high energy/low energy

[miss fortune]

I've been wondering for a bit if there really is such a thing as a high energy person or, I suppose the opposite would be a low energy person... is it a personal characteristic or is it a reaction to life circumstances or a bit of both?

I keep getting described as high energy by people... I'm comfortable on the move, making things happen or making sure that they flow efficiently... described a few times as someone who, even when still, appears to have a lot of energy waiting under the surface... waiting to jump into action for some reason.

Except for when on a daily drinking schedule or when seriously depressed I've ALWAYS been that way... a very active child and teenager who was always up to something. To be any other way is somehow kind of incomprehensible to me...

I realize that not everyone is the same way or it wouldn't be something that is often commented on and a lot of people seem rather content to sit still and just relax. Is this a difference in physiology? in mental makeup? in life circumstances?

is there such a thing as a high energy or, conversely, a low energy person? what are the causes?

I'd really like some input from people on either side of the coin here in order to understand things a bit better if possible since it's kind of an awkward question to ask people in real life

 

[highlander]

Different people define it differently. There are those who judge this primarily by extraversion and charisma (usually extraverts). There are those who judge based on drive and intensity. There are those who look at it as type A or type B. There are those who judge based on the level of physical activity someone engages in, including running around all the time even if they arent doing much So maybe I dont have a good answer because I dont use the terminology really.

 

[WALMART]

I've received comments my whole life about strange things.


My physics teacher called me weird. A random guy at a party told me I look like I'm ready to take over the world. My last boss, when promoting me, told me I have something different about me, and he's a twenty year Army vet. The CEO of U-Haul wrote the San Antonio president specifically about me after our meeting. I could think of six more instances of being singled out for my presence.


Maybe these things happen to everyone, but idk. If I'm anything like how my father presents himself...


/ego

 

[PuddleRiver]

I can't sit still to save my life and I'm a major introvert. Antsy (anxious?) all of the time. It takes discipline and effort to relax and I just don't do it very well. I sit up at night and read with my feet up for at least 2 hrs. but I can only do this at night. So I don't know about the introverted/extroverted thing.

 

[kyuuei]

Definitely the feedback that I get is that I am high energy.. but I gain my energy from others. I tend to be quite mellow when I am by myself--but since that isn't very often...

 

[Glycerine]

I get rather mixed feedback: shy, reserved, keeps to self and bold, talkative, intense. Some people would swear up and down that I am low energy while others would strongly disagree. It all depends on who you ask.

 

[Glycerine]

I've been wondering for a bit if there really is such a thing as a high energy person or, I suppose the opposite would be a low energy person... is it a personal characteristic or is it a reaction to life circumstances or a bit of both?

I keep getting described as high energy by people... I'm comfortable on the move, making things happen or making sure that they flow efficiently... described a few times as someone who, even when still, appears to have a lot of energy waiting under the surface... waiting to jump into action for some reason.

Except for when on a daily drinking schedule or when seriously depressed I've ALWAYS been that way... a very active child and teenager who was always up to something. To be any other way is somehow kind of incomprehensible to me...

I realize that not everyone is the same way or it wouldn't be something that is often commented on and a lot of people seem rather content to sit still and just relax. Is this a difference in physiology? in mental makeup? in life circumstances?

is there such a thing as a high energy or, conversely, a low energy person? what are the causes?

I'd really like some input from people on either side of the coin here in order to understand things a bit better if possible since it's kind of an awkward question to ask people in real life

I could totally see you as "high energy". I see it as someone who has a "bigger than life" presence... life of the party, energetic, active. intense. Low energy is more calm, self contained, "in the background", observer, mellow. It is a combination of cultural, circumstantial, and personality differences. I don't think it necessary has to fit with the e/i dichotomy.

 

[FDG]

Yes, there is a clear physiological component, it's apparent in children from a very early age.

Typically, it has to do with endogenous dopamine production.

 

[SilkRoad]

I'm definitely low energy. I feel like I've been tired for most of my life. Including much of my childhood.

My dad is similar - similar build (tall and thin) and similarly not good at sustained energy for long periods of time, although he's very hard-working. I'm pretty sure he's IxFJ (not sure if INFJ or ISFJ) and he used to get really withdrawn and crabby sometimes when I was growing up - pretty sure he still does, actually. He's an incredibly kind person but I think this was when he felt over-extended and it was even a kind of depression sometimes. I really relate to all of that. I'm a lot like him.

I have troubles with getting motivated, too. I wonder sometimes if I'm just lazy but I don't think it's just that. Hard to explain. I have bursts of energy, especially if it's something I'm good at. I think where I'm naturally talented (mostly writing and things like that) I can get a lot done but it's not so hard for me, or it's something I feel like expending the energy on. If it's something I find hard or dislike I have a hideous time getting going. I can utterly lack motivation.

I wouldn't say anyone in my immediate family is exactly high energy. Well, maybe my brother... He gets an enormous amount done and doesn't seem to feel the need for down time. He and my mom are both some kind of IxTJ, it seems. I don't think my brother is an extrovert, he never struck me as such, but in a professional context he can be very outgoing.

Even in my extended family, though, we don't generally tend to be massively extroverted go go go kind of people. I think we've got a few of those here and there, but we tend to be more reserved, conserving energy. I agree that introverts could still be high energy but I have a hard time imagining a really low energy extrovert... I think high would tend to correlate with extrovert and low with introvert, overall.

