Many people don’t know that they are fundamentally experiencing life differently than the people around them. For an empath, being in a room with people, family, friends or strangers and knowing what others are feeling or sometimes even thinking, is a normal occurrence. Of course, at the time this begins to happen at a young age, there is no way to really process what is occurring. There is no way to be consciously aware that what they are experiencing is not typical, that it isn’t something that all other people around them are experiencing. An empath is just being themselves with no manual, no adult, school or educational program ever letting them know that what they are experiencing is different than the status quo of the other humans in their small rural town, big city or household. In an effort to fit in, an empath may push away this ability and bury it deep down so they can be “normal” for years, decades or even a lifetime.

For some reading this, this may not resonate—this ability to sense, feel and experience the energy of others. Most people are not empaths; to be one, many things have to fall into place, which is a future discussion. And although everyone has the ability to be open to the energy around them, everyone receives the insights at different levels. In a world where the feminine energy of feeling has been suppressed for so long, most don’t use their energetic ability or have simply turned it off. Many empaths do this in order to cope with life and to function the way that others tell them they should function.

So, what is an empath and why is it important to know? If you’re not an empath, chances are you know someone who is, so please continue on to get to know more about those that you love who may not be openly sharing their experience with you. There are many facets and varying levels of skill sets to an empath. The most simple definition of an empath could be “a person who is highly sensitive to the energy around them to the extent that they may feel what others are feeling before the other is aware of their own emotions.” Even science will say everything is energy, but the thing most don’t realize is that empaths are on the leading edge of experiencing energy in a human body and translating that energy from the invisible realm to the real world.

Empaths are able to quickly tap into the emotions of others. If untrained or unaware of their gift, they could associate or “take on” the emotions or feelings of others without realizing they are unnecessarily claiming the energy of someone else as their own. A trained empath will be aware of their own energy and of that of others and quickly and efficiently disassociate from anything that does not benefit them energetically.

Sometimes an empath (or introvert which is different but can have some similarities) will say that walking into a room of people drains them. The reality is that this does not need to be the case. Knowing one's own energy and separating it, when desired, from the energy of others can become a smooth and easy process that does not drain an empath but instead empowers them. When one is able to clearly differentiate their own energy, emotions and feelings from those of others, they can begin to know what others need in order to help elevate them in a beautiful and almost magical way. This is a superpower of a trained empath and a gift the universe is waiting for empaths to share more openly.

An example of an empath’s experience could be this: Imagine two people, perhaps a married couple, having a relaxing and peaceful day. They walk into an elevator. Almost immediately, the empath of the duo can start to feel agitated and kind of snippy towards the person they are with. This would not be their typical behavior so it would feel unusual. A trained empath with awareness would immediately check in to see what had changed both internally and externally around them. Walking into the elevator would be the difference they would notice. They would check in with their intuition and process what was happening with the person they were with. They may come to realize that the two people in the elevator before them had been arguing and the energy of the previous anger was still in the elevator. The married couple just happened to walk into it, and because the empath was caught off guard, they picked up on the anger, agitation and snippiness unintentionally. Immediately upon receiving this awareness, an empowered empath would clear their own energy (and that of the elevator) and be able to instantaneously move back into their normal emotional state of relaxation and peace. The ability to be at cause in this type of situation is a learning and growing process; it doesn’t happen without training or heightened awareness. The tools an empowered empath uses to take charge of their life and take ownership of their energy and emotions are available to anyone ready to take that leap into their own personal growth and development.

A tip for empaths that is simple, but not always easy: Bring awareness to your environment. If you notice your emotional state change dramatically out of nowhere, scan your internal and external environment. Check in to the energy of the food or beverage you have just consumed or see if you have perhaps walked into something energetically that you do not want to accept and realize that you don’t have to. It’s not scary or good or bad, it simply is what is happening. There are so many layers to being an empath and a wonderful start to any empowerment process is to stop and bring more awareness to what is happening in every moment. Know that there are others like you, and in this high-tech world, if you are interested in connecting to your community and tribe, they are only a Google search away.

Amanda Rangel is co-founder of IntraAwareness. She is a Life and Law of Attraction Coach specializing in Empath, Career and Relationship Development. For more information, call 612-930-2662 or visit IntraAwareness.com.