People who constantly apologize and think they said something offensive when they did not

They probably got caught up in some nightmare scenario with an oversensitive person. Therefore, they're more cautious now.

I’m guessing they grew up in a strict household and constantly had to walk on eggshells.

My brother does this—he’s an anxious introvert trying to be polite…to the extreme. I just look past it at this point.

Virtue signaling.

I started this sorry shit as a kid. My theory is that I was not wanted by my mother, I wasn’t good enough to her (I’m still not good enough for her), and I always feel like I had to apologize for even being alive, I had to say sorry for breathing. Today I have a coach helping me with it and some good friends. Half the battle is noticing when you’re doing it.

I have a co-worker worker who prefaces everything who says with five minutes of 'I'm sorry...Maybe it's just me..and I understand if people disagree... I was wondering...and again, I'm sorry.. and perhaps it's not a big deal... it's fine either way but... perhaps... and i don't want to cause any big fuss....

Echoing some of what’s been said: My mom’s BPD, so I grew up preemptively apologizing because I never knew what would set her off. It’s a tough habit to shake when it’s core to how you developed. Not as easy as folks seem to think when they say, “Stop apologizing!”

Yep I did it a lot when I was younger. My mother was a vulnerable narcissist who never showed one ounce of empathy towards me. Also, one of my siblings bullied me mercilessly for years. Along with the over the top apologizing, I also spoke very quickly, embarrassingly so. Therapists told me I learned this habit as a way to be heard before I got shut down by these toxic family members. I've worked hard as an adult to correct all this.