the empath

Contrary to the emo-ness of my previous post, I actually have been doing well. I think I was just bored and I was really into that 8stops7 song (that I have channelled the lyrics all too well) when I was writing that post.

I have been reading about empathy recently and I may have some distinct traits that are common with empaths. I'm not sure if the tests I took are credible, but some do say that I may be getting too affected by the things surrounding me.

I was watching TV earlier - well, I was channel surfing because I have the attention span of 5-year-old kid - and I tuned-in to a show where the protagonist was about to do something humiliating. I watched as the show built-up the suspense up to the point where the character was about to humiliate himself, but then I couldn't bring myself to watch him do so. I immediately switched channels with my eyes half-closed. I always do that. I couldn't even sit through an episode of American Idol (no, not because the show sucks...) because I don't want to watch the parts where some contestants botch up their songs.

If you are like me, then you may probably be an empath as well. The problem with this is, when I'm not aware that I'm empathizing, I tend to become overly-dramatic about the small stuff. Maybe this is because I'm not able to brush off the emotional residue I've acquired from others and I somehow make it my own? There are actually a lot of people like me who don't know that they take up a large amount of  unnecessary sh*t from other people and let it affect themselves. I'm guessing that this is also the same reason why I'm introverted. Hanging around with a lot of people can really be tiresome if I'm unconsciously empathizing with them.

But then again, this isn't entirely true.

I had a conversation with Ivan about life the other day. Unlike most of my friends, Ivan falls under the "financially troubled" category. You'd expect that our conversation would be too emotionally draining, but no... It was actually the opposite. Despite the hardships that "less fortunate" people go through, you'll be amazed at how some people can easily laugh their way through them and still remain optimistic. We laughed about how he managed to survive with a can of Spam and lots and lots of rice for two days. And we laughed about the things he has to do just to get through the day. It really is all just a matter of perspective and it's fortunate for me that as an empath, I was able to absorb his enthusiasm, optimism, and hope.