after day. Maybe living passionately is a bit different than being moody though :)

[Vagabond]

I don't quite experience it as inability to get in a mood and stay in it; I mostly see it as an ability to ran the hell out of a mood/emotion when I feel like I should. I have been through my periods of total apathy, when I wished I felt *anything* and couldn't, however once I get in an emotion I could stay in it. The question is, why would I want to do such a thing.

[Jkrs]

When I have emotions strong enough to force me to notice them, they're usually too intense to sustain for long. Mostly negative, as well.

Usually it's difficult to differentiate between my moods, beyond whether I'm feeling agreeable or not, and possibly how much energy I have available.

[antireconciler]

Hmm. Usually if I'm not feeling anything at all, it's more neutral-good than just neutral. Maybe feeling background neutral or nothing feels somewhat good. If something affects me, it, more often than not, is positive, and almost seem to reinforce feeling neutral-good. Bad stuff that I deal with immediatly and appropriately has the same result. If I can really say I feel nothing, I'm depressed in some way. Period. It's not that I actually feel nothing, simply that I'm hiding from whatever's got me down. Maybe I've unconsciously let small stuff build up without dealing with it. Something that hits me hard can take me up to 8 hours of repressing the feeling before I start facing it, sometimes even when I know it's there and am actively trying to fight it. I don't feel that way often.

[Division56]

Despite that, I'm actually quite jealous of people who live passionately day after day. Maybe living passionately is a bit different than being moody though.


:lol:



I feel a bit jealous too.

[Odyssey]

I envy (with a passion!) a life of passion, as well. To this point in life, I have sustained passion for up to several hours depending on the task at hand. I usually get at least two solid hours worth of passion a day, though often of a "dispassionate passion variety"... where I can think very clearly and logically but I'm simultaneously highly motivated and slightly aware of an inner burning or urge.

As for neutral... In normal circumstances I can become so at will, but in stressful circumstances neutral-mood is an uncontrolled defensive reaction. On a daily basis, I habitually check into my moods and that of others. Either I have large daily mood/emotion shifts, or I have small shifts and I'm just very sensitive to them. Intense emotions rarely frighten me because I'm confident (finally!) in my ability to control my expressions of them to a proper amount, and to keep a minimum level of sensibility in my head - by observing and accepting my own state so as to gain insight from it, and then let it pass.

Oh, and to reply directly to Division: my only main fleeting emotions are 1) anger, 2)helplessness, and 3) "a buzz of great excitement", and sometimes even those have extended stays. An intense emotions for me is followed by a subtle residue of the emotion, or of a different resulting emotion. After a flash of rage, I may sense a left-over charge of anger or instead a quiet churning of sadness... or both at the same time. All I know is that at any given moment, I can quickly tune into my mood with adequate precision, and I rarely feel neutral.

~Odyssey

[paladinoflunaria]

I do not envy a life of passion.


...however once I get in an emotion I could stay in it. The question is, why would I want to do such a thing.

Emotions carry people away from logic, and since the universe exists primarily to be understood, and logic is the system of understanding, emotions go away from purpose, and that is silly.

I will admit that on rare occasion, when Fe comes to get me, I do envy a life of passion. I remind that this is during those rare occasions when I'm carried away from logic.

[Odyssey]

I do not envy a life of passion.
...
Emotions carry people away from logic, and since the universe exists primarily to be understood, and logic is the system of understanding, emotions go away from purpose, and that is silly.

I would like to heartily disagree with that logic =)

I would propose:
A) True, being overcome by intense emotions prevents good logic.
B) The universe exists primarily to be understood? Sure, that's your choice of meaning.
C) Yes, logic is a tool for understanding the physical universe.

