If you have a natural gift for recognizing emotions in others and can pick up on subtle shifts in their energy, you may be a psychic empath.
However, being so deeply in tune with people’s feelings and energy can be exhausting. Thankfully, with self-awareness and a healthy dose of energetic shielding, you can use your abilities to help others in ways that are genuinely helpful.
1. Identify your abilities
Empaths are able to sense what other people are feeling without them telling them, which is a powerful ability. However, this can come with some challenges.
The key to becoming a psychic empath is identifying your abilities and learning to manage them effectively. This is particularly important if you’re struggling to cope with your own emotions.
One way to identify your abilities is by taking a self-assessment quiz. Psychic author Angela Orloff suggests asking yourself 20 questions to gauge your intuitive empathy level in her book, Intuitive Empath.
If you answer yes to most of the questions, then you’re a claircognizant intuitive empath. This means you have a strong sense of knowing about a situation, such as telling when someone is lying or perceiving the best course of action.
Intuitive empaths are also sensitive to environmental factors. They’re often more bothered by certain smells or noises than others are. They’re also attuned to changes in their body, like when a headache or upset stomach hits them.
Physical empaths are even more observant of bodily sensations. They’ll feel things like headaches or stomachaches in other people, and may have a habit of mirroring their own body language or little tics.
While empathy is a gift, it can be exhausting if you don’t learn to manage your own energy and shield yourself from negative energies. As a result, it’s critical to take time for yourself and recharge your batteries from time to time. In particular, you can reconnect with nature and spend some time alone to unwind from the stresses of life.
2. Learn to manage your emotions
Empaths are sensitive people, and it is a normal part of their nature to feel other people’s emotions. But if they are not careful, their empathy can be unmanageable, causing them to burn out and eventually shut down.
As a psychic empath, it is important to learn how to manage your emotions. This will help you to stay balanced and in control of your abilities, as well as protect yourself from any negative energy you may have absorbed.
Emotional contagion is a common part of empathy, but it does not necessarily translate into healthy and functional empathy (Maclaren, 2013). It is primitive, automatic and unconscious, relies on non-verbal communication that bypasses our conscious minds, and is often out of control, according to psychotherapist Annette Nunez, Ph.D. LMFT.
Psychic empathy is also highly vulnerable to emotional energy drain, especially when it’s taken unconsciously, which can happen in crowded situations and with heated arguments. This can easily lead to exhaustion and burnout for intuitive empaths, and it can also manifest in their relationships if they’re not careful about setting energetic boundaries.
If you are a psychic empath and you’re finding it difficult to balance your emotions, meditation can be an excellent way to help. It can also boost your intuition, which is a key ability for empaths to develop.
Intuition is one of the most valuable gifts that a psychic empath has, but it can be a hard skill to master. This is because it’s not logical, so you can’t always rationalize what you’re feeling or hearing. Luckily, you can learn to be more in tune with your intuition by practicing yoga and meditation regularly.
3. Take care of yourself
Empaths are gifted with the ability to pick up on other people’s emotions. This is a wonderful gift, but it can also take its toll on empaths if they don’t learn how to take care of themselves properly.
The first step is to take time for yourself to recharge your batteries and give yourself a mental break from all the negative energies you absorb from others. Meditation is a great way to do this, but don’t forget to spend some time in nature to get back in touch with your earth energy.
As an empath, you’re often drawn to people who need your support, whether it’s in a physical or emotional sense. It can be hard to say no when it comes to helping other people with their problems, but you must develop healthy boundaries if you want to protect yourself.
You may also find it difficult to have relationships with other people because you’re constantly absorbing their emotions, and that can drain you of your own. The best thing you can do for yourself is to set clear boundaries with those who are draining you of your own energy.
Another important way to shield yourself from other people’s energy is to practice grounding. This involves spending time outside, either by yourself or with a friend, and consciously connecting to the earth.
In addition, it’s a good idea to surround yourself with calming objects or symbols, like plants, family photos, or crystals. These can help you create a small psychological barrier and prevent you from becoming overwhelmed with other people’s stress, anger, or fear.
Developing these habits will help you feel more balanced and grounded, which is vital for your wellbeing as a psychic empath. Once you’ve established these habits, it won’t be difficult to continue practicing them on a regular basis.
4. Learn to shield yourself
Psychic empaths are blessed with the ability to connect with other people’s feelings and energy, but it can also be a curse. Empaths often pick up negative energies from others that make them feel depressed or anxious.
As a psychic empath, it’s important to learn how to shield yourself from unwanted influences so that you can live a peaceful life. Fortunately, there are many ways you can do this — from using crystals to practicing meditation — and we’re sharing them with you here.
One of the most practical ways to protect yourself as a psychic empath is to limit your contact with other people’s energy. This may mean saying no to people who don’t need you or cutting yourself off from social media if you find that you’re constantly being drained by others’ energy.
Another important way to protect yourself is to create daily grounded and balancing habits. It’s a great idea to create a routine that includes meditation, wind-down activities such as journaling, and other practices that ground you and help you stay balanced.
Once you’ve got a routine down, stick to it and use it to protect yourself from emotional overloads. It’s also helpful to keep track of where you feel most overloaded — this will allow you to reduce your exposure to those things that cause you to go into overload.
It’s also a good idea to spend time in nature, which is a wonderful way to center yourself and clear your mind. You can do this by walking in the woods or meditating outdoors. You can even try forest bathing, which is a Japanese wellness practice that’s great for empaths.
5. Develop your intuition
Developing your intuition as an empath can take time, but it can also be beneficial. It can help you feel more grounded, according to psychic medium Tanya Carroll Richardson, author of Self-Care for Empaths.
She says it’s important to be able to distinguish between your thoughts and the spiritual guidance Spirit has for you. This can be a challenge, especially when you’re feeling overwhelmed by your feelings and emotions. It’s also a good idea to work with someone who can help you develop your intuition, she tells mbg.
To begin, try meditating in the morning and evening to foster your connection with your inner self. This will train your mind and body to tune into your intuition, according to Nunez.
You can also find a meditation class or a therapist who specializes in a holistic, mind-body-soul approach. These therapists can offer you a safe space to practice your abilities and build trust in them.
Another way to develop your intuition is to learn how to read your dreams. Dreams are a great source of intuitive information, according to astrologists and psychic mediums.
They often bypass your ego and the linear mind, providing clear, intuitive guidance that can help you overcome difficult emotions or spiritual challenges.
Intuition is an extrasensory ability that’s not always apparent to the brain, explains Joel Pearson, an associate professor of psychology at the University of New South Wales in Australia. It usually occurs in a subconscious manner, meaning it’s difficult to rationalize or make sense of it.
Some people may experience psychic experiences in which they can feel others’ emotions and energy, a phenomenon called “intuitive empathy,” suggests psychiatrist Dr. Judith Orloff. She writes on her website that some people are able to experience empathy in a way that feels as if they are absorbing the pain and emotions of those around them.