Empath? Part 1 Break Down

 

I'm old... let's just start off with that. All my education came from books. But I do like my technology!

Most of my reading is done online, it is my interactive 'TV'. I have been online since 1998 and gravitated to the spiritual circles in the early days. AngelFire, Yahoo Chat rooms and IRC. Those where the days...

Now we have Facebook where anything and everything can be found. I have noticed a blurred area of society where reality and entertainment collide. Lot's of things come out of that. Not sure what it is like out in the whole of the www, but with in the area of mystic and magic, it is pretty heavy.

One of the things in the blur zone is "empath". Lots of people claim to be an empath. Let's Google and see, 'what's an empath?'

From WebMD

While it's not an official psychological term, empaths are generally understood to be people who are extremely attuned to the feelings and emotions of others. The term stems from the word "empathy," which is the ability to understand another person from their point of view rather than your own -- in other words, to put yourself in their shoes. It's not quite the same as sympathy, which means you feel concern for someone who's going through a hard time.

People with high levels of empathy tend to have strong social, communication, and leadership skills. But empaths sometimes have a hard time setting boundaries between themselves and others.

The Website includes psychologist Judith Orloff's list for self assessment.

• People see you as oversensitive, introverted, or shy.
• You tend to internalize other people's feelings or physical symptoms.
• You often feel you don't fit in.
• Crowds make you feel drained.
• You often feel overwhelmed or anxious.
• You're overstimulated by smells, noise, and nonstop conversation.
• You're sensitive to chemicals and can't tolerate clothes that feel scratchy.
• Disagreements or shouting make you feel physically ill.
• You overeat because of stress.
• Intimate relationships can feel suffocating.
• Caffeine and medications affect you strongly.
• You dislike multitasking.
• You have a low pain threshold.
• You prefer rural areas or small towns to cities.

From LinkedIn Author A. Johnson

Here are 11 signs that you might be highly sensitive and/or an empath:

• You can sense other people's emotions easily.
• You're sensitive to coffee, alcohol, or other substances.
• You get anxious easily.
• You find crowded spaces overwhelming.
• You can't tolerate loud noises.
• You hate clutter.
• You don't like being rushed.

Now, I am glad she mentions 'Highly Sensitive'. But back to what is an Empath, need something from woogle... OK, that was hard. Scrolling trying to find something and there are all kinds of health sites, psychology sites, few university links.... I ended up adding the word 'goddess' to the search and I don't know why, it was the first thing that came to me.

From The Goddess Psyche

Not sure if you’re an empath? These common 7 signs will help clarify this question and provide an understanding of this complex gift.

She elaborates on each, but I am just going to list them, with the exception of the first on the list.

• You Take On Others Emotions As Your Own

"....Not only do you pick up on others’ emotions but you may actually feel them as if they are your own...."

• People Open Up To You
• You Are A Natural Healer
• You Cannot See Someone In Pain Without Wanting To Help
• You Are A Walking Lie Detector
• You Feel Overwhelmed With Unexplainable Emotions In Public
• You Deeply Care For Babies, Pets, And Animals

I would like to do a quick google of 'highly sensitive person'.

From Psychology Today

I suggest visiting and reading the whole article.

Highly Sensitive Person, or HSP, is a term coined by psychologist Elaine Aron. According to Aron’s theory, HSPs are a subset of the population who are high in a personality trait known as sensory-processing sensitivity, or SPS. Those with high levels of SPS display increased emotional sensitivity, stronger reactivity to both external and internal stimuli—pain, hunger, light, and noise—and a complex inner life.

From Health.com

1. Become easily overwhelmed by strong sensory input (e.g., bright lights and strong smells) 
2. Notice subtle changes in your environment
3. Feel other people's moods
4. Are sensitive to pain
5. Need alone time to recharge after a busy day
6. Find yourself daydreaming often and have a vivid imagination
7. Are deeply moved by art and music 
8. Often avoid violent movies or TV shows 
9. Get stressed out or overwhelmed while multitasking 

 I can relate to several things on those lists.

