I remember Autobiography of a Yogi mentioning teachers who took on their students’ negative energy and processed it physically via illness. And then there’s that popular western story of a certain figure dying for everyone’s sins, the ultimate scapegoat. I can understand not wanting it to go that far, while at the same time you feel it's against your purpose to stop.
As mentioned in another thread on psychic abilities, I spent years taking down barriers and increasing my sensitivity, but then switched to actually feeling some barriers may be useful (at least if/when one wants to function semi-normally). The reason for that was that I noticed that many of the emotions and sensations I felt didn’t seem to be my own. I’d walk into a room and suddenly feel tired, not knowing why until the other person in the room yawned. A thought would enter my head and then someone else would say it. I’d feel uncomfortable and nervous for no reason, or angry, then look around the room and see whose feelings I was experiencing. The only signal that they weren’t mine was that I didn’t have any reason to be experiencing them. Otherwise they felt just as real as anything else. It was an interesting experiment in seeing just how connected we can be. I didn’t interpret it as a need to save everyone from their feelings though. Rather I took it as a signal that I should back off. Thus the grounding techniques mentioned in the other thread.
While never feeling like taking on other people’s problems was my calling, I do enjoy sharing information and experiences. I mostly chimed in here because I wanted you to know that you aren’t entirely alone in your experiences, though it seems to have become much more central in your life than mine at this point. You seem to be processing things very well and have gained a lot of insight.
In addition to the processing techniques already mentioned, the main ones I know of that could help are the Sedona Method/Release Technique by Lester Levenson (same method, different names), and Thich Nhat Hanh’s mindfulness. I mostly use mindfulness, exercise, comfort food, naps, and affectionate friends I can cuddle up to (Thich Nhat Hanh says walking with a friend and holding hands can make it easier to process things).
My analogy for dealing with emotions that seek to overwhelm a person is that of dealing with a dog that seeks to attack you: it keeps trying to get behind me, but I keep turning with it, always watching so it can’t jump me. Likewise with emotions, as long as I watch them they can’t control me. Taking on other people’s emotions so easily in the past was educational in the sense that it made me question even more just how separate we all are. I haven’t responded in the same way you have. I’ve become more selective of who I hang around/attract, mostly dealing with optimistic, bubbly people. I find that my natural state is one of peace and joy, and seek out others who are closer to that.
Unicorn, in addition to receiving other people’s emotions, have you found yourself able to awaken certain emotions in other people, sending in addition to receiving?
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