I first heard of the term “Empath,” when I was in my early twenties. I read some articles on it and I remember feeling like “THIS IS IT, this is ME!” Knowing this gave me so much awareness about what was going on in my life and it was the foundation for me to start learning how to navigate this immense gift.
So, what is an Empath? Derived from the word “empathy,” which means, “The ability to understand and share the feelings of another,” Empaths understand emotions, thoughts, and feelings of others 
whenever they are near others by experiencing the other person’s emotions, thoughts, and feelings for themselves. If an Empath does not know this is happening, it can be quite troubling. In my experience, it takes a lot of self-awareness, healthy boundaries, and self-care to help these gifts grow in a positive way to ensure the Empath is not taking on the other person’s inner stuff as their own. A balanced and knowledgeable Empath will naturally harness very healing energy to be around, are incredibly CREATIVE, have incredibly intuition (which they learn to live by), are very helpful, take great care of themselves, are compassionate, present, and can understand people, animals, the planet, and the Universe on a deep, deep level, embodying one-ness with all that is.
If you’re reading this, I believe there are no coincidences, you might be an Empath!
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Here Are Some Signs You Might Be An Empath:
1. You Feel Drained Energetically AND/OR Emotionally After Being In Large Crowds of People:
When an Empath goes into a large crowd and doesn’t take proper self-care, they might feel overwhelmed, anxious, tired, and then ultimately drained during and afterwards. Empaths are like an energetic sponge and if they are not aware, it can be easy to take on negativity as your own.
2. You Enjoy Smaller Gatherings or 1 on 1 Conversations:
As mentioned in #1, Empaths are like an energetic sponge. Often times, Empaths will unknowingly gravitate towards smaller get-to-gethers that feel “safer,” and more up-lifting. This is because when an Empath is around someone who is happy and joyful, they experience that happiness and joy as their own! Contrast to this, if an Empath is around someone who is sad or anxious, they also experience this as their own (If they are not practicing proper grounding techniques and spiritual hygiene).
3. You’re Intuitive:
Empaths are very intuitive and this intuition takes practice to harness all of it’s benefits. Empaths benefit from being in nature, meditation, and mindfulness practices to help them clear themselves of other’s energy and tune into their own Divine intuition.
4. You Enjoy Deep Conversations and Relationships:
Empaths don’t typically enjoy small talk. They cut right to the existential and conscious conversations. If you’re dating an Empath, you might notice that they get right to these deep conversations right after they say good morning. It’s important for Empaths to have health boundaries in relationships as well. An Empath who does not have healthy boundaries can be an easy target for those who only wish to take their time + energy and there is no reciprocity. It is important for Empaths to self care and ensure that they are building their self-confidence as well as nurturing their Chakra energetic centers.
5. You Call Yourself An “Introverted Extrovert”:
Yes. You are both. How can that be? You love bringing your healing energy to other’s in the world as you feel guided to, but you also need the balance of being alone to recover your own energy. It is important for Empaths to find a good balance of both for their mental and physical health. Making sure an Empath is surrounding themselves with nurturing, positive people whenever possible is important, just as important as making sure the Empath is getting alone time! Balance is a lifelong process and each day brings a new need for balance.
Learn how to harness your abilities and protect yourself energetically by signing up for the “Spiritual Hygiene,” Online Course with Alana Roach.
Author: Alana Roach, Founder of Explorations of Self
Resources:
https://www.healthline.com/health/what-is-an-empath#major-empathy
Alana’s love for yoga came from firsthand experience with just how powerful the practice is. “In 2009, Yoga found me. Inside the studio, she experienced a deep sense of belonging, but the most profound part was what happened after. “I felt as though I was at true peace. I finally knew what the word meant. Until that moment, I had just understood it cerebrally. There is something profound to be said about Peace dropping into the heart.”