I have always been overly emotional. As long ago as I can remember, I have been so sensitive I would cry at the drop of a hat, sometimes for no reason. I would cry over other peoples' misfortunes—sometimes complete strangers, sometimes even a bully. When I was in seventh grade, a girl who bullied me started crying at an overnight school trip. A song that played reminded her of her dead mother. As cruel as this girl was to me, I couldn't help by cry when I felt the emotions she was showing. I sat in the bathroom with my teacher and just cried, expressing my sympathies for this bully.

After years of talking to school guidance counselors, family, and friends, I had finally gotten some form of answer. My guidance counselor from freshman year of high school recently met with me for lunch and gave me a bit of information that totally changed my life.

I am an empath.

An empath is a person who is affected by other peoples' energies and emotions. It is a lot more than being overly "dramatic" and emotional. It is the ability to subconsciously and instinctually feel and perceive other peoples' emotions, desires, and even thoughts.

It may sound like a beautiful thing to perceive other people's emotions, wishes, and desires. It's not that amazing nor beautiful. Many empaths live with chronic fatigue, unexplained pains, and are very sensitive to environments. Empaths tend to ignore their own needs and feelings and focus on other people's emotions and energies. Empaths are generally not violent nor aggressive. They are so full of empathy (hence the name "empath") and so understanding, that it is almost their own downfall or fatal flaw.

Empaths such as myself live off of everyone else's feelings, karma, and thoughts. It is almost like emotion overload. Empaths are particularly vulnerable to the news, things going on in the world like violence, deaths of well-known people, and child or animal cruelty.

How do you spot an empath?

Empaths are the caretakers and teachers of the world. They are people who work in a field where they help people, animals, and children. Their passion for nurturing others makes them incredibly useful, and aware of their own self-worth. An empath is the girl volunteering her time at the animal shelter or hospital without expecting recognition. It's the boy who does whatever he can to turn that frown into a smile. Empaths are people who solve problems and are lucid dreamers.

As an empath, I have come to realize it is a blessing and a curse at the same time. Feeding on others' emotions, desires and energies can cause anxiety and mood swings. I have a tendency to have accurate "gut" feelings. Being in public, hectic situations can be overwhelming due to the fact so much energy is buzzing around me. Empaths often form "sympathy pains," digestive disorders, and addictive personalities in order to block out the multiple conflicting emotions they feel.

In the past my friends have called me a hypochondriac. IBS and I know each other very well, and I am very careful to avoid addiction in my life.

People have been drawn to me and vice versa because of my empathetic nature; that is also a blessing and a curse. Because I am an empath, I have a habit of attracting people who need help. Whether they had bad upbringings or suffer in silence, I am attracted to that. I have had people suck the life out of me by feeding off of my empathetic ways, trapping me into toxic friendships and even an abusive relationship.

As a blessing, it has lead me to many people with positive outcomes. People are attracted toward my empathetic ways and feel very comfortable opening up to me and being vulnerable in my presence.

Now that I have learned so much about my personality type, I have learned how to cope with it. I have become less emotional and more aware of the world around me. An empath may seem like a blessing and a curse, but I am who I am—and there's nothing I can do to change that. I embrace the fact that I am an empath and work with it every day to become self aware and strong.