I was recently invited by Sally Cronin to begin a new spiritual series at her Smorgasbord Blog Magazine. I used to write articles for our Fey blog that Colleen Chesebro used to run, but life was getting busy for Colleen, and she was running a few blogs, so something had to give. I had copied all my articles before Colleen closed off that blog over a year ago, but I also moved my blog platform back to WordPress last fall, and somehow during the migration of my material, my spiritual posts were half lost. So I’ve been revamping and rewriting in this series. Last week, I shared the first post in this series on Empaths and Communicating Through Spiritual Energy. I hope you enjoy reading.
Smorgasbord Blog Magazine – Spiritual Awareness – Communicating Through Spiritual Energy – #Empaths – By D.G. Kaye
Explore the spiritual side of our natures as D.G. Kaye shares her experiences and research into this element of our lives.

Empaths and Spiritual Communication through Energy
Thanks for rewinding my spiritual series, Sally, which I’d originally written for my Sisters of the Fey blog, which is now out of circulation. Written in 2020, but no doubt still applicable.
Perhaps it’s these crazy times we’re all living in, but for people who are Highly Sensitive Persons also known as HSPs, and for those of us who are empaths with similar traits, I’ve found these last few months, and in particular these last few weeks of world-wide protests for justice, weighing me down with a heavier than usual load to carry, emotionally.
For us sensitives, we are uber sensitive to the energies emitted when the hurt in the world becomes insurmountable. For empaths and HSPs, we don’t necessarily have to be directly in front of one person to pick up energies. We can also take in the collective. And I can tell you, absorbing too much of the negativity going on in the world can be very affecting.
Empaths are ultra-compassionate people, and it’s no surprise that we are feeling way too much in this time of the world.
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The question has often been asked – what is an empath, and what makes empathy different from sympathy? So today I’m going to break it down.
Empaths can literally feel the emotions of another. An inner-knowing through a feeling of invisibly transmitted energy, is how I’d explain it. I suspect every empath has their own unique abilities about how they receive messages, just as many sensitive people, including psychics and mediums, feel spirit using one particular sense.
For example, I can sense when spirits are around me by a sudden drop in my body temperature to downright shivering, no matter the degrees it is in the room. I also sense spirit by scent. I don’t see or hear ghosts, but I sense their presence when the room I’m in suddenly begins to feel very chilly to the point that my teeth chatter as the rest of me shivers. I can smell a distinct odor of Export A cigarette smoke just as I always did when my father entered a room and when he now visits me from ‘the other side’. I get the same feeling when a mysterious waft of a certain sweet scent of perfume fills the air when my Aunty Sherry pays me a visit. Not surprisingly, I’m the only one who can smell these visitors if I’m not alone.
But I digress, I was talking about receiving empathic messages before I got lost on the ghostly messages, lol. My superpower? I like to say, I read souls. I can read and feel emotions – yes, goodness, anger, sadness, evil and every emotion in between. It’s not always a good thing, that’s for sure, but it does come in handy for sizing up situations. How to explain?
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How does an empath absorb the emotions of others? I can only speak from my own experience, and the best way I can explain it is – In person, it only takes a few minutes for me to sense emotions from looking through the eyes – beyond the eyes, into the soul, so to speak. Body language and words also transmit energy. Certainly, we’ve all heard some of the old clichés like – ‘the air was so thick you could cut it with a knife’. That example of thickened air is a good indicator of what an empath picks up on whenever encountering negative energy. Empaths can feel the emotions given off by others. Like I previously mentioned, I would describe it as an energy transmission – communication through absorbed energy.
I am like a sponge or a Bounty paper towel, and have therefore, learned through the years, where to keep myself away from to avoid absorbing certain energies from attracting to me. Again, hard to explain, but I’m sure almost every one of us has had a superstitious moment in life where we’re convinced there is a black cloud hanging over us, or have once felt that someone has cast an evil spell on us or maybe we just plain feel like bad luck is surrounding us. These examples are what an empath feels when we pick up negative energies about a person. And that person doesn’t have to be physically in our presence for energies to bounce off us. And not to mislead anyone, empaths pick up both good and bad energies – no discrimination. It’s just that attracting the negative energies are harder to repel. And it’s no surprise when an empath is accused of being ‘moody’ that an energy can certainly have us changing our minds like the wind.
A good example of picking up collective energies is when we’re watching the news. There really is no good news on the news and by watching too much sadness, our energies become ‘empathetic’ to the pain and sadness of others. My heart gets heavy, and my concentration is shot as my heart prefers to lead my mood. Just as when we’re around a celebration and our hearts are full, we’re going to feel joyful because that is what surrounds us. And those good energies are like refueling from being drained from other bad energies. It’s a cycle for an empath, but there are ways to help deter attracting those energies by learning how to shield.
