Yes! All the time!
People don’t seem to realize how powerful they are and how loud their energies can get. Majority of the religions that have stood the test of time repeat the teachings of self-control, and I believe that this is the basis for that. We are all connected and can be felt by one another.
It does take me a little bit to realize that it is not my emotions I am feeling. Once I figure it out it is like being freed from a spell or snapping out of a trance. The effects are immediately gone and I can focus.
There are many terms used to describe people who cannot control the output or intake of energies. Here are a few; Psychic Vampire, Energy Bully, Emotion Bully, Energy Rape, Energy Leach, Energy Draining, Energy Vortex, etc. A lot of people have their own names for that feeling, but we have all felt it at one time or another, knowingly or not.
There is only so much you can do to try and block the outside energies from seeping into your comfort zone, especially if they are particularly strong at that moment. Emotions and energies can rise with their intensity of feeling. We humans are energy conductors, which means we put out what we feel and we can also exacerbate what is being felt around us. If you don’t keep a firm grip on your own energies they can be influenced and altered without warning. If someone around you is going through something particularly hard you must prepare yourself for the toll it will take on you.
The toll others energies and emotions take on you is greater when you are connected on a deeper level to the person. This is why you must always be aware of the people you allow yourself to get close to. Toxic relationships, especially with someone you are connected closely to, can harm you in greater ways than you know. There are studies that show the chemical makeup in your body can be altered with constant exposure to negative energies. Conversely, if you surround yourself with people who only want positive things for you it will actively create a shield of positivity around you.
Signs you know you are feeling someone else’s emotions:
- Sudden change in your emotional state with seemingly no cause.
- You are not “hangry” or tired.
- There is no influx in hormones scheduled anytime soon.
- Most importantly, this feeling is completely out of your character.
How do you test yourself to see if this is what is happening?
- Leave the room/space/building for 10 mins.
- Take a breather.
- If the feeling goes away or decreases dramatically, to the point that you felt like you weren’t yourself before, then it was in fact outside forces.
If you have come to the conclusion that you are feeling outside energies that are not your own, the next step depends on you. You have a few choices.
- Leave.
- Get yourself collected at home or in a safe place.
- Collect yourself for a few minutes, take deep breathes, paying attention to the soft sounds surrounding you.
- Put a protective bubble around yourself; be clear to the forces-at-be that nothing is allowed to influence your mind or body tonight.
- Ask a Spirit Guide, God, Goddess, Cthulhu, Flying Spaghetti Monster, or from whomever you receive your strength, and ask them to help you shield yourself.
- Stand your ground and tell those energies to fuck off.
I would not recommend drinking to excess or getting high in any form during a time like this. It will only make your experiences more intense and leaving you incredibly vulnerable to the forces around you. I’m not going to judge you or preach to you, but I suggest if you are going to do so at least wait until you are in a safe place that is well guarded with positive energies. Just be mindful and cautious.
The life of a sensitive/empath is hard one. It can be incredibly tiresome, but you are just the way you were meant to be. Love yourself, be good to yourself, respect your feelings and boundaries. If you “inconvenience” someone by needing to step away from a situation or remove yourself from a function, do not worry about it. You deserve to be comfortable too and your feelings matter too.
Go with light and love.