withdraw into oneself

withdraw into (oneself)

To retreat into one's mind or otherwise isolate oneself so as to avoid undesirable thoughts, situations, or interactions with people. After getting mugged, he withdrew into himself and didn't speak to anyone for nearly a week. I'm not good around large groups of people. I usually get overwhelmed and just withdraw into myself. Don't withdraw into yourself just because you don't want an argument—talk to me!
See also: withdraw
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

withdraw into oneself

to become introverted; to concern oneself with one's inner thoughts. After a few years of being ignored, she withdrew into herself. I have to struggle to keep from withdrawing into myself.
See also: withdraw
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.
See also:
  • crawl into (one's) shell
  • withdraw into
  • withdraw into (oneself)
  • leave (someone, something, or oneself) (wide) open to (something)
  • leave open
  • leave yourself wide open to something
  • comfortable in (one's) own skin
  • watch (one's) six
  • check (one's) six
  • check your six
References in periodicals archive
the temptation to subjectivism, to withdraw into oneself. This is theologically well known as incurvatio in seipsum, the radical alienation from oneself and from God, which today has to be observed as the common but helpless answer to the complex claims of a highly differentiated modernity.
Radical subjectivity