Defense for an Empath

Defense for an Empath
At some point or another you may have heard of a person being Empathic. For those of you that haven't, here's a short rundown on what its like:

I have been empathic my whole life. This is different from having empathy for someone in a situation and trying to soothe them. A true Empath senses and experiences others emotions and feelings automatically and (usually) unconciously. While some people may say that that is a blessing, it comes with its share of disadvantages. Yes, I can tell when people are lying to me or have been gossiping about me immediately, and yes, I can read body language, emotions and vibrations of others around me, and I can see auras (to an extent). The price for this is if I am not grounded, or staying "on-top-of-my-game" (so to speak) I suffer through the emotions of people near me. Grief, joy, anger, ecstacy etc. Some days I feel bi-polar. As a teenager my parents thought that I may have been bi-polar, but doctors proved that I am not. Anxiety and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, yes, but not manic depression (bi-polar). I have slowly learned to block out the vibrations and energy of those around me.

Those of you that know me personally may have noticed that I try to avoid large crowds, funerals or anywhere else that has emotions running rampant. Now you know why. I also try to avoid talking face-to-face with friends that may be going through an emotional situation, much prefering to text or chat online. There is also the occasional random person/people (and they are usually totally unconcious of the fact) that I consider "psychic vampires." These people are drawn to telling me all the stress they are going through, effectively draining my postive energy for their own use. Ocassionally, I may let them, if they are close to me, but generally I tend to tune out, and/or find an excuse to abruptly end the conversation. I am not a total recluse, but I know my limits. 

I also have a hard time dealing with others that I am very close to (i.e. my husband, son, pets, parents and siblings) when they are dealing with strong emotions. Even from a distance I can connect with them, and will usually pick up the phone to call them and find out that something is indeed going on.

But, the older I get, the more I realize that I can't possibly stay away from every situation that is emotionally charged. My husband comes home from work upset sometimes, or my son is sick, etc. So I have found a nifty little tool to aid in blocking the emotions of others (in addition to frequent grounding of excesses).

Empathic Defense Jewelry
 

While I have designed this as a necklace, it can be easily adapted as a braclet or anklet, or if you're feeling really creative, a ring! As a matter of fact, mine is long enough to be wrapped around as a braclet. And please don't feel that you have to follow my directions exactly. This is YOUR tool and as such, should reflect YOU!

Instructions
You will need:

• Enough wire, or waxed linen to make your piece, for a necklace this takes A LOT! I used probably 4-5 feet (48-60 inches) to make a 12 inch necklace. 
• Hematite beads--your choice for size and shape. These are used to make grounding energy a lot easier. 
• A prism bead (these can prove difficult to find. If you can't find the bead alone, buy a small suncatcher that incorporates one and take it apart  . This is used as an "emotional energy diffuser" (Thanks for the word choice Melinda!)
• A LOT of Seed beads--size 13/0 or smaller, 2 different colors, one as an accent and the other for the peyote zip-up. (I honestly don't know how many, I did not, nor did I want to, count all of them, they are soooo tiny!)
• A jewelry clasp of your choosing (if using jewelry wire, make sure you have crimps!)
• Wire cutters and crimper (if using jewelry wire) or scissors
• Beading needles (if using waxed linen)
• The instructions for zip-up peyote beading here

The following abbreviations will be used:

• PZU--peyote zip up
• ACC--accent seed bead

1. To begin, if needed thread needle with linen, securely attach one half of your clasp to a LONG length of your jewelry material. If using wire and crimps, make sure that your crimp is pressed down TIGHTLY!)
2. String 1 hematite bead and 3 seed beads in the color of your PZU.
3. String 13 ACC
4. String 1 hematite
5. Make a PZU that is 10 beads long and 6 beads wide
6. String 1 hematite
7. Repeat steps 4-6 until jewelry is half the desired length.
8. Add Prism bead as the pendant
9. Repeat steps 3-6 until jewelry is desired length.
10. Repeat step 2.
11. Repeat step 1.
12. Cleanse the item with the 4 elements while charging it with intent (of course do not put directly into flame for South!)
13. Once per month leave the item outside overnight to attract the energy of the New Moon (to effectively "erase" any negativity it might have possibly gathered).

I truly hope that everyone has enjoyed this, and perhaps can benefit from what I have discovered to be quite an effective tool for easing the problems that come with being an Empath

Blessings, Light and Love
J. Leonhardt 

Original Post Information
By: J. Leonhardt
June 5th, 2011
9:15 PM