D) No, emotions do not necessarily dectract from the ideal of understanding the universe. In fact, passion is one emotion that allows you to focus intensely and productively on a single goal - which enables you to make meaningful sacrifices and take risks in pursuit of that desired goal. The other option is to change one's aims erratically, so that no goal ever gets achieved, and (in this case) understanding of any part of the universe remains superficial. Note that the goal cannot be to understand the universe; that is an unreachable ideal. Emotional qualities like passion and persistence can help to focus one's ideal into a realistic goal, and maintain one's focus on the goal. Without specification, logic can run around being as rational as it wants, but little of anything meaningful will be understood without utilization of beneficial emotions.

The important thing is that emotions guide a person towards an problem or subject where he/she would be most motivated to apply logic, with no intention of emotions actually influencing the logical process. Certain emotions (inspiration, passion, curiosity, etc.) put the ladder on the wall -and keep it there-, while logic climbs the ladder. This analogy works best in the context of 'learning to understand some aspect of the universe', where the ladder is a subject.

How much sense does this argument make?

~Odyssey

[cloakable]

Emotions are primarily your subconcious feeding you information, for example fear means that (in my exp) something that could be a threat is nearby. I always pay attention to my emotions - they are a good source of information that I could not get otherwise. However, I am not very good at understanding emotion - perhaps better than an average INTP, but only because I have put a lot of time in on the subject.

[Avengardh]

I have been through my periods of total apathy, when I wished I felt *anything* and couldn't...The question is, why would I want to do such a thing.

Totally what is happening to me now...and what has happened to me throughout my life.
Apathy is mostly what stays with me, although this time around it's been with me longer than ever before (either that or I blocked more apathetic times).

Other times I am about 70% sad, and the other 30% is just a mix of hyperness/happiness/madness/neutralness.
I can never stay mad at those I love for too long, if they apologize and I know I am right.

~*Aven*~

[Jkrs]

Addendum: Thanks Odyssey, I forgot one.

Curiousity & interest (and maybe annoyance) seem to be the only emotions I experience in a moderate amount on a regular basis. They can be extremely intense, but usually aren't. This seems to stretch the amount of time they can be kept up significantly.


I don't envy a life of passion; I wouldn't know what to do with it. I'm still learning how to work with the brief + intense emotions noted above.
I do, however, envy the ability of those who live passionately to deal with strong emotions.

[flan2dave]

I don't regard myself as lacking emotion. The important dynamic is that I want to deal with my emotions on my own terms. I do not go to others to cheer me up, or help me work through anything I'm frustrated with. Likewise I'm not apt to share any interests that I'm particularly excited about. Usually that's because it's something fleeting (I'm not trying to make any connection with the topic title), hard to understand, and I can't quite put into words why I find it fascinating. Of course, this type of thought processes wouldn't be possible without emotion. In personality theory terms, it's a supportive function.

I fear sharing my feelings would draw more criticism than voices of understanding. I would be called self-centered, delusional, disrespectful, etc. Probably not literally called names, but I would be lectured under the idea that I fall into one or more negative categories to some extent. Since I have no outlet, these emotions will leak and affect me in one way or another. Maybe one day it will make me irratable and angry around people, another I might especially appreciate seclusion, another just plain apathetic.

[Birdsnest]

This seems odd having to explain this, but I think my feelings are also fleeting.

Its like when I am with one person, I am in bond mode, and when I am alone I am not missing a thing. In other words I do not feel loneliness very often, so I can function slightly better on my own than in relationships I guess.

With anger, or when I have to act like I'm mad at my kids, I am never really angry, so I have to put on an act, but its pitiful, I will yell, and the next instant I am completely calm, that type of parental anger is completely fluff, and I can switch back to being calm instantly, because i never really was mad at all, I don't normally really feel anger towards my kids.

I dislike strong feelings, & I do what I can to get out of them asap, and often I know myself enough to realize if I take a nap it will go away. (So naps are one of my secrets of survival, and dreams often help too).

In the initial stages of relationships, like when you fall in love at first, that feeling lasts, yet I know it won't last too long, so I try to capture it in poetry or songs on the piano. I generally want to make those feelings last, but do not want to make jealousy or anger last, about a person that I just don't get along with. I don't harbor grudges, and I think most people can change no matter what they've done. (Unless they are really out of their minds-psycho).