Deeply moved by art and music

Deeply care For Babies, Pets, And Animals

Prefer rural areas to cities

Often feel you don't fit in

Overwhelmed by strong sensory input/over stimulation

Issues with chemicals and scratchy cloths

Crowds make you feel drained/Crowded spaces are overwhelming

Can't tolerate loud noises

Daydreaming often and have a vivid imagination

People Open Up To You

Notice subtle changes in your environment

Need alone time to recharge after a busy day

... and I have grown out of others in the lists

People see you as oversensitive, introverted, or shy

Disagreements or shouting make you feel physically ill

Learning to Read Tarot: Example Reading

 One of the popular spreads that people like to choose from my list of spreads is the Elemental spread. And that is great because I really like this spread as well. It covers all areas of life with just 5 cards.

Often those who are new to tarot have trouble putting the cards together in a cohesive way. Sometimes readings are easy to put together, sometimes not so much; but they do not need to be! Each card in each position can be a stand alone! There is also a school of thought that the cards in the spread should tell a story and that is just not the case. In all my years of reading tarot I have had maybe a half dozen readings present in a story manner. 

So with that... I go through the archives of readings I have done for free and present one for you to study.

But first a quick breakdown of the spread positions and the position'f focus. The elemental spread is much like the suits and those associations.

• FIRE: inspiration, passion, drive, swift powerful energy
• EARTH: material/physical, resources, skills, home/body
• AIR: thoughts, ideas, communications
• WATER: feelings, emotions, intuition
• ETHER: Universe; overview, cosmic forces

The Elemental Spread ~ Hidden Folk deck

FIre - 6 of Swords RX

Earth - King of Pentacles

Air - 3 of Wands

Water 4 of Cups RX

Ether - Knight of Swords

The Six of Swords in the Fire position is expressing that you are feeling hindered or blocked in some way, this could be more about the limitations that you are putting on yourself as in what excuses are you making or what self-talk that is negative. Are you telling yourself, “I can’t” about something? Is there something that has happened that you feel has you stuck or has set you back and you feel like you are not able to move past it?

The King of Pentacles in the Earth position is about taking control of things, physically and financially… so we have a reading about money. The king is telling you that you are to get to it! Work hard and hustle. This is about getting things done and making things happen. Those excuses and such from the first card… this kind smashes them because there is nothing that will stop him, This is an unstoppable determination that does not stop until the goal is met.

The 3 of Wands in the air position is about going/ doing something new and trusting your intuition! Look at what needs to be done, what you want to do, as some grand adventure. This is taking an unconventional approach to problems and out of the box thinking. This is just going forth without worries but at the same time having a plan when you come up against some sort of obstacle that has you able to go around or overcome those challenges. This is an IDGF attitude that just goes forward without any sort of apprehension. Now this does not mean going blindly, this just means doing with the KNOWING that you will accomplish what you set out to do. It will be fun! Challenges and all!

Water position has a water card, in reverse. The 4 of Cups is about being in a state that is internal and not very productive. Introvert, unmotivated, passive… think Eeyore. But this card is reversed… shed this stagnate state of being. Jump up, jump in and jump to it! This is a moving and a shaking. So the ‘story’ I am seeing is that maybe you are in a slight state of depression or just energetically down and this is having an impact on things materially (and romantically if this is the case). This card is what turns that all around and is saying ‘WAKE UP!’ …. With the King, this is going out and getting what it is you want. Stop being stuck, don’t let any excuses or such stop you from taking action. You will FEEL so much better.

Knight of Swords lands in the position of Ether, the all, the Universe, the soul, the energy… This guy is the ‘just do it’ guy… right or wrong, he has it in his head that he will tackle it all. He might, he might not but that does not bother him as he knows it is all a life lesson. This card echos so much of the other cards that it is perfect sitting here. This is the unstoppable energy of the King of Pentacles, this is ‘dumb fearlessness’ that has him unhindered by anything. “Don’t know, don’t care” in a manner of speaking. While that phrase sounds negative, in context of thinking ‘what can stop you? (6 of Swords in reverse) it is very positive. ‘What can stop you?’

