Any empaths out there?

Despite my being an 'Empath', I honestly haven't a clue whether or not that is an ability/gift you are born with, or if it is something which everyone has the potential of developing. Either way, my best guesses would be to have the ability to be able to "put yourself in others'shoes" ( a quality that is MAJORLY lacking in the WORST way in this day and age), being able to relate well with others, finding common ground with others, having compassion and understanding, and sensitivity. Idk, these are my best guesses.....

In addition to the positive aspects of being an Empath, there ARE the not so positive aspects as well i.e. some people's energies can make you feel ill, or even like when experiencing the pain (psychically) of those who have been victims of horrific experiences ex. crime victims, ISIS victims, etc.

This thread has been moved to Misc Topics from Introduce Yourself.

Volcanic, please do not type your words all in capital letters, it's against the rules of this site.

Everyone (except psychopaths and sociopaths) is capable of empathy. We are all born with the capacity for empathy with others; however, we can improve on that capacity, or not, over our lifetimes.

If you find that you are having real difficulty with being bombarded by the emotions of those around you then it would be a good idea to develop some personal shields that can filter out the "noise" of random emotions. There is a post about how to go about creating a personal shield at https://www.spellsofmagic.com/read_post.html?post=896879

While that is true in part, in describing empathy the feeling, It does not define Empaths as a whole Lark.

Most people have to work towards expanding their empathy, to really try to understand others. Empaths do not have to, they automatically know how to understand others. Empaths feel everyones emotions far stronger than their own. It overwhealms them, over-rides their own feelings, and it can hurt.

You may understand Empathy, as itself. But you do not truly understand Empaths.

People are drawn to us, of all kinds. Damaged people, ostracized people, People marked as crazy because they cannot articulate their thoughts. We are made to help them, because we can understand them. We Feel what they feel, and we can understand.

We are not good in large crowds because all of the mixed emotions can confuse us, can hurt us. And its not like we can explain whats going on inside. To other people, we become those crazies, those introverts. All kinds of things.

I literally could go on and on, but I won't because its not worth it when most of the time I get ignored because I have been branded a crazy by others.

Do not speak like you know exactly of which you do not. As it is a lie.

I agree with Engima. Being an empath myself I can detect people's emotions immediately and can instantly be over taken by them. As an empath you have an opportunity to be a healer and to understand people around you and people cannot hone into other people's emotions like empaths can.

Often times I tend to isolate myself from people because the emotions of others can hurt me and I have a hard time shielding which I have been working on. But not everyone is empathic to that point. I also can take people's pain away.

Enigma, Nowhere in my post did I say that there are not those who are extremely sensitive and empathic. I simply said that everyone, with the exception of sociopaths and psychopaths, is capable of empathy to one extent or another. That is the truth and not a lie.

I am learning how to shield miss or trying to learn. It is hard to explain to others how the energy and emotions of others affect me. Even animals affect me. I can't go to animal rescues, pounds,or let stores that have animals. Even the vets office is off limits. A zoo or circus? I might as well curl up in a ball and go comatose. Crowds of humans are actually easier to deal with but I still don t go out much.Even being around my family exhausts me and I'm so sore, muscle aches, headaches,and just messed up. The only person that doesn't affect me too bad is my hubby,although I can still sense his emotions i can usually ignore it and he's good about controlling them.
I've been disabled for about 8 years and am on strong medication. This also effects my ability to concentrate and control my own emotions. I even pick up the emotions of the ghosts that wander around my home. If they start to affect me too much I'll ask them to leave or contain themselves because they are hurting me and they go away for a while.
I'm new to all of this, acknowledging it I mean. I've had these gifts all my life. Until recently I've been able to ignore them but not anymore. I even have weird dreams. If I dream someone is having a baby, someone i know dies. This usually happens in threes. 3dreams, 3 people die. I just never know who it will be. If I dream about someone who has died someone i know gets pregnant.
Any advice on how to help my shielding would be so appreciated. I read that article. It was great. It should help a lot.

Hey. As for honing your skills, I'm not sure how you can, but I think you should give yourself some space to relax if needed. Then, when you are ready, you can interact with others. (Not sure if that's how it works, but it's my opinion.)

As in regards of the actual topic, Lark gave a wonderful article on how to raise personal shields, which is something that even from experience as an empath, I would recommend you reading and trying it out.

I would personally suggest also going towards nature, even crystals. Some help you discharge and recharge as well, so your energy is not always bumpy or influenced by outsiders.

In regards to the rest, people who disagree is normal and it's perfectly fine. However civility is to be maintained while doing so, when it is not, there's a problem. When disagreeing keep in mind to do so politely, not immaturely.