Some studies have linked certain book-reading genres to levels of empathy, but I think that exposing yourself to any sort of story (regardless of medium) is enough to develop it. Being empathic is the key to humanity getting along; it’s the secret behind why some people develop compassion more easily than others.
The word “empathy” means being able to understand someone else’s emotions and share them. Empathy is the name of the feeling if you’ve ever felt extreme emotions when seeing someone else happy or sad. Empathy also explains feeling inexplicably moved by a situation or by something you saw.
An empathic person looks at the world differently, seeing it from a more sensitive standpoint. Some might view this as a weakness, but in reality it’s quite the contrary! Ultimately, everyone’s reality (both the big picture and the small picture for each individual) works off fluctuations in energy. Using your intuition to intelligently gauge situations, and also expanding your general development of sensitivity can help improve all circumstances in daily life.
Remember, you can be an individual and still be an empath! There is a huge difference between trying to mimic the status quo (or someone in particular), and walking a little distance in others’ shoes to gain perspective.
Of course, there are a lot of consequences to having an innate sense of empathy, which exists in about 20% of the population according to some studies. Whether it’s innate or developed, feeling empathy may have made challenging situations more difficult in the past, or perhaps it’s caused you to become a vessel for others’ negativity.
Has it ever happened to you that after an in-person or phone conversation with someone, or even a walk in the mall, you felt a headache or maybe felt so drained that you just needed to sleep? You simply never knew how to protect yourself. The good news is that you are not alone – many people experience these situations.
It’s not your fault! You just never knew how to release the emotions that others dumped on you. Protect your energy to make sure that it will never happen again.
It’s important to acknowledge that this happens so that you can start cleaning up your life by cleaning up your energy levels. When you feel negativity, put up a positive energy shield around yourself and then proceed to just radiate this positivity to others. The beneficial sides to being empathic far outweigh the bad, once you start protecting yourself and using/developing your sensitivity for your own benefit! Everyone that works on tuning into their own inner empath is using their sensitivity for the benefit of themselves and others!
Today we live in a divisive world and having ways to remain calm and composed are important. We’re constantly in social situations, so you always have opportunities. Hone your empathy to make our world and your personal world better and better every day!
Book your personal appointment now and learn how to better protect yourself! Often one or two sessions can be enough. Schedule yours today and select a one hour slot: http://www.meetme.so/dr_inessa.
Happy last day of summer!!!
Yours in Calmness,
Dr. Inessa
Calmness.com