Because my emotions/sensitivities affect everything about how I live, the decisions I make, what I will and won’t do, and how well I do my work, I’ve learned (the hard way) that if I don’t take care of my energy moment-moment-, day-by-day, I create a sort of etheric straight jacket around myself that renders me pretty useless.

When I first started learning/researching things that could help me as an empath, I noticed a common theme: hide and “protect” — defensive strategies galore. But with my job, I HAD to be around people, so I needed to learn not just how to put a bubble of protection around me, but how to line-up with the best energetic version of myself and those people as possible.

Many empaths think “shielding” and boundaries are their only forms of power, but that “solution “carries within it the very vibration of “the problem” (“I pick up negative energy that I need protection from” – is implied). But when we do this, we forget the most important part of the equation of this vibrational reality: YOU CAN’T PICK UP WHAT YOU’RE NOT A MATCH TO! So shouldn’t the solution for ANY empath involve raising your own energy so as not to be a match to low vibrations?!

If you stay in a disempowered, fearful vibration, you will be a match to people taking advantage of you and wanting to suck your energy. But if you do the work to keep your own energy clean (in the form of shadow work, emotional healing, physical exercise, healthy food) you can use your powerful sensitivities to attract incredible experiences into your life. Truly stepping into your power an empath is learning to open your sensitivities wide– to their most subtle perception, to breathe in the world around you – to experience what it’s like to live as a sensitive/empathic being that is deeply engaged and in love with the world – empowered and in energetic mastery. You get to come out of hiding and LIVE.

If you believe your sensitivities make you vulnerable and weak, you will emit that energy signal out to others. Therefore, one of the first health tips for ANY empath is to start seeing (and believing) how your sensitivity is a strength, how it can benefit you and make your life more enjoyable, how your sensitivities can help you enjoy life more, and when you tune-in and use them, how it can help you consciously manifest the energy you want to play with.

We are NOT powerless and there is SO MUCH MORE IN OUR CONTROL than most empaths ever allow themselves to realize.

Here are my tips for daily energetic hygiene, to keep empathic sensitivities keen, sharp, and working FOR you (rather than against you):

1. Tune-in to your energy regularly: Anyone who has taken my classes or read any past articles know I harp on this more than anything else. If you don’t know HOW you are feeling, you can’t move in a direction that is balanced/healthy/soothing. Many empaths have trained themselves to tune their feelings out (so as not to be overwhelmed by them) but this actually works against us in more than one way. Remaining ignorant of our own emotions causes us to overcommit and burn-out, ending-up in situations that drains our energy further (from lack of attention to what our energy bodies are actually capable of), or, on the flip side – causes agoraphobic tendencies, further weakening and suppression of our stronger, more masculine energy (which is what guards and protects our feminine, receptive sensitivities – I’m not talking about gender here folks – just energy we ALL have). Ask yourself every morning when you wake-up (and throughout the day whenever you think of it) “What do I feel? What do I need? AND “What would somebody who loves themselves do?”

These three questions can change your life.

2. Drink lots of water: When we are highly sensitive to energy, our physical bodies are the first to take the brunt of energetic excess and auric clutter. One of the most important things we can do for ourselves is to TAKE CARE OF OUR BODIES, and drinking water is the simplest place to start. I like to prepare a jar of water infused with organic cucumbers, basil, and berries, and drink a full glass every hour. If you have to, set a reminder on your phone so you don’t forget. When you do this, you ensure that your body is not only hydrated, but constantly flushing unwanted toxins/energy. It also forces you to draw attention to yourself/your body, which gives you another great opportunity to check-in “what do I need?”

3. Do regular energy cleanses: I like to imagine a white vortex of energy spinning around me, clearing and cleansing my aura. Visualization is power, and it helps to focus regularly on having our auric fields cleared, strengthened, and sparkly. Also, when you tune-in to your auric field, pay attention to how it feels. Being empathic means you are sensitive to subtle energy, and this can be used to your benefit when it comes to energetic health and attracting experiences. Pay close attention to how your auric field feels, and use the power of meditation/visualization to strengthen your magnetism, expand your energy outward (so you’re not contracting and drawing others energy in) and keeps your energy clean so you attract clean energy in return.

4. Strengthen your vibrational boarders by balancing alone time with socializing: A lot empaths feel they need to hide from the world, but if we spend too much time alone, this can cause emotional and energetic imbalances. It also fueles a powerful resistance of “outside” energies. What we resist, persists, as they say, and the solutions for being empowered as an empath is not to resist, but to overcome.

Use your alone time to really tune into your energy, feel what you need, and meet those needs (on the most subtle, energetic level). Then, before you go out, set intentions to expand and allow your positive energy to attract the same energy back to you. Imagine your energy field as powerful and expansive. As soon as you shrink within your “protection” bubble, you put out the “I’m weak” vibe – which is a perfect match for vampiric energy.

Exposing yourself to other people’s energy regularly (and intentionally) helps you practice expanding your energy out into the world, and learning what it feels like to attract powerful, uplifting experiences. If you are a constant match to energy vampires, remember that YOU are the one fueling that connection by not strengthening your vibrational boarders through RAISING your energy. Raising your energy provides an energetic barrier – like energy matches like energy: period.  If your vibe is high, it is simply not a match to low energy. You don’t need a “bubble” of protection – you need STRONG POSITIVE, LOVING, EMPOWERED vibes. This can only come through EXPANDING OUT, not shrinking IN.

Obviously, pay attention to how you are feeling. If your energy is low and weak, build it up before you go out through connecting with nature, music, a salt bath and essential oils. Don’t pretend to feel strong when you don’t, but don’t use your empathic abilities as an excuse to hide from the world, either.

Make sense?

5. Use your words wisely: Begin saying affirmations out loud that uplift and empower you. Words are powerful, and I recommend using phrases that draw attention to your strength (not your weakness). So many empaths talk about themselves in incredibly disempowering terms (“I’m too sensitive. I can’t handle people’s energy. I can’t go out in groups. I feel everyone’s pain, etc.”). Feel what kind of an energetic signature those words put around you. Constantly voicing what you can’t handle fuels a strong victim vibration, which makes you, once again, a PERFECT match to energy vampires and predators. Sadly, the word ‘empath’ itself has nearly become synonymous with “victim.”

Does it feel empowering to talk about yourself like that? Start changing your vocabulary about your gift, Here are some examples:

*I am an energy Jedi Master

*I can sense the deeper, more subtle energetic vibrations of love, peace, and joy, making those emotions all the more easy to flow into my life

*I deeply feel and engage with all life forms

*I have emotional mastery

*I am a powerful magnet for love and loving people

*I attract positive people into my life

*I thrive in groups because I can tune-into and feel people’s joy and happiness, which further fuels my joy

*I am a powerful feeler, and this is a strength

Feel the difference?

I hope these tips remind you of the badass, peaceful warrior you are!

If you want to learn more about empowering your empathic abilities, check-out these online classes!

Happy Wednesday!