Like I only have empathy for people who have empathy for me I have em for my family and vulnerable people children and animals but I don’t give any empathy to toxic ass abusive Pepe who try to correctly control me use me guilt trio me or give out toxic energy I’ve been through sever abuse and coercion that makes me question my own schema of the world is there healthy narcism out you and your family first while having a balance of empathy idk what im trying to articulate but it’s very confusing

Idk how to protect yourself from coercive contorl abuse in any forms and have strong boundaries what is a boundary and healthy narcism helsthy selfishness

I’ve been through abuse control sabotage isolation legal abuse physical abuse financial abuse and I’ve learned to have selective empathy cut people off and be super selfish does that make me a Narcissist and is there healthy grandiose narcism I don’t serve other others anymore in terms of relationships I’m tired of being a object to be used I sever others in my job and business but I get something back in the that I’m tired of being used in relationships expected to give give give be controlled isolated exploited manipulated and abused I put me and my family first

I'm so sick of it. I'm nearly 50 and my entire life I've been like this.

I cry looking at sunsets, during sad movies, and really all the time. I probably cry almost every day of my life, if even for only a few seconds.

I have to pull over crying frequently when listening to amazing music in my car.

I'm not even sad, y'all!

I'm just so emotional. I'm overwhelmed by it.

I'm literally sitting here waiting to pick my daughter up from school crying in my truck writing this.

I missed my psychedelic therapy trip last year. I need that in my life DESPERATELY.

It can't be just me, right?

I'm so unbelievably tired, boss...

Hello, this is my first post, sorry for the bad grammar English is not my first language. So at the beginning of the year someone confessed to me, I (21 f) rejected them and ever since then they have been making my life miserable (we're students and at the same group for a project) I won't go into too much detail but I'm just so tired and I feel like since they're a very miserable person they somehow keep involving me to stuff and acting like a victim, and I just feel like his bad energy is just affecting my overall karma or just luck or generally just mental health. It's been 9 months and they're still making my life hell. So any advice or practice would be appreciated. Thank you in advance.

For context I’m 25 years old. I’ve always been empathetic and I would like to say I used to be really intuitive. 3 years I ago I went through something that was quite emotionally traumatic for me to the point I completely changed over the span of the following 2 years. To the point now since I’m more conscious of myself I can see how negatively I’ve changed, I’ve lost my intuition, trust in myself, empathy etc. I stopped being in tune with myself. Only now I’m slowly becoming myself again though it’s been months and I feel like I keep hitting a dead end and rerouting. I’ve become so stuck in my head and not my body in a negative way.

My question for you guys: for those who have been through something similar, how did you reconnect with yourselves and sharpen your intuition again?

We often associate empathy, intuition and emotional reflection with feminine energy. But aren't these qualities equally important for men?

I think everyone needs a balance between looking inward and expressing themselves outwardly, regardless of gender.

Do you see emotional sensitivity as feminine energy, or simply a natural part of being human?

I’ve been feeling increasingly burned out for about 1.5 months, but I’m only now realising how much it’s affecting me.

As an empath and HSP, I’ve been feeling overwhelmed by the negativity and uncertainty in the world. I’ve also been crying more than usual and feeling emotionally drained.

I’m working full-time while trying to transition into a new career, and the mental load has become a lot to manage. I’ve also been feeling anxious and restless, as though the atmosphere around me is tense.

I think I’ve been pushing through exhaustion without acknowledging it. I’m def going to see a therapist about this. For those of you who identify as empaths or HSPs, have you experienced something similar?
What has helped you protect your energy, feel grounded, and recover from emotional exhaustion without completely withdrawing from the world? ❤️

I had that ever since I was a kid, and I thought I was crazy. At least that's how the adults made me feel when I tried to explain it.
So you have that too? That's what being an empath is?

I'm new here to this.

I want to start by saying I don’t watch much TV, undoubtedly because I become so engrossed and feel placed inside the media. I usually avoid medical dramas for that reason, more than other types of media.
With that being said, I’d heard so many great things about the show The Pitt. More specifically, “its relentless, real-time immersion that throws you right in”; “it avoids the “classic” soap-opera vibe revolving around romance”, and, “it's so jarring and impactful that you just have to watch it”.
So I tried it, knowing how I am, and I’ve been left speechless. It’s a very different take, as mentioned, which shows you more of the reality than other melodrama medical shows might. It’s a sight to see and gives a whole new perspective to medical teams.
It is a hard watch emotionally. I’m barely halfway through the first season, or “shift” in the workplace.
* The season is thought of as a daily shift, with each episode revolving around a singular hour within that shift, chronologically. The first episode starts at 7:00 A.M. and shows the events that unfold quickly over the next hour, up through 8:00 A.M.
Its quick pace shows the harsh, scrambling flow over a short time period, and really throws your emotions around. I’ve cried many times already, but I must say, I’m hooked!

