Is anyone an empath?

[Tryharder62]

I am just curious. Reading some about it. Some articles say it is a good thing..others think it is bad. Just wondered if anyone had experience with it.

 

[Saint_Ann]

I am just curious. Reading some about it. Some articles say it is a good thing..others think it is bad. Just wondered if anyone had experience with it.

Butters swears she is but its hard to tell from from her unempathetic posting.

 

[butters]

I am just curious. Reading some about it. Some articles say it is a good thing..others think it is bad. Just wondered if anyone had experience with it.

a person (in fact, i'd say MOST people) have natural empathy. societies need people to be able to feel/understand the humanity of others if they are to exist as social constructs and not just some hierarchy of power over the powerless.

the people lacking it are frequently on the aspergers scale. then there are those on the extremities who fit the classifications of sociopath and psychopath. my own middle kid has high-functioning autism and has always struggled in understanding what others are feeling. as an adult, he can 'intellectually' understand it, but doesn't necessarily feel what most can.

i'd say i fall into the category of a regular person's experiences with empathy... sometimes it can be very strong, sometimes diluted. if i spend a lot of time around other people, i need to be on my own, no people-noise, to re-charge--but i don't think that's very different to many so, no, not an "empath".

people who claim to be full-blown empaths must find life quite debilitating, exhausting, being bombarded by the emotional/chemical outpourings of others.

on another writing site, it's like there's an outbreak of self-proclaimed empaths... just because someone can experience empathy doesn't make them an "empath", and some of those claiming it behaved in ways that definitely run counter to how a genuine empath might, given they'd be swamped by the reactions!

 

[Lazaran]

.

To me empathy should be on an automatic dimmer switch.

When circumstances arise that call for empathy, it should naturally increase. Otherwise it should just be in stand-by mode to conserve emotional energy.

If your always "on" in any way, it could be a sign of some undiagnosed mental issue.

Recent events have called for quite a bit of empathy so I'm guessing everybody who is not a sociopath is feeling a bit drained.

Butter's advice about recharging is spot on.

 

[rae121452]

I am just curious. Reading some about it. Some articles say it is a good thing..others think it is bad. Just wondered if anyone had experience with it.

being an empath is not fun. being an empath means you're shouldering a whole lot of shit that isn't directly involved with you.

 

[toeskr]

a person (in fact, i'd say MOST people) have natural empathy. societies need people to be able to feel/understand the humanity of others if they are to exist as social constructs and not just some hierarchy of power over the powerless.

the people lacking it are frequently on the aspergers scale. then there are those on the extremities who fit the classifications of sociopath and psychopath. my own middle kid has high-functioning autism and has always struggled in understanding what others are feeling. as an adult, he can 'intellectually' understand it, but doesn't necessarily feel what most can.

i'd say i fall into the category of a regular person's experiences with empathy... sometimes it can be very strong, sometimes diluted. if i spend a lot of time around other people, i need to be on my own, no people-noise, to re-charge--but i don't think that's very different to many so, no, not an "empath".

people who claim to be full-blown empaths must find life quite debilitating, exhausting, being bombarded by the emotional/chemical outpourings of others.

on another writing site, it's like there's an outbreak of self-proclaimed empaths... just because someone can experience empathy doesn't make them an "empath", and some of those claiming it behaved in ways that definitely run counter to how a genuine empath might, given they'd be swamped by the reactions!

^^^^^ Arrogant, Patronizing, sanctimonious, belligerent arsehole... so I've heard. Lawlz!

 

[SpeareChucker]

I'm not even an empathy...

 

[SpeareChucker]

^^^^^ Arrogant, Patronizing, sanctimonious, belligerent arsehole... so I've heard. Lawlz!

It's true.

She's gotten even worse.
She doesn't want to listen to America, she wants to change it.

So close, and yet so far;
her eyes adored us, like a million miles away,
she adored us,
she should have fucking stayed away...

 

[Jada59]

I am.

 

[FataMorgana]

I am just curious. Reading some about it. Some articles say it is a good thing..others think it is bad. Just wondered if anyone had experience with it.

Mainly sociopaths and psychopaths on here.

 

[colddiesel]

Empathy means that you claim that you can both understand and feel directly the emotions of a third person.

Understanding is perfectly rational and makes sense. Claiming to feel the emotional state of another is beyond claptrap. To my mind claiming to be an empath is a form of virtue signalling suggesting that 'my mind , my conscience is better, more refined than yours.' The claim is contemptible and total bollocks.

 

[Conager]

Mainly sociopaths and psychopaths on here.

You say that like it's a bad thing. . .

 

[Comshaw]

You say that like it's a bad thing. . .

And this right here ladies and gentlemen explains a whole lot of things.


Comshaw

 

[butters]

Empathy means that you claim that you can both understand and feel directly the emotions of a third person.

Understanding is perfectly rational and makes sense. Claiming to feel the emotional state of another is beyond claptrap. To my mind claiming to be an empath is a form of virtue signalling suggesting that 'my mind , my conscience is better, more refined than yours.' The claim is contemptible and total bollocks.

guess your dimmer switch is set on high, then

just like some people see or hear or taste things better than others, isn't it intellectually feasible that some can actually feel the emotional load of another? we give out all kinds of electrical and chemical signals, so--for me--i don't see it as unreasonable to think it's real (and natural).

i agree that some make the claims for the reasons you state, and some do through a lack of understanding about what the term really means... but would accept there are those unfortunate few whose senses are so heightened in that area that it becomes a true burden.

