Avoiding extended family. Anual get together today

I know where you're coming from Chris. I hate that I'm of an age whereby most of those type of events are no longer on the horizon because there's no players left, but I used to totally dread those family get-togethers. We had them for birthdays, pre-christmas and sometimes just for the heck of it, mostly on my mother's side. There were hoards of them and I seemed to be the odd one out. I didn't mix, I was extremely moody and thought everybody hated me. They probably did because I was a irritable, self centered, attention seeking little brat, but somehow they never seemed to show it. They were too busy enjoying themselves to notice that I was suffering!

@Chris - I suspect there's a few of around here at the moment who are dreading the next couple of days for similar reasons as yours. Anyone else concur?

Given you can anticipate the intensity of Thursday (17 people!? I hope you're not having to cook and feed them all!?) is there anything you can do before and/or after to reduce your anxiety so it doesn't have to last longer than it has to?

I, myself, notice that I phase in & out of being present in these types of big group situations. I think it's my coping mechanism to allow myself some brain space and not overload.

I always do the dishes at these types of events - it's often a job no one else wants to do, which means 30-40 mins of quiet time to myself 🙂 Just stare out the window and go through the motions of washing.

Am I odd?