Book for Empaths

I finally got around to reading The Empath's Survival Guide by Judith Orloff, MD, who I wrote about previously, and what a great book! Highly recommend. 

She actually breaks down Empaths into three main types - physical empaths, emotional empaths, and intuitive empaths. We may be more of one than the others or maybe have experienced all three. She also broke down the intuitive empaths into seven different types, which again, we may be more of some types than others or have traits of multiple types.

It's so nice having professionals such as doctors and therapists who are Empaths themselves coming out with helpful books, courses and information for other Empaths, such as Dr. Judith Orloff, Dr. Christiane Northrup, and Dr. Michael R. Smith.

There were a number of quotes she had throughout the book and a couple of them really spoke to me. Here's one of them :

As a child I felt myself to be all alone, and I am still, because I know things and must hint at things that others apparently know nothing of, and for the most part do not want to know. Loneliness does not come from having no people about one, but from being unable to communicate the things that seem important to oneself, or from holding certain views which others find inadmissible.

~Dr. Carl Jung

What is an Empath?

It's so nice to see more professionals such as psychologists and psychiatrists speaking out and educating others about Empaths because they are one themselves. Dr. Judith Orloff is another one of these people, besides Dr. Michael R. Smith, who I've written about before.Though I haven't read Dr. Orloff's book yet, I have heard her speak on multiple occasions and really like what she has to share. As she mentions here, one of the biggest challenges of an Empath is to learn how to become an empowered Empath.


 

HSPs and Empaths

You can now pre-order the DVD of the groundbreaking new documentary Sensitive - The Untold Story by going here. The DVDs are coming out this week!  It's nice to have some scientific research to help explain the innate traits I have always had but didn't understand until recently.

Also, here's another good article about HSPs and Empaths that I came across recently in OM Times magazine called Understanding the Highly Sensitive Person.

Highly Sensitive People

We are all on a path of self-discovery and a remembering  and experiencing of Who We Really Are. We knew who we were and why we came before we got here but have just forgotten along the way. That's why it's not so much about learning something new as it is just being reminded and remembering what we forgot. 

I can tell when I hear one of these forgotten truths by the way I feel when I hear it or read it. It feels good; I resonate with it.

I came across several websites and articles about Highly Sensitive People (HSP) recently and in reading the traits and characteristics of them I discovered I answered yes to all of them. This didn't really surprise me because I had already discovered I am an Empath, which I have talked about more in depth here, here, and here.

According to Dr. Elaine Aron, a psychologist who has been studying HSPs for the last 20 years, about 20 percent of the population are highly sensitive (sometimes referred to as super or ultra sensitive), and according to Dr. Michael Smith, who has been studying Empaths for about as long, says about 5 percent of these are Empaths. Dr. Aron is currently working on creating a documentary about HSPs called Sensitive, and is an HSP herself. 

In sharing with others close to me what I discover on my never ending journey of learning about myself and Who I Really Am, it helps them in discovering things about themselves too. For example, just recently I shared  a list of traits of HSPs with my mother. She was surprised to discover she also answered yes to all of them. My mom has never been aware that she is considered to be in the 20 percent of the population that is highly sensitive. I didn't know this about her either; though it makes sense given that I am and it typically is inherited. I haven't always known I was an Empath or an Indigo either. I discovered these just a couple years ago. It's all part of our awakening and shifting into higher levels of consciousness.

In comparing the list of traits for Empaths and the list of traits for Highly Sensitive People, though they share a few common characteristics, the traits are different. Here is a clear definition of and distinction between them written by Liz Zambrano in a recent article in OM Times magazine:

A HSP, or highly sensitive person is a person having the trait of high sensory processing sensitivity (or innate sensitiveness) as Carl Jung originally coined it. According to Elaine N. Aron and colleagues as well as other researchers, highly sensitive people, who comprise about a fifth of the population (equal numbers in men and women), may process sensory data much more deeply and thoroughly due to a biological difference in their nervous system (Wikipedia).

An Empath, goes a bit further (Wikipedia), by “observing another person’s emotional state, activates parts of the neuronal network involved in processing that same state in oneself, whether it is disgust, touch, or pain”. Empaths have the ability to scan another’s energy for thoughts, feelings and possibly for past, present, and future life occurrences.

