The Power Of Empathic Joy

As empathic and sensitive people we can often feel the negative side of picking up on others' emotions. But there is another side. In this talk, I discuss the power of empathic joy - what is it and why it's so important for empathic and sensitive people to understand.

Transcript

Hello and welcome to the Peacekeeper Project.

My name is Ben.

Now today I want to share some reflections on sensitivity and empathic joy.

Now if you're a sensitive or empathic person,

Then this is for you.

And it's gonna be important because,

You know,

Sometimes we can get caught up on the challenging side of being sensitive and empathic.

But there's this whole other side that really helps to reconnect us to something deep inside our heart.

Now this video is following on from my previous video,

Why Sensitivity is a Superpower,

Where I talked about what sensitivity truly is and why it's a superpower,

Even though it doesn't feel like it sometimes.

Because let's be honest,

Sometimes it doesn't feel like that.

But that doesn't mean that it's not.

We just need to understand it because there's a lot of vagueness around sensitivity.

We have one word that means a lot of things.

Some of those things refer to the superpower,

Some things are not.

So I dive into that more in that video.

And I highly recommend that you check that out.

So I'm not gonna talk about it too much here.

But one of the things that I did define there that we need to understand as we go into empathy,

And I define sensitivity as the ability to feel and perceive energy or information.

In that video,

I gave two examples of why sensitivity really is a superpower.

And more than that,

It's a foundation for life.

And one of those examples is that sensitivity is a foundation for self-awareness.

Because without the ability to feel and perceive energy or information,

We would never perceive our own emotions,

Feelings,

Sensations,

And our body.

So sensitivity is required for self-awareness.

And that's important if we wanna grow.

If we wanna grow,

We need to be aware of what's happening inside us.

Now,

Continuing along this line,

Another reason why it's a superpower is empathy because sensitivity is also the foundation for empathy.

And empathy is an ability to feel and perceive the emotions and feelings of others.

Now,

Challenging as that can be sometimes,

It's an incredible gift because it means that we can start to put ourselves in others' perspectives,

See things from their point of view because we can feel them.

We can understand their emotions.

We can understand them at a deeper level.

And we can feel more connected to them because there's this underlying feeling.

We sense them,

So we feel this connection.

And that's something that flows through our heart.

So sensitive and empathic people,

They feel emotions and energy more deeply than others.

But this means the whole range of human emotions can feel more amplified,

More intense.

Now,

This can be overwhelming sometimes.

Sometimes it can drain our energy,

Especially if we're in large groups of people,

Big social events,

Those kind of things.

And you might recognize that from your own life experience.

But when I hear empathic people talk about picking up on the emotions of other people,

Usually they're referring to the heavier side of the emotional spectrum.

So sadness,

Frustrations,

Anger,

Loathing,

Hate,

Depression.

Now,

I use the word heavy very consciously because I don't wanna judge emotions as good,

Bad,

Right,

Or wrong.

And it's really not helpful to do that,

Especially if we're on a path of self-inquiry and growth.

But it is helpful to understand the energy of different emotions and how they make us feel.

So empathy often comes with feeling and picking up on these heavier emotions of other people,

Which can be uncomfortable and draining.

Although,

It doesn't have to be.

Just because that's been your experience so far doesn't mean that it always will be or has to be.

But that's a topic for another time.

So because we're empathic,

We can pick up on these heavy emotions.

We can experience that heaviness.

Now,

Let me know in the comments below,

Is this familiar for you?

So this is a common experience for empathic people.

But something that I think is really valuable to understand is that we can use our empathy to feel the joy of other people also.

This is empathic joy.

And I just wanna take a moment to say thank you to a friend of mine.

Because until recently,

I had never heard the term before.

But when he said it in conversation,

It made sense.

And I realized how important this was for sensitive and empathic people.

So thank you,

Stefan,

For bringing that up.

All right,

So empathic joy means we can feel the joy of others.

We can feel their enthusiasm,

Their warmth,

Their love.

And it feels good.

We really feel it.

It resonates inside us.

Their joy highlights a similar feeling inside us.

The joy in others can ignite the joy inside ourself.

The love in others can ignite the love inside ourself.

When we feel these frequencies of emotions,

Our heart responds.

So I share this with you now because it's so easy to forget.

It's easy to get caught up on the heavier,

More oppressive side of being empathic and sensitive because it can be intense.

And something that we might wanna avoid sometimes.

But if you do have this gift,

If you are empathic,

Then I really encourage you to use it to spark the joy,

The warmth,

And the love in your heart.

Because when we feel these frequencies of emotions,

They put us in touch with a deeper part of ourself.

So we might start with the joy in someone else.

And that sparks the joy inside ourself.

But once we feel it inside us,

Then it's inside us.

Feeling the joy of someone else opens the door to our own joy,

To our own warmth,

To our heart.

And our heart is the essence of who we truly are.

And it's at this level where those frequencies of emotions,

That's where they live,

That's where they flow from.

So I really encourage you to play with this.

Use your empathy consciously.

Engage it to feel the joy,

The enthusiasm,

The warmth,

The love of others.

And let that spark the same in you.

Let it reconnect you to your heart.

And be curious.

Just have fun with this.

And let me know in the comments below how you go.

What did you experience?

Were there any challenges along the way?

Let me know.

All right,

So that's it for empathic joy.

But now if you're curious to take a deep dive into the power of sensitivity and empathy,

Then I have a comprehensive online program called Sensitivity is a Superpower.

And in that course,

You're gonna discover everything you need to know about sensitivity to really step into it in a stable and grounded way.

Because it's not just the knowledge,

The concepts and ideas,

Those are important,

But it's also about how we bring that to life.

And that's done through many practices and exercises.

That's where we really step into it.

Because when we step into our sensitivity,

We step into our heart.

Now,

If this sounds good,

If it resonates with you,

If you feel your heart responding,

Then I'd love to have you join.

And you can find more information at peacekeeperproject.

Com.

And if you have any questions,

You can also reach out through my website.

All right,

I'm gonna leave this here.

Thank you for being here.

And I really appreciate your presence.

And until the next time,

Quiet your mind and live from your heart.