Do you sometimes go into crowds and it makes you extremely uncomfortable because you feel so deeply tuned into the feelings of those around you? Do you feel that you are sensitive and sometimes overly sensitive?
If you answered yes to those things, chances are that you are an empath. An empath is sometimes said to be an emotional sponge because they pick up the emotions of those around them.
The world is surrounded by energies and everything has these energies. When you are an empath, you have a hard time filtering out these feelings and they can cause you to be overstimulated and overly sensitive.
A person that is an empath can feel good and bad feelings and they are sensitive to different kinds of sounds and people that have big personalities. They can also be sensitive to their environments and the world around them.
Signs
There are some signs that you might be an empath and the biggest sign is probably how you see yourself. Maybe you seem to have empathy for everyone and everything around you.
If you have a friend that has lost their cat that they have had for 10 years of their life, you will feel their pain and be able to understand that they are suffering from the loss of their pet.
An empath though, will take things further and will actually feel the pain that their friend has in a physical way. They will feel their compassion, pain, sadness, grief and more as if they are the ones dealing with it.
Intimacy and Closeness
Another sign that you might be an empath is that you might have a hard time being in any kind of relationship, even an intimate or romantic one.
You want to make connections with people, but you realize that when you spend too much time with someone that you become stressed and overwhelmed about what they are feeling.
Some empaths have sensory overloads and find that they need to spend more time alone because they are always taking on the feelings of someone else, especially if they are with someone.
If you want to have intimacy and closeness and you are an empath, make sure to set boundaries so that you do not become overly emotional and lose your energies.
Intuition
Having strong intuition is a sign of an empath. Maybe you pick up on cues that other people let out and most empaths can tell if someone is lying or being truthful.
The important thing is to learn to trust yourself so you can make good choices.
Nature
Many people love spending time in nature, but an empath loves this. Nature can help to calm an empath and can relax their emotions.
If you feel completely at peace when you are walking in the woods or going barefoot in the grass or by the ocean, you might be an empath.
Crowds
Since empaths are always absorbing the emotions and energy of others, being in a crowded place can be unbearable for the empath.
Empaths can become easily overwhelmed and have a hard time dealing with the emotions of too many people at once. This can take place for a little bit but when you are in a crowd for a long period of time, it can become overwhelming.
Picking up on negative feelings of people around you can make you feel physically sick and you need to learn to be comfortable and maybe be with just a few people at a time.
Caring
Empaths do not only feel emotions, but they care for people. They have such deep emotions that they want to help others, and this is not always something they can do.
Empaths become quickly disappointed when they are not able to help someone through a hard period in their life and they want to take on the emotions of others so that they can take way their pain and suffering.
Caring about others is a good thing but you have to learn to not let yourself get burnt out in the process and save some of the energy for yourself.
Problems
Empaths are very sensitive, and they are good listeners. They love to reach out to those that are going through problems and to try to help them.
Since an empath cares so deeply for others, they have to find a balance and boundaries or else they will always be the ones that have the negative emotions being put on them.
Empaths are attractive to those that have toxic behaviors and manipulators because they know that the empath wants to help them. An empath will not see the signs of the toxic relationship.
Even if you want to support someone, they must be willing to change.
Sensitivity
Empaths have increased feelings of sensitivity for others, but they also are able to smell things and hear things better than others.
Empaths are highly sensitive to the sounds and smells of others and so being around a strong fragrance or strong sounds might affect them more than others.
Most empaths like to listen to sounds at a lower volume or would rather read than listen to music and they might have sounds that trigger emotional responses easier than others.
Recharge
People that are very sensitive to the pain and hurt of others often feel tired and overwhelmed. A person that is getting a lot of positivity can also be overloaded and so this person needs to learn to take time to reset.
If you are around overwhelming emotions and you are beginning to feel tired or burnt out, take care of yourself. Learn to replenish your energies and to relax between spending time with more people.
Conflict
If you are an empath you will want to avoid conflict at any cost. Because of your sensitive nature, it is easier for people to hurt your feelings and offend you deeper than others. You might have a hard time taking criticism from others.
When you have to argue and fight with someone, it will cause you great distress because you have to deal with their emotions and then your own emotions on top of it. It is hard to deal with hurt when you are an empath.
Fitting In
Even though you understand and are able to absorb the feelings of others, chances are that you might not feel that you fit in with people.
You might feel that you are abnormal because you are affected so strongly by those around you. This might cause you to avoid talking to other people and sharing what you are feeling because you do not want to feel out of place.
It is hard to not feel like you belong but when your emotions are strong, this is a gift and is important for who you are, no matter what anyone says.
Isolation
Isolation and empaths go hand in hand because of the overwhelming emotions that they feel. Being alone or isolated for too long is not a good thing though and there are other ways to restore your energies.
Take time to be alone in nature and to mediate in the park or while going for a walk. Plant a garden and take time to replenish yourself. Being alone for a time is okay but you do not want to isolate for long periods of time.
Boundaries
Boundaries are the way that relationships work and maybe you feel that setting boundaries causes you to feel bad or causes you to hurt someone. The truth is, having boundaries is important because it allows you to help yourself and others.
Everyone has to have limits and because of your highly emotional and sensitive feelings, not having boundaries can affect you in a negative way and cause you not to be able to explore your emotions healthily.
Unique World
Having a strong understanding of the energies around you can cause you to see the world in a different light. You might connect with things that no one else connects with and this can be a great thing.
The problem is that when you are connected to the world, the world does not allow you to express your sensitive or creative side and can cause you to not thrive as well. You must connect with people too.
Sensory and Emotional Overload
Protecting yourself as an empath is important. You take on the emotions of others and so you have to learn to care about yourself. You need to make sure that you are able to manage the feelings and the noise around you.
If you have a hard time managing yourself when you are overstimulated, you need to talk to someone such as a counselor or a therapist. These people can help you to set boundaries and to have self-care ideas.
Your needs and your emotions are as important as the needs and emotions of those around you and so you need to learn to take care of yourself while you are helping others.