Click here for a list of 41 traits of HSPs I compiled from several different sources.

Empath Traits and Tips

I came across an article on the internet recently titled What is an Empath? and I had to share. It's one of the most detailed descriptions I've come across describing Empaths. She also lists 30 of the most common traits of an Empath. What amazes me is that this article describes me so well. At the time I read this article there were 725 comments on it. Although I didn't read all of them, I read a lot of them, and it was apparent that many other Empaths felt exactly the same way; even down to most of us not agreeing with only one of the 30 traits, which was the same one -- trait number 28. Very interesting.

Read the article by clicking here. Are you an Empath? What are your thoughts?

To check out what I've written previously about Empaths, click here and here.

I also recently received some great self care tips for the new year especially for Empaths and Highly Sensitive People from Colette Baron-Reid. Check those out here.

What is an Empath?

(Updated 6/19/20)

As I have written about before, I am an Empath. A lot of people don't know what that means so I'm always looking for helpful tools to use to help explain. In a world of over 7 billion creative beings, it's not hard to find an abundant selection, especially with today's technologies! It's more a matter of sifting through them.

In this very short video, author of The Empath’s Survival Guide, Judith Orloff MD discusses what an Empath is.

Also, I recently came across this article in OM Times about Highly Sensitive People. And they had another great article on HSPs and Empaths and explained the difference between them. Check it out here. It's on the mark.

What's an Empath?

Although I have been an Indigo and Empath all my life, it wasn't until early 2013 that I awakened to the fact that there were names (or labels) for what I had been experiencing. Once I realized this and did some research, many pieces of my life suddenly fit together like a puzzle. Many long standing questions were answered. Everything about myself suddenly made sense. I have always felt different. I just could never put my finger on it or name it or understand it.

What I have learned so far about Empaths is that almost all (if not all) Indigos are also Empaths, but not all Empaths are Indigos. (Learn more about Indigos here.)There are some people who are Empaths or what is called Highly Sensitive People (and who are not Indigos). "An Empath is someone who has been hard-wired from birth to perceive, and literally experience the thoughts, emotions, physical sensitivities and spiritual urges of other people," explains Dr. Michael R. Smith, Ph.D., N.C.C. An Empath is always "on" to process other people's feelings and energy. It's much more than being a highly sensitive person, and it's not limited to just emotions. Empaths are energetically sensitive and are affected by all types of energy.

From what I understand, the difference between Empaths and Highly Sensitive People (HSP) is that Empaths are more tuned into the spiritual realm than a sensitive person, though both are open and perceive and feel the energy around them. This is according to Dr. Michael R. Smith, who is a wonderful coach and teacher for Empaths and HSPs that I discovered on an on-line webinar in 2013. He is an Empath himself. He said there is a study that reported that around 20% of the total population is what's considered to be sensitive people, and he estimates from his clients over the years that about 5% of those are Empaths.

Here is a list of some characteristics of Empaths according to Dr. Smith:

• You look at someone and just know their emotional state.
• You can feel the energy coming at you (or being drained) from another person, especially from the eyes.
• You have a blocked feeling in your chest or sternum, as if someone is tugging on it.
• You tend to run away from people when stressed, rather than engage.
• You've been called "oversensitive" or "hypersensitive".
• You always know where danger may lurk. (Curiously, you may have avoided accidents because of this hyper-vigilance).
• You are drawn to the tranquility of animals.
• You are drawn to mountains, nature, the ocean -- anywhere outdoors for it's grounding effect.
• You cannot bear violence in any form.
• You can easily produce tears, sometimes at will.
• You may be able to feel the physical aches & pains of others in your body (this often leads to chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, or other energy illnesses).
• You feel better after a good, intense cry.
• You are overwhelmed by large crowds or mobs.
• You can sometimes feel affected by the energy of the full moon.
• You have had spiritual or paranormal experiences that include seeing or hearing ghosts, sensing presences, and/or having intense and sometimes lucid dreams.

Empaths directly perceive energy from other people's bodies and feel it in their own bodies. We feel everything, even if we are not aware of it. When I am focused on someone, whether in person or on the phone or someone on the TV or internet (it doesn't matter), I can literally feel what they are feeling. Mostly I feel the emotions but occasionally I may feel physical things as well.  For example, a client called me once about something that I forgot to do and though she was very nice and cordial on the phone, I could actually feel her agitation and annoyance. If someone is not honest or sincere, like when someone says one thing while they are feeling something very different, I know because I feel what they feel, regardless of what they say. I don't necessarily have to be focused on someone to feel their energy either.

