Empaths are often drawn to water and the outdoors, so using visualizations involving these can be especially powerful. The visualizations below are to either “shed” the extra energy that does not belong or “shield” the empath from energy that does not belong.

Begin with an Energy Scan: Bring your awareness into your body and scan with your mind to see if there is anything that doesn’t feel like “you”, starting from the head down. For example you might feel a heaviness in your chest that doesn’t feel like yours, an image, or a color that doesn’t belong. Once you have found energy that doesn’t belong, investigate what it is and who it belongs to. Is it residual emotion from your own experience, or could it be something that actually belongs to someone else?

Sequencing: Imagine a big, transformational bonfire in front of you. Notice where in your body the stuck/extra energy resides and invite it to begin to move out your hands by shaking your hands vigorously into the fire. Imagine the energy moving through your hands into the fire. Then, do the same thing with your feet, releasing any tension or others’ energy out the bottom of your feet by shaking your leg into the fire. If you like, stand up and shake your whole body to release everything into the fire. Notice how you feel after.
Stickers: Notice the extra energy that does not belong to you as if they are grass burrs/stickers that have attached to you. Pick each one off, examine it, then imagine taking that energy into your hand, wrapping it in love/power from God, then sending back to the person or to God.
Sacred Container: In this practice you will practice placing loved ones in a Sacred Container to be attended to by God. Imagine a safe, healing calm environment to come into focus (nature, altar, etc.) noticing the healing energy that surrounds it from God. When you feel ready, hand over the person and/or their energy to that Sacred Container, allowing God to hold them instead of you. Next say “I hand this over to you” and allow the Sacred Container to move off in the distance.
Shielding: Sometimes empaths may struggle with shielding themselves from the energy from others, especially those who they care about. Shielding can help by developing a barrier between the empath and others; this might be imagining a large bubble, armor, a glass wall, or some other type of shield to allow the empath to continue to communicate with others yet allow extra emotions and energy to bounce off the barrier.

~Melissa McGee, MA, LPC-S

Sources: Sweigh Emily Spilkin, Empath Mastery, www.thresholdshealing.com

Dr. Judith Orloff, www.drjudithorloff.com

In my practice lately, I am finding many of my clients are empaths. As a fellow empath, I understand the care and safety they need in order to identify their empathic qualities and learn how to balance using their gifts without overspending themselves.

So, what is an empath? Dr. Judith Orloff defines empaths as highly sensitive people who feel everything and use intuition as the filter to experience their world. I often begin to suspect a client is an empath when they feel their emotions deeply, seem to carry excess emotions including the emotions of others, and often feel drained in their life.

First, we begin with Dr. Orloff’s Quiz:

1. Have I been labeled as “overly sensitive,” shy, or introverted?

2. Do I frequently get overwhelmed or anxious?

3. Do arguments or yelling make me ill?

4. Do I often feel like I don’t fit in?

5. Am I drained by crowds and need alone time to revive myself?

6. Am I over stimulated by noise, odors, or non-stop talkers?

7. Do I have chemical sensitivities or can’t tolerate scratchy clothes?

8. Do I prefer taking my own car places so I can leave early if I need to?

9. Do I overeat to cope with stress?

10. Am I afraid of becoming suffocated by intimate relationships?

11. Do I startle easily?

12. Do I react strongly to caffeine or medications?

13. Do I have a low pain threshold?

14. Do I tend to socially isolate?

15. Do I absorb other people’s stress, emotions, or symptoms?

16. Am I overwhelmed by multitasking and prefer doing one thing at a time?

17. Do I replenish myself in nature?

18. Do I need a long time to recuperate after being with difficult people or energy vampires?

19. Do I feel better in small cities or the country than large cities?

20. Do I prefer one-to-one interactions or small groups rather than large gatherings?

Answering yes:

1-5 questions = partial empath

6-10 = moderate empath tendencies

11-15 = strong empath tendencies

More than 15 = full empath

Typically empaths actually feel the emotions of others and may even experience the physical pain of others. Are you more sensitive, intuitive, and creative? Do you become overwhelmed, leading to exhaustion or overstimulation? More to come on strategies to shield and shed that energy!

~Melissa McGee, MA, LPC-S

Source: https://drjudithorloff.com/

Shedding & Shielding

Are you an Empath?