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