My beloved Australian cattle dog Einstein, who passed away at home at the age of 17 a few months ago, taught me a lot in the thirteen years I had him but I learned something amazing just before he passed away. I had been giving him some pain medication in pill form but at the very end he couldn't swallow so I gave him an inject-able pain medication and it made him nauseous. I felt terrible for making him nauseous of course, but I also felt his nausea. I physically felt it in my body. I realized at that moment that I could feel what he was physically feeling. My empathic abilities extend to the animals. Also, the moment he died, I was in my office just a few feet away and I felt his energy come in the room and guide me out to where his body was and I saw that he just passed away. I had just checked on him five or ten minutes prior. I could feel Einstein as energy after he left his body. He got my attention and led me to see he had just left his body. He was free! 

Empaths are connected to their intuition, good listeners, very emotional and we feel very deeply. We experience emotions for unknown reasons and we cry easily. We are sensitive to our surroundings. We typically avoid places like malls, shopping centers and anywhere there might be chaos or negative energy. Lower vibrations drain us. I am really sensitive to violence and any other negativity on the TV, radio or otherwise. Considering we are bombarded with violence and negativity, the world can be a pretty painful place for an Empath. This is why it's common for Empaths to have addictions. We have to learn to discharge lower vibratory energy "crud" that we pick up over our lifetime that collects in our aura (energy body). If not, we can become sick. 

Trauma is associated with being an Empath, and according to Dr. Smith, occurs in about 50% of us and may have actually enhanced our energetic perception. We cannot change the fact that we are Empaths. "It is akin to your eye color", says Dr. Smith. It's not something that is teachable and you can't learn it. You either are or you aren't. It's a gift but can feel like a curse. We have to learn how to manage and adapt to our energetic sensitivity and that's what I have been working on and continue to work on. Dr. Smith has great tips on how to develop inner power and energetic balance so we can become empowered Empaths. We are fortunate to have someone like Dr. Smith to help us! If you or someone you know is an Empath or a HSP and would like more information, you can visit his website here.

A Big Ah-ha Moment

You know those "ah-ha" moments, when you finally get something? Something finally clicks or you receive some information and suddenly things you didn't understand or were unaware of now make perfect sense. It can even be something you may have read or heard a hundred times before but for whatever reason it usually went right through you and didn't sink in until you have a moment of clarity, and finally, you really get it this time -- you understand. It's clear now. It's like all the pieces of the puzzle finally come together and things make so much more sense. It's a good feeling!

I've had my share of these ah-ha moments and look forward to having more of them! One of the biggest of these I've had most recently, I received last year, in the Spring of 2013. I was excited going into the new year. Thirteen is my lucky number and I could feel that this was going to be a really good year for me. I knew that good things were going to happen (and they did!) but I really didn't have any idea what. I eagerly anticipated what was to come.  

Being highly intuitive, I am guided to things (and answers to questions) and I naturally (most of the time) follow where I am led. (Listen to your intuition! It's never wrong!) What's interesting is now with the internet, I am guided to things using this avenue of information as well. Who would have thought that I would have one of the biggest discoveries (or ah-ha moment) about myself that I've ever had, from the internet? Not me.

Well, one day I was just going though my personal emails and as usual, some I sent to the trash, some I saved for later, some I read. I get so many, I rarely read them all. (I sign up for lots of newsletters and such.) The ones that caught my attention, I read and then I would click on a link somewhere and read something else, then I might click on another link in there and go yet somewhere else (like being in an email vortex -- you only meant to go in for a minute to check emails & end up staying for hours!) until I ended up (don't remember how, exactly) at a self-test for adult Indigos. I'm sure it's been there for a long time. I was never aware of it. There was around 25 statements. As I read each statement, I found it interesting that all these different statements were put together because quite honestly, I had never put all these things together. They were attributes of adult Indigos. What really amazed me was that I answered yes to every single one of them. I read them again and again. Then it hit me, the biggest ah-ha ever! I am what has been labeled an adult Indigo and I had no idea until that moment. It was like getting hit over the head with a two by four. A big wave of emotion went through me. It's indescribable. It was one of those moments that seemed to be going in slow motion. I was feeling a lot of emotions all at once. It was a little overwhelming, but in a good way. And then it happened.

