There’s a difference between having empathy and being an empath.
While nearly every human being feels empathy toward people in pain, empaths have the ability to absorb people’s emotions and energy to the level where they feel them inside their own bodies and minds.
So, what is an intuitive empath?
An intuitive empath is a kind of empath who’s able to read and absorb the tiniest cues people make in their behavior and even the deepest emotions they have and make intuitive assumptions on what’s happening in their life or who they truly are.
According to Dr. Judith Orloff, six other types of empaths exist as well: physical empath, emotional empath, animal empath, dream empath, earth empath and plant empath.
While all empaths have many common traits, there are signs that point to one specific kind of empath that you possibly are and these are the signs you are, indeed, an intuitive empath, sweetened with the most beautiful empath quotes only a true empath can relate to.
You always choose meaningful over practical
It’s not that you don’t realize how to organize your life in a way that gets you the material success most people seek, it’s just that you care more about other things in life.
What you truly yearn for is meaning in everything you do. You want everything you choose to do with your life to have a positive impact on yourself, the people around you and the world in general.
You’d never choose to do something just because it makes more sense practically or financially, as that to you is an utterly shallow way of understanding life and you always dig deeper until you reach the essence of things.
You easily understand other people
“All I ever wanted was to reach out and touch another human being not just with my hands but with my heart.” ~ Tahereh Mafi
While many people struggle with deeply understanding what others are truly about, you do that with ease.
It’s natural for you to realize where other people come from and putting yourself in other people’s shoes is an easy task for you.
Since you’re able to comprehend their emotions and experiences on a higher level, you’re also able to apply those things to your own being and figure out their exact position in life, even when they don’t tell you much.
You’re a problem solver
Another important sign that you have intuitive empathy is the fact that you can easily and clearly see the bigger picture.
Your empathic abilities help you figure things out quickly and that’s why you see a clear path to a functioning solution faster than other people.
It’s a common misconception that sensitive people are too self-involved and can’t seem to find a way to handle the ‘real world’ and the difficulties of life.
While it’s true that you can get easily overwhelmed, you can also easily find your way out of anxiety.
Your creativity levels are off the charts
There are so many ideas in your mind, too many to make come true. Whenever a situation calls for a creative solution, you’re the one to step in.
You sense the emotions of others and use all the input you can to create beautiful things. You can be fairly artistic or even choose art as your profession.
You need an outlet for everything you soak in and your creative ideas and art give you exactly that.
Your imagination lifts you above everyday life struggles
We all have different kinds of struggles that accompany our regular daily routine and we all find different ways to fight those.
For empathic people, it’s their imagination that helps them create a world where they are able to get rid of stress and go back to their roots.
This is why you value your alone time tremendously. Self-care, rest and imagination are what you need to deal with all the energy of other people that you absorb all the time.
People benefit greatly from having you in their life
“For there is nothing heavier than compassion. Not even one’s own pain weighs so heavy as the pain one feels with someone, for someone, a pain intensified by the imagination and prolonged by a hundred echoes.” ~ Milan Kundera
It’s really amazing having you as a friend or a family member. You truly understand the pain of other people and all your talents are best used when you’re trying to help your loved ones figure out their own issues.
Empaths are really good friends. You can sometimes be an introvert, so the way you open up to the people who are close to you is truly unique and gets the best out of you.
An empath is always someone you want for a friend, and that’s a fact.
You always remain enthusiastic about what will come next
“The most beautiful people we have known are those who have known defeat, known suffering, known struggle, known loss, and have found their way out of the depths. These persons have an appreciation, a sensitivity, and an understanding of life that fills them with compassion, gentleness, and deep loving concern. Beautiful people do not just happen.” ~ Elisabeth Kübler-Ross
You appreciate life on a higher level than a regular person does and that makes you enthusiastic to live it in the most fulfilling ways possible.
You’re aware of yourself, your surroundings and the fact that life doesn’t always deal you the best cards but you find a way to recover from anything, no matter how hard it is.
You’re excited to see what new things life has in store for you.
Fighting pain, you’ve learned to surround yourself with positivity
“Because empaths absorb the energy and emotions of those around them, being around toxic and/or negative sources can take a huge toll on the empath’s physical and mental well-being. They are natural care-givers and want to help (or at least try to) fix situations, which can end up hurting the empath. It’s not always easy for them to recognize when it is time to walk away.” ~ Ari Eastman
The thing about you is that people with negative energy drain yours completely and that’s why you use your high senses to try and pick those with positive energy.
When you’re in the vicinity of toxic people, energy vampires and narcissists (who always find a way to get into your life), you can even feel physical symptoms of unease, anxiety and nervousness.
In order to maintain your mental health and keep on living your life the best way you can, you always choose those who inspire you and spread positivity everywhere they go, which makes you a more positive and happy person.
You achieve harmony wherever you go
“Empaths are born that way, but being empathic is something all, or most, of us can learn. They put others in front of themselves as long as it’s doable. Harmony in any given circumstance is something they strive to create. They are being affected by others’ emotions and energies—so balance is super-important to them. They want to make the desires and wishes come true for the ones around them as often as possible. They want to motivate and inspire others to grow as well.” ~ Kristine Einang
You have a natural yearning for harmony and peace. Since you’re able to sense other people’s emotions, energy and vibes, it is completely natural to you to use that knowledge in order to do good things.
People’s feelings are important to you and whenever there’s conflict near you (which doesn’t even have to include you as one of the parts of the conflict), you try to make peace and help people reach a compromise.
