Witchvox Article

Author: Hecates Moon0013
Posted: October 9th. 2011
Times Viewed: 3,665

�Forget not the days of old, and recall the stories told of the burning and the screams; do they ever haunt your dreams� They broke Children on the wheel in the madness of their zeal, and in the shadow of their wake the innocence burning at the stake.� Those words of inkubus sukkubus from the song titled Burning Times runs through my head over and over again as if the verse was on repeat on an iPod music player. It�s funny how things can feel so alive as if you literally live through it. Being an Empath makes a big difference in your life.

For those who don�t know what it means to be Empathic, it is simply this: All the emotions you may live through and go through, we literally go through those emotions as if we live through them ourselves. In other words, what other people feel, we feel as if we lived it as well. Mind you, �feeling it� and 'living through it� are two different things. In a lot of ways, Empaths share a burden of others. They enjoy helping others, or just simply helping people solve problems so that they can have a bit of peace.

Empaths have always existed and there will always be other Empaths around the world in some area or another. It is a hard thing to deal with at times. I�m not asking that you pity us, or even be afraid of the fact that we can read your emotions (even the ones you try and hide from) . We see them as plain as day, or rather, we feel them. Odds are, we will often be afraid as well.

What is it we have to fear, you ask? Well for starters, we rarely can hear ourselves think. The emotions of other people seem almost as if to seek us out. Some empathic people have gone as far as to isolate themselves from most of society due to all the stress from these �stranger emotions�. In addition, there are very few books out there or support groups to help people who are Empathic.

I think that Anton Chekhov said it best: �Any idiot can face a crisis - it's day to day living that wears you out.� And in truth that�s exactly the case with a lot of things. As people, we need to understand that we are ourselves both human and more. We are alike, and yet different. It�s how we perceive a thing that tends to get us in trouble. We claim fact when there is none and we judge when there is nothing worth judging.

Words are a powerful thing, as Mother Teresa ounce said. �Violence of the tongue is very real- sharper than any knife.� That couldn�t be truer. We tend to (a lot of us) forget just how much our words impact other people. Scars and cuts eventually fade away but a simple word can haunt someone for the rest of their lives and impact on how we ourselves turn out� whether we realize it or not. I believe people who are Empathic tend to understand this best of all as we have felt, and lived through other emotions as well as our own. To put it bluntly it�s like being on a never-ending rollercoaster ride. For Empaths, it never really ends, but it can get better.

There are a few books out there to help people who may be empathic come to understand why they are the way that they are. Mind you, I honestly wish there were more, but when I was growing up, I had to deal with this on my own. Happily, there seem to be some web groups popping up lately. Believe it or not, they might not be in big number, but at least they are out there. Most importantly from my own experience, is having people you can truly talk to about it, people who accept you for who you are, and will allow you to vent if you need to. Believe me� at some point, you will.

Exercise, dancing, meditation, creating emotional barriers, and music seem to help dispels some of the excess energy and/or feelings. I would like to take the time to talk to you about a few of these.

First, let�s talk about Exercise. It is always helpful. It keeps us healthy, both physically and mentally, and exercise is a great way to let off steam and emotional stress. There are many ways to do so from running, swimming, lifting weights, or by doing something like yoga, and even martial arts are helpful.

Next, let�s talk about meditation. Meditation I have personally found to be especially helpful. I find that it allows people, myself included, a time of peace. Also having spots where one can go and meditate where they feel comfortable helps calm the nerves and quiet the emotions. In fact, I believe I read somewhere that some people who are in dangerous places, and don�t have the luxury for a moment�s peace can actually meditate to clear their mind, and calm themselves, for it�s simple and can take only a few minutes to do. The reason why it can be so important is that there are, and/or will be, now and again, situations and times in which having crazy emotions can get you in even worse situations.

Then, there�s dancing. Dancing is very versatile. It�s physical and you just let it all go. You can let your emotions flow with your movements. I find that it helps a lot actually to be active, and if you enjoy dancing, then that makes it all the better. Also dancing is a way to have fun!

Music is more or less a 50/50 kind of thing. In some ways, it can be helpful, but at the same time you need to take care as music can strongly stir the emotions as well. So just be sure to keep that in mind and think of your mood before you choose certain music.

Now let�s talk about creating emotional barriers. Most people tend to picture a wall of color surrounding them to block out some of the emotions around them. Now while this helps, it can make an Empath feel naked or even trapped at times. In this, I feel a bit torn. I understand why people would want to make barriers to deal with it, but from my own experience it truly does make it harder to deal with all of the emotions and feelings that may come up. In some people, that is not the case, so I encourage you to try what you are comfortable with and just go with it.

The most important thing -- as an Empath, and as a person -- that you should remember is to be honest and true to whom you are. Learn and know your limits, for that will determine much as you go throughout life as a whole. Also, remember no one is perfect. Just do your best, and give whatever is your calling, your gift or your path, your all.

Footnotes:
***two books recommended for Empath's (as they are hard to find on this subject) :

Whose Stuff Is This?: Finding Freedom From the Thoughts, Feelings, ....
By Yvonne Perry

Empowered by Empathy by Rose Rosetree

Copyright: (C) Cameron Smucker

ABOUT...

Hecates Moon0013

Location: Champaign, Illinois

Author's Profile: To learn more about Hecates Moon0013 - Click HERE

Bio: My name is Hecates Moon I'm an Eclectic Wiccan/ Shaman who is Empathic. My hope is that this helps others who are empathic, both young, and old.... I grew up being a very high Empath,

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