Also one of my friends struggles with verbal thinking and thinks mostly implicitly, using concepts, if I understood that correctly, and they have a strong preference for non-verbal signs of affection (physical contact, actions, quality time etc.).
Same here. Not thinking in words at all, very strong preference for touch or very simple expressions. Over the years with my SO, we basically formed a language of taps, hugs, noises, licks, sniffs, … (E. g. shlip tongue noise—Greetings! / I like you. / … (there are even tonal variations—rising / higher pitch is questioning, flat is affirmative), sniff-sniff noise—What’s wrong? Etc. - So a possible exchange could be seeing them sitting on the sofa, looking unhappy—sniff-sniff (What’s wrong?) - grumble (Bad mood.) - shlíp? (Affection?) - shlīp. (Yes.) - hug. That’s much less exhausting than doing the same in words.)
Same here. Not thinking in words at all, very strong preference for touch or very simple expressions. Over the years with my SO, we basically formed a language of taps, hugs, noises, licks, sniffs, … (E. g. shlip tongue noise—Greetings! / I like you. / … (there are even tonal variations—rising / higher pitch is questioning, flat is affirmative), sniff-sniff noise—What’s wrong? Etc. - So a possible exchange could be seeing them sitting on the sofa, looking unhappy—sniff-sniff (What’s wrong?) - grumble (Bad mood.) - shlíp? (Affection?) - shlīp. (Yes.) - hug. That’s much less exhausting than doing the same in words.)