Sometimes people don't respond as a way of deliberately signaling they're annoyed, or that they don't want to continue a relationship. Turkle says sometimes taking a long time to write back is a way of establishing dominance in a relationship, by making yourself look simply too busy and important to reply.
Some people never reply to texts, while others will always reply. Ignoring your texts might be normal for them. It's not normal for someone who used to send instant replies to suddenly start taking a long time to respond. You may want to ask them if something has changed.
Psychologically speaking, there could be a number of things going on: They could be stressed and not able to think through a response right now. They may simply not know what to say. They could be thinking deeply about what to say and how to respond, as they believe you deserve that. They may need some space.
If someone can't or won't respond, we call them unresponsive.
Is it rude not to reply to a text message? If you don't know the person texting you, no. If you know the person then it is not polite. However, it is not rude if you do not respond immediately.
Ignoring or excluding someone activates the same receptors in the brain that trigger a pain response, both to physical and emotional pain, and leave lasting psychological scars, disfiguring your mental state, your self-esteem, and your ability to recognize a healthy, open relationship.
While you may know, rationally, that there are plenty of good reasons for someone not to respond to a text or an email—they're busy, they haven't seen the message yet, they're thinking about what they want to say—it doesn't always feel that way in a society where everyone seems to be on their smartphone all the time.
And Not Responding: One of the Most Passive-Aggressive Texting Sins. This is one of the ultimate moves, YourTango says, that indicates passive-aggressive texting. You're saying, “I don't care about you enough to respond,” and “I see you, and don't see you worthy of a response.” If you read it, you respond to it.
You're not alone in your texting anxiety, and science says there are perfectly brain chemistry-related reasons you're procrastinating with that text. "A few things come to mind when I think about unread texts or emails: fear of rejection, abandonment, and judgement," psychotherapist Lillyana Morales tells Bustle.
Caption Options. Close Settings. As a phrase, “dry texting” is relatively recent in the grand scheme of things. It refers to people who reply with one word, or don't carry the conversation and just say things like “lmao” and “wyd” until the receiver wants to tear their hair out in frustration or boredom.
If that felt like a personal call-out, you're not alone. It's a common ADHD experience that I call 'involuntary ghosting' - a phenomenon that describes the disappearing act that happens when ADHDers forget to respond to texts.
Time-sensitive messages should be answered as soon as possible, while you have more time for nonurgent ones. But not that long. Gottsman, speaking "from a polite factor" believes you should respond within a day.
If he is not responding to your text, simply say that you are sorry if you said something wrong and then ask if he is ready to talk or to ping you once he is. This dialogue comes into play if you have done something wrong or you know what you last said or wrote may have hurt his feelings.
: a refusal or failure to respond : lack of response. a nonresponse to a complaint. nonresponse to medical treatment. : an empty or unsatisfactory response.
The silent treatment
In its standard form, the silent treatment consists of completely ignoring another person, refusing to answer any questions from the person, and perhaps even refusing to acknowledge their presence. This type of silent treatment is not especially passive-aggressive, as it is very explicit.
You Ignore or Say Nothing
According to psychotherapist Katherine Crowley, author of “Working for You Isn't Working for Me,” checking your phone when a colleague is trying to speak with you or during a meeting are examples of passive-aggressive behavior.
The silent treatment, or stonewalling, is a passive-aggressive form of manipulation and can be considered emotional abuse. It is a way to control another person by withholding communication, refusing to talk, or ignoring the person.
They ignore you because they want to control you. One of the main reasons why a narcissist ignores you is that they want to control you. More likely, they want to regain control of you. A narcissist uses ignoring people as a way to punish them.
But here's the thing about blatantly ignoring someone: not only is it rude, immature, inconsiderate, cruel, and petty, it's downright emotionally (and sometimes physically) damaging. Ignoring someone is not an act of love. In fact, silent treatment qualifies as abuse.
Why am I always feeling ignored? In some cases, people feel ignored all the time because of a personality disorder. Personality disorders mean you simply don't think, feel, and communicate like most people. It is also possible you are spending time with those who don't treat you well.
Key points. Research finds that feeling ignored can affect people's sensory perceptions, such as feeling that surroundings seem quieter. Being ignored creates feelings of self-doubt, feeling a lack of control, and feeling not worthy of attention.