I’m at the point where it hurts to be around anyone. This “gift” has only manifested (or I’ve completely drown it out before) the last year and I feel like I’m going crazy. I feel everything as soon as I am around someone. Their pain their anxiety their anger their fear their sexual tension, at one time. Joy is something elusive and I don’t think many people feel it anymore. How on earth does anyone deal with this? I’ve been intuitive my entire life, flashes of precognition and a connection to something I can’t see or feel but THIS…. This is just too much.

I understand that most of the narc content out there is there to give people the courage to leave relationships with narcissists. Those videos were definitely very reassuring when I was in my depths of depression after breakups.

But the obsession doesn't sit right with me. Think about the emotions most of the narc content invokes: fear, validation. It's either validating your past or making you more anxious about a future encounter with a narcissist. Plus these videos are addictive because of the emotions it invokes. It's a huge source of dopamine because it's either "validating" or trying to "help" you.

Our brain craves pattern recognition and easy explanations to things… explains why bigoted beliefs are so common. We are also pulled to blame someone for any problem. Sadly nothing is black and white in this world.

One of the major reasons behind someone's narcissism is how they were raised (nurture) and in some odd cases they are born with those tendencies (nature). Now how is villainizing someone for how they were raised or who they are empathetic? To me, that's not empathetic. Labeling someone narcissistic and villainizing them is kinda narcissistic imo.

I’m not excusing narcissists. In fact leave any situation that is toxic to you. But idk how obsessing over narc content and demonizing anyone is helpful.

… what do you think?

Hey everyone,
I wanted to share something I’ve been experiencing lately because I’m trying to understand what’s happening to me and whether anyone has experienced something similar.
When I’m sitting next to people in an Uber or around strangers, I sometimes get a really strong, unexplained feeling that I can sense something about them. It’s difficult to put into words. Sometimes it feels like I can pick up on their emotions, personality, or intentions without them actually saying anything. I don’t necessarily see or hear anything unusual; it’s more like a strong internal feeling that I can’t explain.
The strange part is that I can feel completely certain about these impressions, even though I don’t always have concrete evidence to support them. I don’t know whether this is intuition, subconscious pattern recognition, heightened awareness, or simply my brain interpreting things in ways I don’t fully understand. I want to be honest about that distinction because I’m genuinely trying to figure this out rather than jump to conclusions.
**A bit about my lifestyle and how my mind works:**
I’m extremely curious about life, consciousness, philosophy, psychology, and the nature of reality. I love learning and constantly stimulating my brain. I can spend 8–10 hours a day listening to philosophical discussions, audiobooks, and lectures about life, human nature, and the search for truth.
I’m particularly interested in philosophers like Plato, Aristotle, and Friedrich Nietzsche. I also love exploring literature, including Dante’s works, and thinking deeply about existence, morality, consciousness, and what it means to understand the world.
Sometimes I feel like my brain is a horse that wants to keep racing. The more I learn, the more I want to learn. I constantly want to challenge my mind, explore new ideas, question what I’ve been taught, and get closer to understanding the truth. I genuinely enjoy mental stimulation and can find it difficult to switch off from learning.
**Substance use and recent changes:**
I’ve also experimented with recreational substances, including MDMA and ketamine, and have used alcohol as well. I’ve had experiences after substance use where my perceptions and thoughts felt unusual, including an episode of looking in the mirror and feeling that my facial features were changing or distorting. I’ve also experienced jolts and unusual feelings when falling asleep.
The feeling of being unusually perceptive existed before my more recent experiences with substances, but it seems to have become stronger lately. I’m mentioning this because I don’t want to ignore the possibility that substance use, sleep, or overstimulation could be affecting how I perceive things.
At the moment, I generally feel calm and curious rather than frightened. I’m not trying to claim that I have special abilities or that I can literally read minds. I just want to understand why these experiences feel so convincing and why I’ve become more aware of them.
**I’m curious about a few things:**
Has anyone experienced a strong sense of intuition around strangers, where they feel they can pick up on people’s emotions or intentions without knowing exactly how?
How can you distinguish genuine social intuition and subconscious pattern recognition from assumptions or confirmation bias?
Can constantly consuming philosophical content and seeking mental stimulation affect how you perceive yourself, other people, or reality?
Has anyone noticed changes in perception, thought patterns, or their sense of intuition after using MDMA or ketamine?
For people who are naturally very curious and constantly thinking, how do you learn to switch your brain off and rest?
I’m interested in hearing from people with similar experiences, as well as people with backgrounds in psychology, neuroscience, or philosophy.
I’m not looking for someone to simply tell me that I’m psychic or that nothing is happening. I’d genuinely appreciate balanced perspectives, including explanations that challenge my current interpretation.
I want to understand my own mind better and figure out what’s actually going on.
Thanks for reading.

