Thursday, February 5, 2009

Email Reply Anxiety

As I've gotten older I am finding that I am developing quirks in my personality - I have to be busy, but I don't like to be too busy; I want to do everything, but I don't want to do everything; I can't sit still, but I just want to sit still. I'm sure you know what I mean. But today I realized something new about myself: I have Email-Reply Anxiety (ERA). {This is a variation of compulsive email reply syndrome (CERS), which I had already self-diagnosed - you know, where you keep replying and saying "Thanks" or "See you tomorrow" or whatever whenever someone emails - just to be polite.}
I'm sure that in this new era (no, not ERA) of communicating via the web these neuroses of mine will become more well recognized. I can't believe that I didn't realize earlier that I was suffering from this condition. But here's how I found out:
I team-teach an after school class with another teacher. We receive emails from a woman in the "central office" of this program, asking what we need, telling us what to do, etc. Earlier in the year I had been a frequent responder, cc'ing my colleague to make sure that she knew I had replied. Recently, we started a new project which the other teacher of the team had done in the past. Because of this, she has knowledge that I don't - what supplies we have, what we still need, what type of wood we need...so I've decided to leave the communication to her, even though we both get the emails. The first email came on a day that she wasn't in school due to district staff development. I replied-all to the central office woman and my colleague, telling them both that we would definitely be getting back to her soon, but since the colleague was out of the building, it would be later in the day. That same day we got another email from the central office, asking yet another question. I literally had to sit on my hands not to respond in the same way I had earlier.
Two days have passed. (Don't worry - I checked that my colleague had gotten the emails and responded). Now we have gotten several more emails asking for more information. I can tell from the questions and requests that there have been replies, but I don't know what they are and I don't like not knowing. AND I don't like knowing that I don't like it. Does that make any sense? I see a whole new field of psychiatry popping up - for cyber-nuts. That's me.

1 comment:

AnnWS said...

Funny analysis of your diagnosis. I am sure many, many people "suffer" from this. I think you aren't getting the info because so many have another phobia--hitting reply all and sending something to people they don't mean to. So instead of thinking who should get this, they just avoid the reply all button like the plague. :-)