Empath. What is it? What does it mean to be an empath? What does it feel like to be an empath? What is empath? These are question that I commonly get whenever I tell people that I'm an empath. I'm always surprised to hear how little people know about being an empath. So I'm taking this opportunity to explain what it means and what it feels like to be an empath.

First, What is an empath? There are two mindsets about what it means to be an empath. The first mindset is that empath is a supernatural gift. This mindset asserts that empaths are psychically able to sense, absorb and alter the emotional state of the individuals around them. The second mindset, the mindset I subscribe to, is that an empath analyzes all verbal and non-verbal cues, and I do mean ALL of the cues, and when this is combined with an empath's intuition it causes the empath to take on the emotional state of the individual being analyzed. Now this is a simplified definition, but hopefully by the end of this article it'll be clear.

Now, what does this mean in the life of an empath? When in a large crowd empaths are often scanning a room. Because there can be so many different emotions being felt in the same room at the same time, and an empath is feeling all of it. This can be exhausting. Here's an illustration to, hopefully, help you understand. Imagine that everyone is putting out these emotional vibrations and an empath is hearing all of those vibrations at one time, so trying to focus on one thing is difficult and just plain exhausting. More often than not empaths feel everything so deeply that when they lock on to an emotion an empath will pursue it until another emotion steals their attention. This is why it's important for empaths to spend time alone because they will put others emotions above their own.

Now here are a few things you need to understand when dealing, living, or loving an empath. Empaths need to be reminded that their own emotions are important because they focus on and feel others emotions so much and so deeply that they will help others before helping themselves. Also, understand empaths want to help, so don't be offended if they pry into your life. Because they truthfully have the best intentions, and will feel the deepest guilt if they feel like someone is hurt by something they could have prevented, so use gentility if you want them back off. Finally, be patient. Empaths live in a world of deep and complex emotions which combine with their own. Which can cause them take more time than normal to process their emotions. Because they are also processing everyone else's emotions, and they need more affection while they are processing because they need to feel safe, so if an empath becomes more clinging then normal chances they are dealing with something.

Now I haven't listed all the little details of being an empath. Because that could take way to much time to explain everything, so this was just a general overview that will hopefully help you if you have a friend, loved one, or interact regularly with an empath.