In over a decade of doing medical intuition work, I have yet to find a physical ailment that does not have an emotional and/or energetic component to it as well. And in the last six years, I’ve been introduced to and am now teaching about another underlying cause that won’t show up on any tests, but has detrimental effects for millions of people.
While it is commonly accepted that we are culminations of energy, intention and thought, and that we share molecules with all of those who are here now and who have ever been, what isn’t as commonly discussed is that not all of those molecules are healthy ones.
All forms of energy are shared between individual bodies as well as that of the collective humanity, the animal kingdom, the earth and the stars. And as such, each one of us is susceptible to incoming human energies of love, anger, joy, rage, humor and grief, as well as the stillness of the trees and the light of the stars—the entire gamut of experience. Too much exposure to any of the “lower vibration energies” however, will adversely affect our physical bodies and create acute or even chronic situations that seem to never heal.
If you enter a funeral where everyone is crying (even if you don’t know anyone there or the deceased), odds are high that at some point you’ll feel the collective grief, too. Likewise, if you walk into a room where everyone is laughing, odds are high that eventually you will laugh as well. Now imagine overexposure to that collective grief or the collective anger. These will and do affect us, and if we’re not aware of it, will create extremely demanding health challenges, difficulties with relationships, life direction, and more.
“Nonsense” you say? This isn’t just my idea.
Science has confirmed our metaphysical connectedness via the discovery of mirror neurons—brain cells that are responsible for empathy. These are the cells responsible for feeling grief at the aforementioned funeral, or feeling joyous at a comedy club, or more causally, just connecting with any person in front of you.
Problems occur when we take on and subconsciously decide to keep incoming energies rather than just feel them and let them pass through. I have found that any sense of responsibility for another person’s thoughts, feelings, emotions, or experiences creates a more active mirror neuron network. This results in an intense one-way influx of energy that in a sense, makes us say, “I’ll take your grief. I’ll take your anger” etc., as a way of connecting with others. While the intention is positive, the end result of being a walking emotional sponge is not.
Taking on situations that aren’t yours...
...is kind of like trying to run a marathon while you’ve got a bunch of people strapped to your back. If this feels like you, how could you possible have any energy? (Some might call this "Chronic Fatigue") If you’re taking on emotional chaos or other peoples' sadness, how could that not lead to anxiousness (some might call this "Anxiety.") and heavy-heartedness? (Some might call this "Depression.") And if you’re taking on others’ anger and frustration, how could that not lead to tightened muscles (some might call this "Fibromyalgia.") and so much more?
And to make this problem even more insidious, the persons from who you are taking away their challenges are now less whole, leaving them less able to notice what is happening within them. It’s a lose-lose situation, even though you’re intention is a positive one!
If this is how you learned to care for others, it can be very difficult to change; however, it’s not necessary to change that much. In fact, to prevent this absorption of others’ energies, we don’t want to start caring less. Rather, we want to start caring more effectively.
We begin this process with present moment awareness—challenging our old conditioned beliefs that have taught us that the way to connect with others is through an empathic transfer of energy. We invite a higher awareness, or what I call, “a second thought.” Meaning, our first thoughts are usually coming from years of conditioned reactions. If we allow that thought without giving it too much credence and invite in the second thought, we’re bypassing the patterns and opening up to higher truths. And by living form a higher truth, we live more expansively, increasing vibrancy and emotional connections, and allowing in all the guidance you'll ever need. Our first thoughts are typically those of responsibility, guilt, fear, and shame--these lead to more contraction.
As we get really good at prevention, we can be there for others in a new, more empowered way. By operating from this more holistic view of interdependency rather than codependency, our relationships with others deepen, and our own health improves dramatically. We no longer get drained when doing the things we love, and we no longer suffer the oft-debilitating effects of taking on too much energy from other people.
Just as there is so much more to true healing than what we’ve been taught, there is also much more to healing for the Empath & Highly Sensitive Person that I’ve barely touched upon here. If this resonates with you, check out my two latest books, one of which has been in Amazon's Top 20 in its category for 41 consecutive months!