I sometimes (often) feel like I have so much going on in my head that it tires me out physically. I certainly experience powerful physical symptoms when very upset, under a lot of stress, etc. I literally feel like my whirring buzzing mind makes me tired. I also get really badly paralyzed by my thoughts and inertia, especially if something unpleasant is happening.


EDIT: I agree though that different people can perceive you in so many different ways. I have a busy life and a lot of friends (although it's more like a few close friends and a lot of acquaintances), so I think many consider me more high energy than I am. Some get that impression from my Facebook activity and so on, but I've even had people who weren't on Facebook say that they thought I was some sort of highly outgoing socialite

 

[Lexicon]

'm a combination of high & low. depends on the drive, my physical health.. and whether or not I remembered to eat my ADHD pills that day.

*taps foot incessantly*

*scales side of house*

I forgot, today.

 

[Such Irony]

Different people define it differently. There are those who judge this primarily by extraversion and charisma (usually extraverts). There are those who judge based on drive and intensity. There are those who look at it as type A or type B. There are those who judge based on the level of physical activity someone engages in, including running around all the time even if they arent doing much So maybe I dont have a good answer because I dont use the terminology really.

Going by level of extraversion and charisma, I'm definitely low energy.

Going by drive and intensity, it's highly variable.

Going by level of physical activity, it's moderate to high.

 

[cafe]

I'm low energy. Sometimes it interferes with normal life. I used to let it put me in depression because there was so much I needed to do that I just couldn't. I beat myself up about it, which just made it worse. I have fewer responsibilities and more resources now, so it's easier now. I also do not beat myself up anymore. I do what I can. I rest when I'm tired. Very little is life or death, so it'll get done when it gets done.

What really bothers me is that my two daughters also appear to be very low energy. I worry about how it might limit what they can do in life. I have tried to share with them that it's okay to respect their bodies' limits instead of feeling like they should be doing more. I can't make them have more energy, but I can maybe help keep them from letting it put them into depression.

I don't know if there is a health thing or if we just have the misfortune to be on the low end of the energy bell curve. I'll probably try to talk to the doc about it next year when we have a new medical savings, if we have some leftover from the other stuff we need to do.

 

[FDG]

I'm low energy. Sometimes it interferes with normal life. I used to let it put me in depression because there was so much I needed to do that I just couldn't. I beat myself up about it, which just made it worse. I have fewer responsibilities and more resources now, so it's easier now. I also do not beat myself up anymore. I do what I can. I rest when I'm tired. Very little is life or death, so it'll get done when it gets done.

What really bothers me is that my two daughters also appear to be very low energy. I worry about how it might limit what they can do in life. I have tried to share with them that it's okay to respect their bodies' limits instead of feeling like they should be doing more. I can't make them have more energy, but I can maybe help keep them from letting it put them into depression.

I don't know if there is a health thing or if we just have the misfortune to be on the low end of the energy bell curve. I'll probably try to talk to the doc about it next year when we have a new medical savings, if we have some leftover from the other stuff we need to do.

Being low energy has some definite advantages. For example, professions that require patience and attention to detail (in the broadest possible sense) are often much easier to handle for low-energy people (or even in the same profession, roles requiring these characteristics are better fulfilled by lower-energy people). High-energy people - and I'm one of them - find it generally harder to concentrate on such tasks.

 

[UniqueMixture]

sure, hyper and hypo thyrhodism come to mind

 

[Mal12345]

I can't sit still to save my life and I'm a major introvert. Antsy (anxious?) all of the time. It takes discipline and effort to relax and I just don't do it very well. I sit up at night and read with my feet up for at least 2 hrs. but I can only do this at night. So I don't know about the introverted/extroverted thing.

Judging types are go-getters, not laid back. Perceivers are more go-with-the-flow.

 

[greenfairy]

I'm very high energy in every way except for being loud, forceful, or extremely expressive. Also ADHD.

 

[Rasofy]

When my parents ask me ''How are you?'' I reply with ''normal''. Does that answer the question?

 

[highlander]

Judging types are go-getters, not laid back. Perceivers are more go-with-the-flow.

What do you mean by "judging"?

Method 1:
Dominant judgers - ESTJ, ENTJ, INFP, ISFP, INTP, ISTP, EFSJ, ENFJ. (Fi, Ti, Te, Fe)
Dominant perceivers - ESTP, ENTP, ENFP, ESFP, INFJ, INTJ, ISTJ, ISFJ (Se, Ne, Ni, Si)

Method 2:
Judgers = type ends in J
Perceivers - type ends in P


Either way, I don't quite see the categorization because
- STPs tend to be pretty action oriented - especially ESTPs
- TJs are as well
- FPs - not so much however ENFPs can be very much so
- ENTPs can be very high energy
- ISFXs would be less so

So, it's all over the map

 

[sprinkles]

I call it vibrancy. Being full of life. Some people just have that aura, even just lazing about they have a really ALIVE feeling about them. Then again I'm sensitive to life energy in a way that I can't explain since I feel a difference between a tree and a piece of wood for example. I can tell that the tree is alive and even to some extent how alive it is.

 

[gromit]

I think my energy/vibe is fairly chill or laid back. But I start feeling bummed after lack of activity. Somewhere in the middle I suppose.