Photo: weheartit
They're very good at absorbing the emotions of others.
By Higher Perspective — Written on Nov 17, 2017
Do you suspect that you or someone close to you may be an empath personality type? Empaths are able to make special connections with the people around them. An empath can sense when they are needed.
Many times, an empath is the person in your life who is sometimes called "too sensitive." Empaths are very special and if you have one in your life, you can consider yourself lucky. However, empaths do need to be treated with special care.
First, let's explain what an empath is. Being an empath is not about having the ability to feel sympathy. Sympathy is when we feel a sense of care and concern for other people. When we sympathize with someone, it means we feel compassion for them and hope that their situation improves.
Empathy is the ability to understand the feelings of others. When someone is an empath, it means they have an especially deep understanding and connection to the feelings of people around them.
Empaths can feel other people's feeling almost as if they were their own.
There is research showing that an empath's brain is wired that way. Scientists have identified a specialized group of brain cells that are tied to the ability to empathize. When someone is an empath, it means these cells are especially sensitive.
Empaths should look out for people who are sociopaths, psychopaths, and narcissists. In terms of psychology, these people have the opposite traits as an empath. These people are not able to feel empathy the way that normal people do.
Empaths like to protect themselves from being spotted, for a variety of reasons. They can be concerned about who they make connections with and how emotionally difficult these connections might become.
Since empaths experience the emotions of other people almost as strongly as they experience their own emotions, they need to be very careful of the emotions they will encounter. Here are some of the secrets of empaths and how you can spot them.
1. They are experts at hiding their emotions.
Empaths may try to conceal the fact that they are so sensitive. They do this in part so that they may be seen as a source of strength for those around them. Empaths don't want to be a burden, so they hide their own emotions.
2. They have the unique ability to absorb the emotions of others.
An empath can feel happy when those around them are happy, and down when those around them are down. Empaths are so emotionally connected to others that they experience the emotions of others almost as if they were their own.
3. They can be introverted.
Since empaths are constantly in touch with the emotions of the people they are with, they may avoid contact in order to get a break. Spending some time alone means the empath can take a break and recover from feeling emotionally drained.
4. They have a strong connection to nature.
If you know someone who has a deep desire to spend time in nature, that person could be an empath. There is nothing like the sense of happiness and peace that humans feel when we're in a beautiful outdoor area.
Empaths feel this even more strongly than most people do. Nature can help an empath recharge their batteries with the positive feelings that they get from spending time in the outdoors.
5. They are the ultimate lie detectors.
Empaths have a special ability to see through other people. One of the ways this manifests itself is in an empath's ability to detect lies. An empath can easily detect lies because they are able to read a person's emotions and true intentions.
6. They are guilty of giving too much.
Empaths spend a lot of time and energy tending to other people's needs. This can leave an empath with a lot of negative emotions. Empaths feel a deep need to help others, but sometimes while they're helping others they may be harming themselves emotionally.
When an empath tries to retreat so they can recharge, they can feel like they're being selfish. Empaths need to remember to take care of themselves even though they may not be used to putting themselves first.
7. They have heightened intuition.
Naturally, empaths are very connected to their own feelings. An empath will trust their gut feelings to make important decisions. Another one of the secrets of empaths includes having a sense of being connected to the universe and being able to use intuition to guide on a daily basis.
8. They get stressed out easily.
Because empaths feel all emotions very strongly, it can be easy for an empath to become overwhelmed. In addition, having too many tasks at a time can also make an empath feel inundated. This can be very stressful.
9. They are easy to take advantage of.
A manipulative person can easily take advantage of an empath. This is because manipulators are able to spot empaths and use their empathic abilities against them in order to get what they want.
A manipulator knows what buttons to push with an empath in order to achieve their goals. Empaths need to be wary when they get the sense that they are being manipulated by someone.
10. They love deeply.
As with all of the emotions they experience, an empath will feel love very deeply. This love extends from their spouse or partner to their family and to all of the people in their lives.
Empaths make the people in their lives feel extremely loved and cared for. Empaths also have a strong appreciation for society in general. Empaths are very special people who need to be appreciated and protected.
If you have an empath in your life, give them the time and emotional space they need to recharge. Understand that they are not being anti-social when they take some alone time. It can be difficult and exhausting to go through life as an empath, but empaths also have a special gift that should be treated with care and respect.
Higher Perspective seeks to bring together like-minded individuals focused on personal growth and expanding their consciousness. We can be better to our planet, better to our brothers and sisters, and better to ourselves. If you’d like to receive updates, be sure to follow them on Facebook.
This article was originally published at Higher Perspective. Reprinted with permission from the author.