 

[raindancer]

Yes.
I'm a highly sensitive person.
And severely empathetic.

I have the paperwork to prove it.


There is something called emotional intelligence. It's measurable and far from bollocks.

 

[LLCox]

Good fences make good neighbors.

 

[stickygirl]

the people lacking it are frequently on the aspergers scale. then there are those on the extremities who fit the classifications of sociopath and psychopath. my own middle kid has high-functioning autism and has always struggled in understanding what others are feeling. as an adult, he can 'intellectually' understand it, but doesn't necessarily feel what most can.

I sympathise with your son, but you ought to know better that suggest autistic people frequently lack empathy and then mention sociopath and psychopath in the same breath.

Autistic people can often be overly empathetic

 

[stickygirl]

Empathy means that you claim that you can both understand and feel directly the emotions of a third person.

Understanding is perfectly rational and makes sense. Claiming to feel the emotional state of another is beyond claptrap. To my mind claiming to be an empath is a form of virtue signalling suggesting that 'my mind , my conscience is better, more refined than yours.' The claim is contemptible and total bollocks.

So why do you accept understanding and not feeling. What tools/senses do you use to understand?

When you say you understand someone, do you see the synapses firing in their brain, do you spookily sense the meaning of unspoken words as well? Lets say you understand the words they use - how do you do that? Do you write down the words and look them up in a dictionary, cross reference against other languages... then finally you understand them?
No - you simply understand, based on education and life experience. There is more than one language than your own. Are you feeling me yet?

gun, foot - ouch.

 

[Lazaran]

Yes.
I'm a highly sensitive person.
And severely empathetic.

I have the paperwork to prove it.


There is something called emotional intelligence. It's measurable and far from bollocks.

I'm guessing that the OP is referring to "empaths" like counselor Deanna Troi on Star Trek TNG.

It's one thing to be hyper aware of people's body language, speech pressure, and countenance, while also hyper analyzing the content of their communications, but it's a different matter to suggest that someone has a "super power".

Empaths, in the context of being extraordinary, fall into the category of telepaths.

To date, no one to my knowledge has shown the ability to accurately read other people's minds, and I think the same could be said about accurately reading other people's emotions. You could make an educated guess about what someone is thinking or feeling but that isn't unique, even though some might be better at it than others.

JMTCW

 

[Conager]

So why do you accept understanding and not feeling. What tools/senses do you use to understand?

When you say you understand someone, do you see the synapses firing in their brain, do you spookily sense the meaning of unspoken words as well? Lets say you understand the words they use - how do you do that? Do you write down the words and look them up in a dictionary, cross reference against other languages... then finally you understand them?
No - you simply understand, based on education and life experience. There is more than one language than your own. Are you feeling me yet?

gun, foot - ouch.

There is no "meaning" to "unspoken words" that you fantasize that you "spookily sense."

You have no way of knowing anything about words the other person isn't saying or even if they are thinking the words that you think they are. At best, you can guess their mood based on their facial expression. There is no such thing as intuition it is simply reading tiny micro-expressions. The best body language can tell you is what the person believes about what they are saying.

Humans have words. They should use them. You should never assume anything about anyone they haven't articulated to you.

 

[Conager]

Yes.
I'm a highly sensitive person.
And severely empathetic.

I have the paperwork to prove it.


There is something called emotional intelligence. It's measurable and far from bollocks.

It was invented to make people feel better about their IQ scores. IQ is the most replicable psychological test ever devised. It doesn't matter who devises the test or who administers it. It accurately compares specific intelligence between subjects.

Emotional intelligence is nothing but guesswork completely dependent on the entirely subjective evaluation of whoever is administering the testing, and it will vary wildly in results. Done well, it's just as good as a gifted fortune teller doing a cold reading.

 

[Sean]

It was invented to make people feel better about their IQ scores. IQ is the most replicable psychological test ever devised. It doesn't matter who devises the test or who administers it. It accurately compares specific intelligence between subjects.

.

No it doesn't. It measures the ability to perform on IQ tests.

 

[Rotadom]

It's true.

She's gotten even worse.
She doesn't want to listen to America, she wants to change it.

So close, and yet so far;
her eyes adored us, like a million miles away,
she adored us,
she should have fucking stayed away...

How very anti-American of you.

 

[RobDownSouth]

It's true.

She's gotten even worse.
She doesn't want to listen to America, she wants to change it.

Butters is most certainly NOT an empath. I vividly recall the day she cruelly and deliberately quoted a post of yours right back at you, after you swore to Skyfather you had not said what you actually said.

i recall you broke down and sobbed copious tears, how unfair of her to throw your OWN WORDS back at you IN YOUR OWN THREAD. That was simply a callous disregard for your tender feelings.

Wasn't that the day you broke out in a rash? I know you were stressed out and quite frankly I think we all feared you were about to engage in self-harm behavior once again.

To this day, I think you still get a knot in your stomach and a bulge in the veins of your neck whenever someone says

 

[raindancer]

It was invented to make people feel better about their IQ scores. IQ is the most replicable psychological test ever devised. It doesn't matter who devises the test or who administers it. It accurately compares specific intelligence between subjects.

Emotional intelligence is nothing but guesswork completely dependent on the entirely subjective evaluation of whoever is administering the testing, and it will vary wildly in results. Done well, it's just as good as a gifted fortune teller doing a cold reading.

I appreciate your opinion.