You’re a talented decision maker
You’re passionate but not keen on making rash decisions so you invest time and energy into making the most insightful and inspiring choices you can make.
Being a good problem solver and being able to easily see the bigger picture, you aim for every aspect of life that your mind can reach and incorporate it into your decision-making process.
You don’t only pay attention to all the available information, you also always consider the feelings of others when deciding what to do.
You know how to truly listen
“I do not ask the wounded person how he feels, I myself become the wounded person.” ~ Walt Whitman
When you talk to someone, you give them all of your attention. You like listening to other people’s stories and finding out about their experiences.
You know that you really can help people and you give everything you can at the time to make them feel understood, seen and accepted. Not many people can say this about themselves and you really are a gem.
You absorb other people’s emotions
“Highly sensitive people are too often perceived as weaklings or damaged goods. To feel intensely is not a symptom of weakness; it is the trademark of the truly alive and compassionate. It is not the empath who is broken; it is society that has become dysfunctional and emotionally disabled. There is no shame in expressing your authentic feelings. Those who are at times described as being a ‘hot mess’ or having ‘too many issues’ are the very fabric of what keeps the dream alive for a more caring, humane world. Never be ashamed to let your tears shine a light in this world.” ~ Anthon St. Maarten
People don’t have to verbally share their emotions with you, as you intuitively feel their emotions on a higher level. If someone were to ask what intuitive empathy is, that would be the simplest possible explanation.
Sometimes you realize you’ve suddenly started feeling different since you started a conversation with someone or even when a certain person entered a room; that’s just how sensitive your sensors are.
You can read people like an open book
Reading body language and other cues people give unintentionally is one of the empath traits. You feel like you really know the people you communicate with, even when you haven’t really known them for a long time.
This is a great benefit when making friends or a potential romantic interest. There’s hardly anything that’s a mystery to you when it comes to human behavior.
Highly intuitive people can read a person in a matter of minutes, sometimes without even hearing them speak at all.
There’s almost no chance anyone can fool you
Since you’re that much in tune with people’s emotions, vibes and personalities, you immediately notice when what a person is saying and the real truth behind their words are in conflict.
You may not always be able to put a finger on what’s wrong exactly but your intuition tells you whenever there’s something you should be paying additional attention to.
You know how to be alone
Intuitive empaths need their alone time. You enjoy it and you know how to use it to refresh your energy. Many people have trouble being on their own but not you.
You appreciate the unique experience of being by yourself and you cherish having the ability to work on yourself and expand your understanding of your own mind and body.
You enjoy doing everything that you believe makes you better for yourself and for the world.
You’re a natural healer
“Sensitive people care when the world doesn’t because we understand waiting to be rescued and no one shows up. We have rescued ourselves, so many times that we have become self taught in the art of compassion for those forgotten.” ~ Shannon L. Alder
Has anyone ever told you that they feel better just by being close to you? That’s a clear sign of you being an intuitive empath.
You have a healing ability that comes from your deep understanding of the way human emotions work.
Not only are you able to figure out what someone’s going through but you are also always willing to help.
Crowded places sometimes overwhelm you
“Empaths did not come into this world to be victims, we came to be warriors. Be brave. Stay strong. We need all hands on deck.” ~ Anthon St. Maarten
HSPs (highly sensitive people) don’t tend to have any kind of mental illness but this particular trait does make empaths develop certain mental conditions, such as anxiety, more often than other people.
Being that sensitive to everything around you (the noises, the smells, the emotions, the energy…) can overwhelm and exhaust a person.
You feel like anytime you spend more time in big crowds, you need a whole lot of alone time to re-energize and rest.
You can’t get yourself not to care
“Empaths may hesitate to save themselves first because they think that doing so is selfish, which is not the case. If you’re an empath, know how important it is to take care of yourself first in order to be able to help others. Sometimes there is only so much you can do for others; you might even be doing everyone a disservice by stepping over boundaries.” ~ Catherine Chea
It’s incredibly hard for you to tell yourself you shouldn’t care about something. You carry so much pain within you and you worry about every human being, even people you don’t know.
Hearing about sad human stories is unbearable to you.
Sometimes, you wish to get the opportunity to rest from all these overwhelming thoughts and emotions but you just can’t seem to shake it off. It’s who you are and you’ve come to accept that fact.
Finding an outlet for all these vibes is incredibly important though.
People confide in you all the time
People know that they can tell an intuitive empath anything and there’s nothing they wouldn’t understand. Even people who haven’t met you before feel the urge to tell you things about themselves and their life.
You often hear them say, ”I don’t even know why I’m telling you this but…”
You spread positivity, kindness and soft, welcoming energy wherever you go. You may not see this as the amazing virtue that it is but people certainly value you for it.
Sometimes, you feel like you just don’t fit in
“The empath helps others by absorbing some of their pain, but who helps the empath?” ~ Donna Lynn Hope
Realizing what your own emotions are in the messy web of emotions of practically anyone you’ve ever spoken to is hard.
This unsettling feeling can get you to start questioning your own identity. You sometimes feel like while you’re there to understand everyone, no one really understands what it’s like to be you.
The complexity of the life of each person who crosses your path is integrated into your soul and mind and this makes it hard to comprehend your own personality and find a world where you fit best.
Being an empath is not easy…
It’s not easy being that one person who feels everything and understands the world so much better than the people around you. Still, it’s the most beautiful a person can be.
Learn to never be ashamed of your emotions and who you are because let’s be honest, you’re one of those keeping this world from sinking and we all ought to thank you.
Always remember that being an intuitive empath is as rewarding and fulfilling as you allow it to be.