Shifting from the Overwhelmed Empath to the Empowered Empath
An empath is someone who has the ability to feel other people’s emotions, often with the same intensity in which the other person is feeling it. An example of this is when a person says, “I can feel how angry, sad or happy that person is.” The struggle with most empaths is that they absorb the energy of the emotions and thoughts of others. It IS possible to be an empath and NOT absorb the energies of others that you feel. Empath is a form of psychic ability. The reality is that everyone is psychic and empathic on some level whether they are aware of it or not. Many people are unaware of all of the energy flowing around and through them. But, the truth remains, it is happening.
Empaths are typically more sensitive and experience the energies of others more intensely. When a person is more open, they can be more available for taking on the energies of others. A person who lives life giving their power away can also be at risk of absorbing these energies.
An aware empowered empath who is connected to and standing in their power is the least likely type of person to fall victim to absorbing the energies of others.
Throughout my spiritual journey, I have learned a lot about being an empath and how to work with it. What I found in my research and conversations with others were tools and techniques to protect my energy and/or to clear my energy after I absorbed other’s energies. I practiced these things and found these methods to be exhausting, defeating and ineffective for the long term. In every part of my being, I believed there had to be another more effective and efficient way.
I am a healer and I channel as part of my practice. In my conversations with Spirit, I asked to be taught how to be an empath and function in the world without absorbing the energies of others and be overwhelmed by what I was feeling. I asked Spirit to teach me how to be in the world without needing to shut the world out in order to feel safe. I wanted and needed to know what I did not know.
Here is what I learned. First, the key tool in being an empath and not absorbing the energy is AWARENESS. Spirit helped me see that if I am aware of what is my energy and what is someone else’s energy, I can actively make the choice to say NO and allow the energy to move through my field and past me without absorbing it. When I feel someone else’s energy in my field, I say, “No, you are not mine. I allow you to keep on moving.”
How we absorb other’s thoughts and emotions is by believing in that moment that what we are thinking and/or feeling is our own. Engaging with this energy by trying to figure it out and potentially judging yourself for it, pulls the energy into you. You are essentially plucking the emotion and/or thought out of your field as it passes by and absorbing it. The energies of others are simply moving through your energy field and in fact want to keep moving. It is rare that the energy is actually trying to get you and stick to you. (We will save the topic of this for a later blog post.) As an empath, you will sense what is moving through your energy field and that is okay. This you cannot change.
When you sense what is not yours, DO NOT engage. Allow it to keep moving and you will not absorb it. You are basically an antenna and you are going to sense the frequencies and energies that pass through your field. When this happens, remember, tell it NO and do not engage.
So the question remains, “How do I know what is someone else’s energy and what is my own. Typically, the emotions and thoughts you experience that feel like they randomly came out of nowhere or have no relevance to what you are experiencing, are most likely someone else’s energies. Can you think of moments when this has happened?
There is an exception to this rule. On occasion we may be stuck in an avoidance pattern and think it is someone else’s energy when it is really our own. If this is happening and you are unaware of it in the moment, always default to it is someone else’s energy. If it is actually yours, it will come back around at a later time for you to look at.
These ways of relating to empath may seem simple but putting it into practice can be tricky in the beginning. First, ask yourself when you are experiencing an emotion or thought, “Is this mine or someone else’s?” Notice whether it feels random or is connected to what you are experiencing in this moment. If it seems like the energy showed up out of nowhere and maybe your mood shifted for no apparent reason, assume it is someone else’s and allow it to keep on moving past you. If it is clear that the emotion or thought is your own, then absolutely try to understand what it is communicating to you.
In the beginning, you will have to consciously practice this a lot. That is normal. The more you practice this process, the more you will remember to be aware that not everything you are feeling and thinking is your own. This is a process that takes time and practice. Realistically, it will be a lifelong process. But the more you exercise that awareness muscle and say no, the stronger it and you will get. Practice. Practice. Practice.
It is possible to be an empath in the world, feel everyone’s emotions and not absorb them and not get overwhelmed by what you are feeling.
Can you empaths imagine a world like this? I can tell you from personal experience, it is possible. It requires work and practice. In case you are wondering, yes, you do have the power to do this, along with everyone else in the world. It is okay to start small and do what you can when you can.
The added benefit is that this process works after the fact as well. If you are realizing that you absorbed someone’s energy a few hours, days, months, or years before, you can release that energy by recognizing that it is not yours and telling it that you allow it to leave you now. The after the fact moments will take a bit more work to move the energy that has already set up shop within you. You may need to say it several times, breathe light into it and visualize it leaving wherever you feel it in your body. You may need to do this for a few minutes or even several times depending how rooted it has become.