I need calm thoughts, and I am often working to balance the outer world so I have a soft inner thought voice, and its there to calm me in a factual soft cooperational tone.

I would say my most common emotion is calm clear happy content mind, maybe a little bit boring to most, but I am always seeking to learn more, so I try to reframe what I learn so it works for me.

I try to put "intention" into things almost like intend something will happen. I spend a lot of time going through and finding "the best of this, the best of that" so I am clear on what I do or don't like. I spend time trying to adapt and accept my fate as it is, and then if I balance what I already have with what I want by visualizing what I want, it kind of draws that into my life. I tell myself to "Watch the donut not the hole" in other words, and that keeps me busy.

[Miss Padfoot]

Here are some of my more common strong emotional states:
-Really strong anger, very brief. Rarely lasts more than half an hour. Somehow I still try to hold the anger in - I have developed a Te-ish way of trying to disguise passionate anger as dispassionate anger by letting it out only in sarcastic remarks with slightly twisted logic. This is especially true when I think I am being treated unfairly and that someone (read: my XXTJ mother) is making unreasonable demands on me.
-If this anger is not resolved, and I am never satisfied that I'm being treated fairly and the demands on me are reasonable, I can develop a lasting trend of righteous indignance, wherein I adopt a contrarian attitude and act cold to the authority figure at fault. However, if the authority figure has the power to say "If you don't do X by this deadline, you can't do Y," and doing Y is extremely important to me, I usually bite the bullet and tell them, in essence, "I'll hate you for this later," then I go and meet the deadline (whilst complaining loudly and hopefully being enough of a pain to convince the authority figure not to try this manipulation trick on a regular basis), do Y, and find that I'm completely over the grudge.
-Disappointment or elation. Not nearly as strong as the anger. Usually results from some piece of good or bad news and lasts for about 8 hours at most.

I'm really awful at detecting my subtle moods. Every time I post in my LJ, I look at all the different options for moods and I'm completely overwhelmed. Half the time I leave it blank.

[TPol]

I'm fairly new to this website, so I'm probably dredging up old threads everyone thought they were done with. :whistle: But, I have a question related to this thread.

I am very even-keeled. I am stuck in "neutral gear" (as mentioned earlier in this thread) much of the time. When I have emotions, they are fleeting and not intense. I sometimes play with "demonstrating intense emotions" in order to get a point across (shock value), but logic is always ruling in the background. Like Birdsnest, I can pull out of it fairly easily because it wasn't "real" in the first place. I'm curious. It seems to me that people from both sides of the fence think it's a little greener on the other. Have you ever experienced where people look at your calmness or laid back nature and been jealous that they cannot "control their emotions" a little better? [Yes, for me.] And, have there ever been incidents where people tried to "crack your shell" by teasing, prodding, or even attacking you in order to get you to react? [Yes, for me.] Just wondering if this is an INTP thing.

[coffeezombie]

Yes, I often have brief strong flashes of emotion, but I try to use them to enhance my thinking abilities and to give them an edge. Otherwise, I'd be a very pedantic Thinker.

[Chukamuk]

...The only time that I'm really able to have strong emotions for a long time is when I'm depressed. And even then they're not too noticeable, I just can't think for shit and I feel lethargic...I was like that until I turn 39. When I did, depression hit me like I owed it money. I felt like someone had died and wished I'd be the next in line. I went to the doctor and he put me on Zoloft and I've been taking it ever since. Now I'm back to how you are now.

Anybody else medicated or am I just a freak? Scratch that. I'll always be a freak. Anybody else medicated like me?

[MacGuffin]

My emotions are fleeting. Sometimes to my detriment, as they can really be good motivation. And I am very unmotivated.

No medications here - except alcohol.

