Saturday, April 28, 2018

A Wonderful Guidebook for Empaths, Part 4

     OK, OK, I know I've been gushing perhaps too much, but I can't overemphasize the importance of Dr. Judith Orloff's book, The Empath's Survival Guide: Life Strategies for Sensitive People.  Here are some quotes to show you why I think it is so vital to us empaths and sensitive people:
   We are in the midst of an evolution of human consciousness, and empaths are the path forgers.  A sacred responsibility comes with our sensitivities, which demand more of us than simply retreating into isolation.  It's vital we learn how to avoid feeling overwhelmed so that we can fully shine our power in the world.  Empaths and all sensitive people are pioneers on the forefront of a new way of being for humankind.
   You are part of Generation S, for Sensitivity -- those who salute compassion and loving-kindness.  You represent a vital opening for humanity to grow into more heart-centered and intuitive awareness.  You can model for others how to be sensitive and powerful.
And:
   I love when the environmentalist David Orr says, "The planet does not need more 'successful people.'  The planet desperately needs more peacemakers, healers, restorers, storytellers, and lovers of all kinds.  It needs people to live well in their places.  It needs people with moral courage willing to join the struggle to make the world habitable and humane, and these qualities have little to do with success as our culture defines it."
   Empaths are pivotal to manifesting this shift.  Sensitivity is the path to nonviolence.  We can be the healers and restorers and seers and lovers if we keep our sensitivities open and stay centered in our power.  We don't have to be afraid of who we are.  My advice to you is to do good and be good -- the rest will follow.  A commitment to this goal is critical because there is a quickening in the world now, a speeding up of time that mystics say will bring a reckoning of the light versus the dark on our planet.  We need to take a loving stand.  The more empowered you become, the more you can embody the change that the world needs.
Amen, and amen.
 

Saturday, April 21, 2018

A Wonderful Guidebook for Empaths, Part 3

    I'm still gushing about Dr. Judith Orloff's terrific and useful (even lifesaving!) book, The Empath's Survival Guide: Life Strategies for Sensitive People.  How much grief I would have been saved if I had known about how to deal with energy vampires.  Here's how to know if you've run into one:
  • You feel suddenly tired
  • You are suddenly in a terrible mood
  • You feel sick
  • You don't feel seen or heard
  • You reach for sugar or carbs to cope
  • You start to self-doubt or criticize yourself
  • You feel suddenly anxious, angry, or negative
  • You feel shamed, controlled, or judged
     Dr. Orloff then discusses the seven types of energy vampires and how to handle each one.  She talks about the Narcissist, the Rageaholic, the Victim, the Drama Queen/King, Control Freaks and Critics, the Nonstop Talker, and Passive-Aggressive People.  I can point to past bosses who fit into at least one of those categories.  If only I'd known how to handle them!  Well, save yourself some of the grief I've experienced and buy this book.  Yes, right now.  

Saturday, April 14, 2018

A Wonderful Guidebook for Empaths, Part 2

     Last week I was raving about the terrific book by Dr. Judith Orloff, The Empath's Survival Guide: Life Strategies for Sensitive People.  What a find!  I only wish I had read it years ago (but that would have necessitated time travel, since it was just published last year).

     What I found most helpful is the list of  strategies to combat toxic energy (and if you're an empath, you know exactly what I'm talking about).  Here are a few of the suggestions I found most useful:
  • Ask yourself, "Is this symptom or emotion mine or someone else's?"
  • Step away from what's disturbing you
  • Limit physical contact
  • Set limits and boundaries
  • Plan alone time to regroup
  • Spend time in nature
  • Get plenty of sleep and take power naps
  • Be fully present in your body
     If I had known how to practice those strategies years ago, I would have saved myself days of emotional overwhelm, physical symptoms such as sudden headaches or body aches, and so on.  Do you experience those issues, too?  If so, get this book.

     

Saturday, April 7, 2018

A Wonderful Guidebook for Empaths

     Have you ever found a book that you wished you had read years ago?  A book that would have saved you a great deal of grief, overwhelm, and confusion?  A book that would have given you wise advice and important life strategies?  Well, I found just that book.

     It is The Empath's Survival Guide: Life Strategies for Sensitive People, written by the psychotherapist and empath Judith Orloff.  If you are a highly sensitive person, or even an empath, this book is for you.  Let me say that more forcefully -- YOU NEED TO GET THIS BOOK.

     Far from airy-fairy, Orloff understands completely what it is to be a sensitive person or empath in the modern world.  She sprinkles various checklists throughout the book for the reader to measure where they are on the empath spectrum, whether the reader is a physical or emotional empath, coping mechanisms of the empath (including addictive behaviors), how much of an empath the reader is regarding food or relationships, whether the reader's child is an empath, and what kind of intuitive the reader is.  I found that very insightful.

     Dear Empath, if you want to do more than just cope through the day, get this book.  You won't regret it.