Being rejected is never a fun experience. But for some of us, the fear of rejection can be scary and for good reason too. Having rejection sensitivity means that you are hyper-aware of the potential of being rejection, your focus of attention really tunes into any shred of evidence that you will be rejected, you fully expect rejection to happen, and then you act in ways that push people's buttons, or push them away. Therefore, you build up more painful memories and evidence that rejection is inevitable, and the cycle continues.
This is essentially how you can tell if you are living with rejection sensitivity or not. If you are, then you will likely be playing out the pattern described above, in multiple, or most of your relationships. According to Set (2019), this indicates that you may have an anxious-preoccupied attachment style. This is a type of insecure attachment style that has been linked with low self esteem, anxiety, depression and various other psychopathologies.
However, if you have recently experienced a rejection and it was really emotionally painful, congratulations, you are very human. Rejection is supposed to be an unpleasant experience. If one of our earliest ancestors experienced a rejection from their tribe, that may have meant death. We have evolved with that same wiring, because we are supposed to be interdependent with one another.
It is therefore understandable for the brain to become protective by paying bias attention towards rejection, or by having the urge to withdraw, or push away, so you don't experience the pain as harshly next time. But keep these tendencies in check because the fear could keep you stuck, and instead, you want to grow beyond this.
I would like to recommend a resource that will help you do just that. The Courage to be Disliked was based on the works of Alfred Alder, who heavily influenced modalities such as Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) and Interpersonal Therapy (IPT). It is so comprehensive and it flows so easily because it is written as a conversation between two people. This book will free your mind from the constant preoccupation with possible rejection and will help you feel and act like you are worthy of love, forgiveness and connection. I personally listened to this on my Audible app, but paperback, hardcover or kindle version, are all also available here.
Reference
Set Z. (2019). Potential Regulatory Elements Between Attachment Styles and Psychopathology: Rejection Sensitivity and Self-esteem. Noro psikiyatri arsivi, 56(3), 205–212. https://doi.org/10.29399/npa.23451
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