“Don’t know and don’t care.” That attitude is the attitude of the 3 of Wands… It’s an adventure and process… care about it when it is happening but until then, not going to think about something that is not happening in the here and now. Cross that bridge when you come to it. 

This card is the sum of all the cards and points the way, the direction that things should be going according to what you want. 

(6 Sw rx) This guy does not down-talk himself, nope… he is annoyingly arrogant! But that thinking is powerful when used the right way.  

(KoP) This guy is so ready to go and knows what he wants and wont stop until he gets it He always finds a way.

(3 Wd) This guy has an exuberant energy that  gladly takes on the challenge like it is a game and goes bravely into the unknown.

(4 Cp rx) This guy takes his feelings and puts a plan to it. He makes his dreams into a reality. 

Tarot Quest & Intuition

 What is intuition?

A.K.A the Sixth Sense
In the Tarot Quest studies I use the word intuition; but what that really means is any of the psychic abilities. The reason why I use the word intuition is because that is a more common ‘clair‘ ability of all the psychic senses. Also, it just takes longer to type out ‘psychic ability’. (yes, I can be lazy that way)
Contrary to popular belief, everyone is psychic!
One’s psychic capability is like any other skill or ability, the more you use it the better you get. The studies in Tarot Quest will help you exercise your psychic abilities. You may have thought you don’t have a psychic ability, but here you will find out what those abilities actually are. With that, you might suddenly recall a moment in your past that you can relate back to these explanations.

THE SIX PSYCHIC SENSES

Just like we have our physical senses: see, hear, smell, taste, and touch (feel), we have those as clair senses plus an additional sense which is the knowing sense.
    •    Clairvoyance = Clear Seeing

    •    Clairaudience = Clear Hearing

    •    Clairalience = Clear Smelling

    •    Clairgustance = Clear Tasting

    •    Clairsentience = Clear Feeling

    •    Claircognizance = Clear Knowing


Why is Empath not on the list?
The expression ’empath’ originates from science-fiction. The first use of the term appears in ‘The Empath,’ a story written by Scottish author J.T. McIntosh in 1956. This was obviously long before counselor Troi in Star Trek or Mantis in Guardians of the Galaxy; were most people recognize the term. 
Regardless, you won’t see me using that word, but you are free to use it if you need to.  

BUT, what does "empath" mean?

An Empath is someone who psychically feels things. Ever hear the saying, ‘Trust your gut‘? That phrase actually is referring to clairsentience. That is because clairsentience is the psychic sense of feeling. You may get a sensation in your stomach that is either a good feeling or a bad feeling. Is not only an actual physical sensation it can also be an emotional sensation. Have you ever walked into a room and suddenly felt sad? Later you find out that in that very room an hour previously someone had had a heart attack and died.
 Quite often clairsentience will be labeled as ‘empath’.

Today the term empath is being used quite often. As you see, I do not like the term as it is often misused, plus what is wrong with using the word clairsentience?

I do want to make one thing clear about people who say they are ‘Empaths’. It’s something of a fine line and there is a bit of cross over, but there are empaths who are clairsentient, and then there are ‘empaths’ who are just hypersensitive. Now, hypersensitivity can lean towards clairsentience, but not always. Let me give you an example.
I used a swear word in a comment on social media. It was not used in anger, I was actually giggling.  The word was used to add some ‘flair’ to my sentence. An ‘Empath’ replied to my comment and told me (not asked) to not use swear words as it was passive aggressive behavior and, 'as an empath, it hurts me.'  Nope, nope, NOPE!… that is a textbook hypersensitive person.  If she was truly a clairsentient person, she would have felt the amusement I was feeling when I wrote my comment.
Where the gray area comes in; between hypersensitive people and clairesentient people is that often both of these abilities (one or the other or both) occur from having experienced some sort of trauma. Other psychic abilities also develop as a coping/survival mechanism when one has experienced trauma.  My husbands grew up abused and he is psychometric (a form of clairsentience), he developed this ability as a form of protection.

