Naturals of Deception Detection & Abuse

“Lie To Me” this week had a scene where Dr. Cal Lightman and Ria Torres, the natural, were talking about abuse. Dr. Cal Lightman said that because Torres suffered from abuse, that is why she became so good at reading body language. In another episode, Lightman said Torres was good because she didn’t have a higher education, so she had to rely on non-verbal communication more.

I wondered, after I saw those shows, if people wondered if I was a victim of abuse, or if I didn’t have a degree. I am happy to report I hold a masters of science degree, and that I was not abused as a child. I grew up in a solid home with no abuse of any kind. I had and still have loving parents.

I did have a traumatic childhood in school, however. I was bullied for years, I believe, because I was an ultra-sensitive child. If you said you disliked me, I was the type to cry my eyes out. If you told me to go away, I cried for hours. I had the thinnest skin on the planet and with that, I suspect, kids picked up on it and played me to the hilt. I became a victim to my own softness, and it took me until junior high to break out of it. I was highly taunted and teased for many years. It was very traumatic for me.

But if people who are abused develop this “sixth sense”, than there should be a lot of Truth Wizards out there, a lot more than the one percent identified by science. I personally don’t think this explains it.