Why It Matters: What is an Empath?
An empath is a person who has a heightened ability to sense and feel the emotions, energy, and even physical sensations of others. Often described as being deeply intuitive and sensitive, empaths can experience other people’s feelings as if they were their own, which can make them highly compassionate and understanding individuals.
Key Traits of Empaths:
Emotional Absorption: Empaths can unintentionally absorb the emotions and energies of people around them, whether positive or negative.
Deep Sensitivity: They are highly attuned to subtle energies, shifts in mood, or unspoken emotional undercurrents.
Overwhelm: Because of their heightened sensitivity, empaths can easily feel overstimulated in crowded spaces, chaotic environments, or intense emotional situations.
Intuitive Understanding: Empaths often have a natural ability to understand people deeply, sometimes even when words are not spoken.
Connection with Nature: Many empaths find solace and grounding in nature, as it offers a calm and rejuvenating escape from overwhelming energies.
Strengths and Challenges of Being an Empath:
Strengths:
Empaths excel in caregiving roles, healing work, counseling, and creative fields because of their deep understanding and compassion.
Their heightened intuition allows them to connect with others in meaningful ways.
Challenges:
Empaths can become emotionally drained or feel burned out if they don't set healthy boundaries.
They may struggle to differentiate their emotions from those of others, making it difficult to know what belongs to them.
Empaths and Power:
Many empaths unintentionally give away their power by overextending themselves, taking on others’ emotional burdens, or neglecting their own needs. Calling back their power involves practices that allow empaths to establish energetic boundaries, protect their peace, and reclaim control over their own emotional landscape. Techniques like mindfulness, energy-clearing rituals, grounding practices, and learning to say “no” are crucial tools for empowerment.
The Breakdown:
Here are actionable tips and practices that empaths can use to call back their power, regain balance, and protect their emotional and energetic boundaries:
1. Grounding Practices
Empaths often get overwhelmed by external energies. Grounding helps them reconnect to their own energy and feel centered.
Nature Connection: Walk barefoot on grass (earthing), spend time in the forest, or sit near water. Visualize roots connecting you to the earth.
Grounding Meditation: Focus on your breath and imagine releasing excess energy into the earth while drawing calm, stabilizing energy back up.
2. Shielding Techniques
Empaths absorb energy unconsciously. Shielding helps filter what comes in and protect their energy field.
Visualization: Picture yourself surrounded by a protective bubble of light (gold, white, or any color that feels powerful to you). This bubble allows love and light to flow through but blocks negativity.
Affirmations: Repeat phrases like, "I choose what energy I allow into my space," or "I protect my peace and set healthy boundaries."
3. Energetic Cord-Cutting
Empaths often form energetic cords with others, particularly in close or intense relationships. Cutting these cords allows them to release unhealthy attachments.
Visualization Practice:
Imagine cords of energy connecting you to people or situations that drain you.
Visualize cutting these cords with a beam of light, a sword, or golden scissors, and sealing the area with healing energy.
Calling Back Energy: Say aloud or in your mind, “I call back all of my energy from every place, person, or situation where it has been given away.”
4. Set Healthy Boundaries
Empaths often struggle with people-pleasing or over-giving. Learning to say “no” and honor personal limits is critical.
Practice Saying ‘No’ Gently: For example, “I’d love to help, but I don’t have the energy for that right now.”
Time Limits: Limit time spent in emotionally draining environments or conversations.
Energetic Boundaries: Before meeting others, affirm, “Their emotions are not mine to carry.”
5. Cleansing Rituals
Energy can linger on an empath’s body and space. Regular cleansing clears external energies and restores balance.
Smudging: Burn sage, palo santo, or incense to cleanse your aura and space.
Salt Baths: A bath with Epsom salt, sea salt, or Himalayan salt helps pull out stagnant energy. Add lavender or frankincense for extra relaxation.
Crystals: Carry crystals like black tourmaline (protection), amethyst (calm), or citrine (empowerment).
6. Mindfulness and Emotional Awareness
Empaths can struggle to distinguish between their emotions and those of others. Mindfulness brings clarity.