Brief Breakdown

    •    Clairvoyance = Clear Seeing

These are mental visions, prophetic dreams, and some people will actually superimpose something that they see in front of them, Basically a hallucination but without the drugs. These visions can be realistic, symbolic. It can be patterns or colors, shapes or objects. It can be like a photograph, a movie clip or flashes of different still scenes like a comic strip.
    •    Clairaudience = Clear Hearing

These are a voice that you hear inside your ear or inside your head that is not your own voice it can be sounds and even songs. Now, songs that get stuck in your head, may or may not be clairaudience. Know that a song that plays out in your environment repeatedly, is not clairaudience, but also, it may or may not be a sign from spirit. The things that are not psychic impressions yet are presenting significantly are most likely synchronicities and do have meaning; but that is a different lesson (Signs and Omens.... coming eventually) 
    •    Clairalience = Clear Smelling

This is suddenly smelling something that is not in your surrounding environment. Now this one needs to be really aware and scrutinize the greater environment. Sitting in your house and smelling a charcoal grill might be someone down the street grilling. But if it is the middle of winter and raining, or you live on the 30th floor of a high rise, then it is most likely Clairalience. So be wary and do not automatically think that what you are smelling is psychic in origin.
    •    Cairgustance = Clear Tasting

This is as it sounds, getting a taste of something that you 'should not' be tasting; as in, you are not eating anything. This is one of the more elusive of the clairs. This tends to occur more in the presence of a person in spirit. If your grandmother made a specific kind of cookie when ever you came to visit and you got a taste of those cookies, then your grandmother is communicating with you.
    •    Clairsentience = Clear Feeling

This is the most common of clairs and it is often called 'empath', as I mentioned above. This 'feeling' can come as an actual physical sensation. Say that you suddenly have a strong sharp pressure in your leg. Few hours later your best friend calls and tells you she broke her leg. The feeling can also come as an emotion. You walk into a room and suddenly are sad, happy or angry, or any other emotion. This is that specific aspect of clairsentience that is often identified as 'empath'. By walking into that room and feeling that emotion, you are picking up on the events that occurred in that room previously. You can also get these feelings by being close to people. Psychometry is also part of this clair. This is the ability to touch something and get a feeling, and sometimes if you are exercised in clairvoyance, a vision.
    •    Claircognizance = Clear Knowing

This clair can sometimes be confused with clairsentience as the two often work hand in hand. The feeling is so subtle and the knowing just kicks in. Claircognizance is the thought that comes out of nowhere that is 'illogical' in the 'why would you know this' department. Say you are watching some action adventure movie and the thought, "Don is going to propose to Judy" runs through your head. Why that, why now? There was nothing in the movie to lead up to such a thought. It really came out of nowhere. Yes, the couple have been dating for quite sometime, but neither of them ever mentioned marriage. A couple days later you get a call from Judy and she tells you that she wants you to be her maid of honor at her wedding.
 
Now these explanations and examples are not 'the all' to these abilities, the experiences are different from person to person. These are simply the more common of examples.
It is of utmost importance that you realize that.
Do not, I repeat, do NOT have any preconceived notions about HOW your intuition will present itself. If you do, you will block or overlook the psychic impressions you do have.
Be open, be neutral, be aware without expectation and you will be able to receive and identify psychic impressions.
Also, do not second guess yourself. If something comes to you, take note. Wait, and see what happens. The more you pay attention, the more you are fully aware of every thought and feeling, the easier you will be able to identify what is you and your own personal thoughts and feelings and those that are psychic.

WANT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT TAROT QUEST? Send me an email owlkamyst@gmail.com