The Missing Emotion

You've probably heard of psychopaths and sociopaths those who lack empathy or guilt, but have you heard of schizoids?

Schizoids are people who don't feel lonely.

I know because I am one. I can miss people on rare occasions but I can and have spent years with only rare intermittent human contact and been completely content, which is something that would drive most people bonkers.

 

I'm not sure if there are names for the others I'm about to describe, but I have a theory loneliness, guilt and empathy are not the only emotional sensations a person is capable of lacking and I suspect most humans have at least one missing emotion.

You've heard of depression I'm sure, an inability to be happy but what if it goes deeper than that? I have a friend whom I've known since kindergarten, he can feel frantic excitement at new places and new things but he is incapable of experiencing contentment and long-term happiness.

For a time he will be excited about new places and opportunities but usually, within a few days everything starts to get under his skin, most the time when I talk to him, he seems to be in a constant state of torment.

M, my dear sweet selfless M, he who supports me from one catastrophe to another, is incapable of extremes. No matter how deeply he loves me, nothing I've ever done has ever made his heart leap from his chest in ecstasy. He maintains a middle ground, steady, stable,  never wracked with torment nor on cloud nine.

One of my dearest friends lacks an ability to get passionately excited about anything. He is content in routines and doing the day to day but nothing grabs onto his heart with a vice-like grip pulling him in any direction, not love, not ambition, not an interest or a hobby. Nor do his emotions ever persuade him in one direction or another. He most relates to Data on Star Trek. He is unwaveringly logical.

Some of the sex addicts I've coached never experience feelings of intimacy. They often see others experiencing intimacy and envy it to the point they go to extremes trying to create that feeling in their lives.

I have a relative that cannot feel safe, a far deeper problem than having anxiety attacks but on the opposite end of the spectrum there are those who do not feel fear.

Do you wonder if perhaps we all miss something and maybe that is why we need each other so much?

Narcissists, for instance, cannot feel self-love and therefore must try and suck love from everyone around them.

It perplexes me quite a bit and I hope in the future we will better understand this conundrum and perhaps the purpose behind it. If you have a missing emotion or hypothesis on this leave it in a comment below!

Thanks!