My maternal grandmother, whom I adore and who took care of me during the day when I was a small child (who had passed away twelve years earlier), appeared and wrapped her loving energy around me like a blanket to comfort me, to celebrate my awakening and to let me know she is here with me. That was totally unexpected but what a wonderful surprise! The immense love and joy that I was feeling in that moment is beyond words.

Now, without a doubt, I knew I was guided to this message or realization about myself; to realize Who I Really Am and all that may entail, which never stops expanding. This was just one aspect of who I am. But a biggie, none the less. And now I also knew, without a doubt, that I had my own support team on the other side as well.

Though at that moment I really didn't know much at all about Indigos, things that I've often wondered about were starting to make sense. The more research I did on Indigos, the more answers to questions I got and more pieces of the puzzle began falling into place. Memories of all the different psychic experiences I have had in my life started flooding my mind. Many I had forgotten. I found it amazing that I was reading books about adult Indigos that had not only been out for awhile, but that described me so well, even some of my personal feelings and thoughts that I have never expressed to anyone before --  it was almost freaky. How could this be? How could I not -- all this time -- know this about myself? 

I do know this: there are no coincidences and everything works in divine order. So instead of fretting over the fact that I have just now put two and two together, I am focusing on learning as much as I can and having the most fun I possibly can on my path now. 

This was a huge ah-ha moment for me. It changed my life. It has answered so many questions. It was sort of a home-coming -- coming home to myself, remembering more fully Who I Really Am and why I'm here. 

And as if that wasn't enough, during this same time I discovered (on the internet) a wonderful intuitive empath coach by the name of Dr. Michael R. Smith, PhD., who helped me realize that I was also empathetic or an empath (or sometimes called a Highly Sensitive Person). Again, I did a self-test/quiz, listened to Dr. Smith speak about what an empath is and what he does and again, I fit the description to a "T".  I didn't even know there was a term for what I have always experienced. Again, a lot of things I didn't understand about myself were now making much more sense to me. My self-discoveries were just beginning.

 I eventually learned that most, if not all Indigo souls are empaths. There are also people who are empaths but are not Indigos. I will be talking more about the aspects of being an empath in the future.

It all boils down to energy. We are all energy beings. Energy does not die, it only changes form. There is no such thing as "death", we only change form. We were energy before we incarnated into a body and we return to that energy with the accumulation of all we have become in this lifetime as well. We are eternal beings of light and love. Extensions of God/Source Energy/All That Is/The One.

Namaste!

Namaste! After experiencing some profound spiritual experiences known as "awakenings" earlier this year, I have been over-flowing with energy and inspiration to create, share and to help remind others of who they really are -- more so now then ever before, and there is no time like the present! As a result of these awakenings, which actually cause physiological changes in the brain, I have experienced and continue to experience shifts in levels of consciousness among other things. Though the experience is difficult to describe in words,  I understand why it is called an awakening. It is as though you have been somewhat asleep -- or not fully conscious your whole life without even knowing it, and in little increments (or maybe for some it is big increments) you begin waking up and the veil  that separates this three dimensional reality from beyond --  is lifted a little at a time. You become awakened. Your perception changes. Your consciousness changes. This is not something you can learn or study to attain, I am told. It is given by the grace of God or Source or All That Is or whatever name you want to give it. 

Of course each person's experience varies as it is a very personal experience. One of the common effects among people who have this experience of awakening is the quieting of all the mental chatter that goes on in your head and the letting go of judgmental thinking. You begin to shift from a consciousness of separateness to oneness. Another common experience is having moments of feeling such profound and powerful love and joy that is beyond anything you've ever felt before. It is indescribable or ineffable. This is happening to people all over the world. 

For me, it has been the most fun and exciting time of my life. I knew it was going to be a great year and it has been better than I could ever have imagined! I am so blessed! As a result of experiencing a couple of these awakenings earlier this year, I have remembered Who I Really Am. This, is the greatest gift of all. (The energy pouring through me as I write this right now is tremendous.) 