[Chukamuk]

...No medications here - except alcohol.Doc told me no more alcohol. He said it would only make my depression worse. That and I couldn't drive heavy machinery if I mixed it with the Zoloft.
:wacko:

[Clara]

I am very even-keeled. I am stuck in "neutral gear" (as mentioned earlier in this thread) much of the time. When I have emotions, they are fleeting and not intense. I sometimes play with "demonstrating intense emotions" in order to get a point across (shock value), but logic is always ruling in the background. Like Birdsnest, I can pull out of it fairly easily because it wasn't "real" in the first place. I'm curious. It seems to me that people from both sides of the fence think it's a little greener on the other. Have you ever experienced where people look at your calmness or laid back nature and been jealous that they cannot "control their emotions" a little better? [Yes, for me.] And, have there ever been incidents where people tried to "crack your shell" by teasing, prodding, or even attacking you in order to get you to react? [Yes, for me.] Just wondering if this is an INTP thing.
I'm wondering whether some of us might not be saying similar things, using different criteria for measuring, e.g. intensity -- and "neutral gear." Kind of like trying to gauge another's physical pain ... or emotional, for that matter. I'm also mind-boggled at the distinction ( compared to some unreal expectation, I think) of fleeting emotions. I think it's an inherent quality ( as I quickly review everyone I've ever known ) of emotions.

Unless you're thinking about a "forced" emotion, such as rage, which takes anger, and the choice to sustain/nurture it ?

My strong emotions... are as real as the milder ones. I wouldn't say logic is precisely what's always running in the background ( that's how I picture it, too, by the way :) ) ... a logical framework, I think, that leaves room for fitting into it an assorted variety of how people and things around me work. ( I just think that we do this process all the time, and that it works in tandem, or in relay, with whatever else is going on. Maybe. ) Being able to pull back, and use another perspective does not imply unfeeling, or even mild feeling -- I know this for a fact, from experience, and observation, and talking with others.

Yes, for me too, where you said the yeses. :) Don't you ever, also, do things to see what reaction someone will come up with ? Aren't you amazed, or surprised, at some of the creative ways they've reacted, sometimes ? That said, I'm in the fortunate situation of interacting mainly with people who appreciate subtle things like respect,* and "everyone needs some time to be all alone/ no interruptions or interactions".


* nuance : laughing at people one likes is respectful, here ( elsewhere too )

[nBT]

fleeting
good description

someone remarked: whow, ur enthuesiastic now, it scared her.

real life debate and emotions go hand in hand. i have to watch out that it wont take over the logic.

i have a friend who cracked my shell, not meant to harm me though. i told him afterward (after lying on the bed for 20 minutes) that he should be careful doing that. rather not do it agian. (hes an NF)

[seosirsu]

hello,everyone!

[Niffer]

It seems with INTPs, all emotions are fleeting. We can't seem to pin them long enough to sustain them.

For example, when I get angry, it's more of a very bright flash in the pan. Intense emotions quickly followed by emptiness.

The only time that I'm really able to have strong emotions for a long time is when I'm depressed. And even then they're not too noticeable, I just can't think for shit and I feel lethargic.


Erm. This actually happens to me too, except the emptiness is more like numbness.

[labcat]

Erm. This actually happens to me too, except the emptiness is more like numbness.

numbness...exactly. i remember trying to make myself cry when my grandparents died...to no avail.
i knew that dying was a natural thing that happens to everyone so what's so sad about that?
same here with the depression too. i'm on some generic something for the past two months...but i'm seriously thinking that i'd rather stop that and just go back to drinking. :cheers:

[KC85]

I dislike having fleeting moods. There have been times I've been depressed for several days but this normally happened after a traumatic experience or when I thought about past bad experiences too much. I find it hard to sustain anger toward someone. I think this is bad because people learn to stop doing things when there is punishment involved. In the case of relationships a person showing disappointment or anger for longer than five minutes. This is especially true for my sensing preference friends. I can relate to the having people prod to get an intense emotional response. It is like they think I'm in denial about my emotional reaction to life.