Journaling: Write down how you feel and ask, “Is this my emotion or someone else’s?”
Body Scans: Tune into physical sensations to notice where emotions might be stored in your body.
Breathing Techniques: Use deep belly breathing to release emotions that aren’t yours.
7. Reclaim Your Energy with Visualization
A powerful practice to call back your scattered energy:
Close your eyes and take deep breaths.
Visualize fragments of your energy (like light orbs) in other places, people, or situations.
Call these fragments back to you, watching them merge into your body. Affirm, “I reclaim all of my energy and restore my power.”
8. Prioritize Self-Care and Alone Time
Empaths need time alone to recharge and tune into themselves.
Schedule regular periods of solitude to restore emotional balance.
Engage in activities like reading, art therapy, yoga, or quiet walks.
Practice self-compassion and prioritize your emotional needs.
How to Thrive Without Feeling Drained
My Journey:
I’d heard the term empath before—you probably have too. And while I knew other people’s energy, moods, and emotions affected me, I didn’t fully claim this word as my own until yesterday.
Growing up, I developed all the coping mechanisms an empath naturally gravitates toward: people-pleasing, a Type A personality, perfectionism, and tirelessly fixing others’ problems until I collapsed. But I never learned about balance, how to nurture myself, or how to call back my energy—until now.
The last few years have been tough for my little family. My husband is also on a healing journey. Yesterday, he was experiencing big emotions that needed to be released. I found myself anxiously monitoring his breathing, his facial expressions, and the tone of his voice—absorbing his energy like a poisonous drink I willingly consumed. It was a deeply ingrained habit, one I’d witnessed in my family members, who either reacted strongly to others’ emotions or monitored them anxiously, as I was doing.
In the midst of my anxious thoughts, I paused and realized: I was absorbing energy that wasn’t mine. This wasn’t empathy—empathy is feeling compassion for someone while maintaining your own emotional boundaries. Instead, I was having a mental and physical reaction to someone else’s feelings, taking them on as if they were my own burden to fix.
Recently, I’d heard about energy-cleansing practices. Over the past month, I had my first experience cleansing our home with salt, protective activated symbols, palo santo smudging, wearing healing stones, and even saw an Instagram post about calling your energy back at the end of the day, and tried it. Without fully understanding, I had already begun the process of helping my empathic self heal.
That realization led me to draw a bath and reflect, not with shame, but with curiosity about this coping mechanism. While soaking, I stumbled upon a channeled message by Ritaellenmirchandani about empaths on Instagram. Suddenly, everything clicked. I realized that while this coping mechanism had helped me feel safer as a child, I was also naturally inclined toward being an empath. The problem was that I didn’t yet have the skills to use this gift in a healthy way.
I followed my curiosity and intuition, which led me to a meditation by @MichelleChalfant on YouTube. (Funny enough, the clock reads 12:34 as I write this!) That meditation felt transformative—like meeting a part of myself for the first time.
I’m still learning so much and remain open to these new experiences. I trust my intuition that embracing my empathic nature and learning to call back my energy will not only ease my anxiety but also allow me to share my gift without burning out.
Your Turn:
How Do You Protect Your Energy as an Empath?
Now it’s your time to share! What practices or tools do you use to reclaim your energy and set boundaries as an empath? Have you tried grounding, shielding, or cord-cutting techniques? Share your favorite methods or experiences in the comments below—I’d love to hear how you stay empowered and balanced!
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Until next time,
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Sources:
"What Is an Empath and How to Know If You Are One?" – Healthline
Judith Orloff, MD – The Empath’s Survival Guide: Life Strategies for Sensitive People
"Grounding Techniques for Highly Sensitive People" – Psychology Today
"Cord Cutting: Releasing Toxic Attachments" – Well+Good
"How to Protect Your Energy as an Empath" – Gaia
Articles on energetic shielding and self-care – MindBodyGreen
Elaine Aron, PhD – The Highly Sensitive Person
"Empathy and Energy Transfer in Social Interactions" – ResearchGate
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