Hi,
I'm Trevor Lewis,
Author of Thriving as an Empath,
Empowering Your Highly Sensitive Self.
I've been an empath all my life and since 2013 I've been on a mission to help other empaths learn more easily the lessons that I had to learn the hard way.
This talk looks at the difference between being a highly sensitive person,
An HSP,
Versus being an empath.
An HSP is someone who is more acutely sensitive to their environment than the average person.
That sensitivity may take any form.
Auditory,
They may be ultra sensitive to loud noises.
Visual,
They may be ultra sensitive to bright lights.
Touch,
Many HSP's need to cut the tag out of the color of their new shirt before they can wear it because they can't bear the sensation of feeling the tag at the back of their neck.
These are just some examples.
Sensitivity to taste or smell can also define a person as being an HSP.
Any of these sensitivities can make someone a highly sensitive person.
None of them make a person an empath.
HSP's may also be able to read another person with whom they are in contact to a degree far beyond that of the average person.
But even then an HSP will have to have verbal or visual connection with the other person.
This ability to read another person still doesn't make the person an empath.
There is one additional sensitivity that makes an HSP into an empath,
Emotional sensitivity.
An empath is someone who has the ability to experience the emotions and feelings of other people.
Occasionally,
This may include experiencing another person's physical symptoms as well.
The ability to sense another person may exist regardless of the physical proximity,
The range of the five senses,
Or any intellectual knowledge of the activities of the other person.
The other person can be in another room,
Another town,
Another country,
But an empath will still be able to pick them up.
Empaths may be considered a group within HSP's.
Being highly sensitive may or may not include empathic abilities.
An HSP may only have extreme sensitivity to some or all of the recognized five senses.
An empath may be influenced by other people regardless of any physical connection at all.
If you are an empath,
You should be aware that it is common for empaths to have additional extrasensory abilities,
As well as being able to connect with other people's emotions.
While mediumship and channeling are not part of being an empath,
These skills often appear alongside empathic abilities.
The following are some of the many other talents you may start to discover for yourself.
Seeing auras,
The ability to see in and around another person.
Precognition,
Knowing about events that will happen in the future.
Remote seeing,
The ability to know what is currently happening in a distant place.
Psychometry,
Being able to tell the history of an object or its owner by holding it.
Animal communication,
The ability to speak to and hear pets or other animals.
Plant communication,
Picking up information from plants,
Often in the form of understanding how they can be used for medicinal purposes.
Physical empaths,
People who can feel forces and physical processes that affect the earth.
As you become more accepting of your abilities as an empath,
These other talents may become stronger.
Of course,
There are plenty of non-empaths who also have these experiences,
Just as there are many empaths who do not have these other skills.
If you are experiencing any of these extrasensory traits,
Or none of them at all,
You are still a perfectly normal empath.
Thank you for listening to this talk.
Thank you for helping yourself learn to become a thriving empath.