And so, Who I Really Am has to do with the reason I came here, on earth, in this physical body -- now, at this incredible time in human evolution. One of my purposes is to help remind people of Who They Really Are. Another one is to help teach people how to better care for their pets. Not a small feat, huh? Well, I am not alone by any means and besides, do you think I would come here with such a purpose and not be given tools with which to help me accomplish this? Come on, this is Source we are talking about!   :)

In the process I am going through -- and I say process because there is no ending per se--we never stop growing and expanding and evolving -- I have been awakened to the fact that I had been denying Who I Really Am my whole life, up until now (for reasons I will discuss later), which has been 49 years. (That's a long time! H-e-l-l-o Beth?! Am I a late bloomer or what?) I didn't even consciously realize that I was denying it really  -- and that is that  I am what people have labeled (we love labels, don't we?) "Super Sensitive" or Indigos (or Crystals and Cusps). I hadn't even heard of an Indigo (let alone these other terms) until the last decade or so. It really perked my interest, naturally, when I did and I saw a book about them I wanted to get but never did. It's amazing how if you don't seem to be getting a message that you're supposed to be getting, the Universe will keep providing means for which to get it. How I finally got the message I needed to get is amazing too, but I'll save that for another time. 

What is an Indigo? The term was coined by a parapsychologist and clairvoyant in the sixties and seventies, who began seeing indigo colored auras around some children. Indigos, Crystals and Cusps are all categorized by the color of their aura. The color indigo corresponds with the sixth chakra in our energy body, also known as the third eye. Indigo Souls are highly intuitive and  have a very active third eye. In other words, they have what is labeled as (those labels again!) psychic abilities -- clairvoyance, clairaudience, clairsentience, claircognizance, which are the most commonly known, and clairaroma and clairgustus. (I prefer the term intuitive over psychic, myself.) Usually Indigo Souls are also what is known as empathetic or  "Empaths". (This was another h-e-l-l-o moment for me.) Empaths are people who actually can feel other people's emotions and energies. They are extra sensitive to energy and have to be careful not to take on other people's emotions, energies or even physical illnesses. Most, if not all Indigos are Empaths but not all Empaths are Indigos.

Maybe you've heard of Indigos (or Super Sensitives, Crystals or Cusps). Maybe you've read some of the books about them or have seen the documentary about them that came out in recent years. Maybe your child is one. Maybe you are one. Or maybe you know someone who is or you're just curious about them. Not all Indigos are necessarily aware that they are Indigos either. Look at me! I just became aware of the fact that I am one in mid life. But I also know there are no coincidences and so, this was how it is supposed to be. Now is the right time for me.

So long story short, due to these awakenings, I have remembered Who I Really Am and why I am here -- or at least one of the main reasons, and that is to use my gifts (each one of us has them!) to bring more light and love to the world in this important time in our human evolution. So I thought I'd start with this blog so I can share what I have learned along my path -- and continue to learn and discover, with the intention that those who will benefit from it, will be led to it. That I can accomplish what I came here to do and that is to help remind people of Who They Really Are -- magnificent, powerful beings; extensions of source energy.

I would like to mention just for the record that I was raised religion-less (of which I am grateful). In other words, with no specific religion. When someone would ask what religion I was growing up, I had no idea what to say and if I did give an answer just to give one, it had no meaning to me.  I went to a couple of Sunday school classes with my grandparents under the age of five, of which I have little to no recall. I do not consider myself religious but have respect for all religions. When I got to be an adult I did begin regularly attending a non-denominational place of meditation and prayer that my mother started attending back in the mid-eighties. A progressive place that is about inspiring you to be all that you were created to be. A place about oneness and unity. It's called Unity of Houston. This is where I have received a lot of the food for my soul, including the Oneness Blessings and Oneness Meditations, which led to my awakenings. But that's me. Everyone has their own place or whatever (or not) where they receive their "soul food" and that's perfect. And not that you even have to go any where to receive it. We are all  unique and I love that. I'm just letting you know a little of my background in this regard. To me, religions are just another category with labels of which none fit for me. I am a spiritual being having a human experience. Period.

I would also like to say that these "awakenings" and the remembering of Who I Really Am and all that entails, did not happen in an instant or over night. It has been accumulative. And it continues. We never stop expanding, if we will just allow.

I look forward to sharing the love and light that is flowing through me as I continue on my journey.