April's Metaphysical Discussion Group we talked about being an Empath and what that means and how do you deal with it in today's world. It was a great discussion and got me thinking about how many people struggle with the strong emotions the world is dealing with today.
So, what is an Empath? The term empath comes from empathy, which is the ability to understand the experiences and feelings of others outside of your own perspective. Say your friend just lost their dog of 15 years. Empathy is what allows you to understand the level of pain she’s going through, even if you’ve never lost a beloved pet. But as an empath, you take things a step further. You sense and feel emotions as if they are part of your own experience. In other words, someone else’s pain and happiness become your pain and happiness.
This causes people to feel like they are riding what I call the “emotional rollercoaster” when you feel like your emotions are all over the place and half the time you don't understand why you are feeling what you are feeling at the time. If your emotions do not match your emotional body, it is more than likely you are picking up on someone else's emotions. It is important as an empath to know what belongs to you and what does not, but how do you do that?
Empathy is the absent of ego, it is heart based and loving. But it can also be very draining, especially if you deal with a lot of people throughout the day. I have found that it helps me if I check in with myself in the morning before I start my day. I ask myself how I am feeling physically, emotionally, and spiritually. This way I know that if I check in with myself and physically, I have minor pain but feeling energized and then begin my day and suddenly, I feel drained and want to go to bed or my physical pain increases without just cause that I am picking up energy from someone else and I need to release it.
So how do we release energy that is not ours? Here are 11 ways to clear energy:
- Wash your hands. Let’s start with the basics! Every time you cleanse your hands with soap and warm water, you are also cleaning your energy.
- Shower with salt. Salt removes negative energy. Keep sea salt or Epsom salt in your shower. Or you can make a salt scrub using sea salt, Himalayan salt or Epsom salt, a carrier oil, and your favorite essential oils.
- Take a bath with salt and essential oils. Mix sea salt or Epsom salt with your bath water. Then add essential oils such as lavender and sage (I love adding ylang-ylang for a flowery smell) and enjoy a relaxing soak in the tub.
- Develop an external or internal water cleansing ritual. A water cleansing ritual can balance the second energy center, the sacral chakra. Drink a glass of water mindfully and visualize the internal cleansing process. When you bathe or take a swim, focus on the cleansing and energy purifying effects of the water on different parts of your body.
- Clean your space energetically. One simple way to cleanse your space is to place small bowls of salt water (one cup of water with two tablespoons of sea salt or Epsom salt) in the corners of any room or office. Leave the bowls overnight so the salt can absorb the old energy and remove them the following day. It is a great practice for daily life or for purifying a new space. Also, having salt lamps in your space helps to cleanse your space as well.
- Smudge yourself and your space. You can use any incense to smudge around yourself and your space. (My favorite is white sage.) Simply light it, and wave it around the area. You can also find smudging sticks online.
- Ground yourself. Even if you feel comfortable connecting to spirituality and centering yourself, it can be hard to “come back to earth.” Creating a strong connection between your feet and the ground and visualizing the energy moving down to the earth is a simple way of grounding yourself.
- Listen to guided meditations. Listening to guided meditations helps you clear your mind and unplug from internal noise.
- Set boundaries. If there is someone in your life who drains you with every interaction, set a boundary. Spend less time with him/her. Let their calls go to voicemail. If they try to dump their anger and frustration on you in conversation, change the subject. Get honest and tell them you understand their pain but that you must limit your interactions to take care of yourself. Don’t take responsibility for anybody’s pain.
- Unplug and turn down the noise. Honor your need to detach from your environment from time to time. Limit your use of technology and create quiet time for yourself. Immerse yourself in nature. No matter what, make time for yourself.
- If you are still feeling overwhelmed and unable to clear the energy yourself, seek out an energy healer to help you being your energy back into balance.
It is important as an empath to take care of yourself and keep yourself balanced and most of all get to know your own energy so you can recognize what truly is YOU and belongs to someone else.
Namaste!