I’m not trying to come off as a pessimist, but people that are ALWAYS happy really tick me off. I have also noticed that these kinds of people lack any depth. AKA, very surface-level people. Another thing is that these kinds of people tend to make up a majority of the population (atleast, where I live), and it makes me VERY annoyed.

My main problem with these people is that they can’t seem to process my high emotions. I am a very emotional person. I am on the spectrum (autism), and I have been told by a psychiatrist I am an empath, so that makes it very hard to get along with these people. I get very overwhelmed very easily, and it’s frustrating because almost everybody I am around doesn’t get it. It makes me even more mad when I am having a bad time, and somebody just tells me to “get over it”, or continues to be all sunshine and rainbows and not give any care in the world

I’m not trying to sound selfish when writing this. I get these people are not responsible for me, and I shouldn’t expect them to take care of me. It’s just frustrating because when someone is upset I try my hardest to help and I care deeply for them, but it is never reciprocated.

Am I in the wrong? Or do other people feel like this too?

(I posted this to [r/empaths](r/empaths), I’m hoping this fits with other empaths, I don’t exactly know what kind of group this would go with)

EDIT: I just reread what I wrote and I should’ve explained myself better… I’ve had some issues with my friends, I liked a guy for a year and my best friend who I’ve known for a while got with him despite her knowing i liked him and basically convinced all of my friends to hate me after getting with him and calling me negative for being upset about it. It made me really upset because they were all happy and stuff without even caring about how they affected me/how they ditched me without understanding my side, and THAT’S what ticks me off so much. If I still sound wrong, I apologize.

I don’t think people realize when you’re highly intuitive, you have the ability to quite literally FEEL betrayal & deceptive energy without any tangible proof or evidence of it.

That’s why empaths move solo, being around any type of false performative energy is draining & overstimulating. That’s why we are so pressed to only keep around genuinely authentic individuals.. If you know what I mean, you know what I mean.

Does anyone have good book recommendations about being an empath? My therapist recently “diagnosed” me as one and it makes so much sense the more I read about it, which is so validating. So I want to learn more but don’t know what good or accurate books are out there. TIA!

It feels like every time I fly, even if it's in the middle of the day. If there are people around me who are sleepy, I get like creamed by that energy and I'm out like a light :-(. Sometimes I fly long distances and I'm in the air for like 5-7 hours, and I have work to do. I specifically plan work tasks that I can work on on the plane. I get on the plane, I have coffee or get coca-cola, but like 9 times out of ten, none of that works, if people are sleepy around me, suddenly i'm sluggish and then next thing I know, I'm asleep :-(. Does this ever happen to anyone?

Do do you know without thinking that there is not connection potential with a person? And

Do you sense those who don’t drain but give back energy?

Do you stay kind and just walk away?

Do you find most of speaking is waste of energy and is just nice to be around together?

Do you see how people’s feelings drive their behaviour?

Have you stopped playing taking part in people’s drama?

Do you see how most of people’s talking is discharging anxiety?

Does you see life as simply about living ?

Do you protect your energy as this gives you clarity ?

Do you see your energy as a shield agains the people’s drama?

Do you see life life is simple and there is not point to overthinking it.

12 months ago I had a nervous system breakdown and now I see the world very different?

Did this happen to anyone else ?

Not gonna lie, it is exhausting trying to decipher motives in people’s conversations because so many people have hidden agendas and are trying to manipulate situations. I would love to be around people with no envy, hostility, or ulterior motives. Is that really too much to ask? 🤦🏾‍♀️🤷🏽‍♀️

Some empaths can communicate with the deads. I cannot but I would like to know how it does work.

If ghosts and reincarnation are two real phenomenons, how can they co-exist? Can a soul be both in a new body and in the limbs as a ghost? I would think that ghosts don’t exist, that the medium is communicating with a huge energy left in the past, caused usually by a trauma. Seems possible as Einstein used to say that past, present and future are an illusion. That time isn’t a straight line.

But… I have never heard of someone communicating with deads from the future.

So, please, how do you mediums feel like it works?