Empathy is different from sympathy in that having sympathy is more of an offering of condolence as we may feel sorry for someone because of their loss, but we do not feel that person’s actual grief as an empath can by taking in the griever’s actual feelings and emotions. Our own bodies can feel the pain of others – as though we’re walking precisely in their shoes.
Some may think it must be so cool to have this ability, but honestly, I’d rather not have it. Being an empath isn’t something we typically train to become, but rather, it’s an inherent or unconscious developed trait. Psychics, spiritualists, witches, and earth angels are more notoriously known for having empathic abilities, but one doesn’t have to be any one of these in order to be an empath.
Being an empath is sometimes referred to as ‘a gift’, but it’s not always a gift. Many people are empathic. And many more may be but are not aware of their ‘gift’, and some are often hindered by it.
It’s been asked many times, does one just become an empath? Is it inherited? Is it learned? Well, I’ve heard various takes on the subject, but one thought of interest stuck out to me: Some empaths don’t realize that their desire to help others sometimes stems from a lack of nurturing as a child, resulting in an unconscious need to help others. I think that’s just one possible method of how a person can be transformed into an empath subconsciously, and despite there being a ‘how to’ for almost anything available, my personal feeling is that teaching someone to be empathic would be like trying to teach someone to become a psychic. We can read all we want about the subject and watch Youtube videos, and gain lots of insight from doing so, but one cannot simply just ‘become’ an empath or a psychic. Dr. Judith Orloff, Psychiatrist at Psychology.com explains how genetics and trauma can aid in playing a part in becoming an empath, in her article where she explains this a little further.
What’s it like being an empath? Well, let’s say you’re watching a depressing movie or reading a sad part of a book and your feelings are touched by what you’re reading and/or watching. You may be feeling anger, disgust, elation or any other emotion from that movie or book. The writer of the story has done a great job of painting a story and bringing the characters to life when they can evoke these emotions and the reader is drawn in and can almost feel what the character is experiencing. For an empath, we don’t require someone to narrate their feelings to us, we sense and feel the emotion. Sure, if someone shares something affecting that happened to them, I can immediately take in how they’re feeling as a result of that incident, often no words are required. It’s a vibe and energy someone gives off and that energy is transmitted into their personal space. An empath only has to look into someone’s eyes to pick up on emotion – unspoken emotions. There is definitely more than meets the eye, to quote an old cliché – ‘the eyes are the windows of the soul’, because they definitely are.
An empath is a receptor for the energy. Someone not as sensitive to these energies wouldn’t be an empath, and subsequently, wouldn’t even be able to take notice of someone around them with a hidden emotional issue unless they were informed. And sadly, it’s sometimes difficult for an empath to shield or shutdown so as not to absorb these energies. Shielding is a protective measure that is learned, it’s the virtual putting up of an invisible wall to repel the energies to keep them from penetrating into us. With that I’ll add that one doesn’t have to be an empath to learn how to shield themselves
Empaths are usually open targets for energy vampires (suckers) because we take in other people’s energies. Our compassion can sometimes exhaust us when we encounter too much needy energy at one time. Needy doesn’t necessarily always mean the vampire is intentionally reaching out to us, but, because we are susceptible to other people’s energies and feelings – means we can sense the needy energies. We receive the feelings through energy. This is the reason I refer to these types of people as vampires – because they suck out and overwhelm our own energies as we begin feeling their pain or sadness. . . Please continue reading at Sally’s Smorgasbord
©DGKaye2022
Thanks for the information and the advice, Debby.
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My pleasure Olga ❤
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Thanks for an excellent first post for the new column Debby and giving a boost ♥♥
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Thrilled to share this series Sal ❤ ❤
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♥
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Wow, this is so interesting, I am extremely intrigued by this perspective. As easy as spirituality sounds, it only humbles you when you actually enter the process of understanding things.
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Hi Damyanti. Thanks so much. I’m so glad this post and topic has caught your interest. Stayed tuned for next week’s episode. Hugs xx
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A fascinating article so far, Debby. I’m heading to Sally’s to finish it up. Thanks for sharing your experiences.
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Thanks so much Diana. See you over at Sally’s ❤
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Reblogged this on GrannyMoon's Morning Feast.
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Thank you so much for sharing. 🙂
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An excellent article Debby! I’m looking forward to more…
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Thanks so much Rebecca ❤
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This is outstanding Debby! I can relate to almost every word! I’ve always known this about myself but I didn’t realize it was such a common trait experienced by many others. I don’t come across too many people like this. Love the series, looking forward to your next post! 💕C
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Hi Cheryl. Thank you so much for your interest. It was interesting to learn how many fessed up to being empaths from this post, over at Sally’s. Many of us creatives are empaths. Some prefer to keep it under their hat. But I’m exposing myself here, hoping to help others understand. Hugs ❤
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I’m heartened by your sharing this, Deb. Shedding light on our experiences as empaths will help engender a deeper understanding of why we behave the way we do at times.
I experience being an empath as a reflection of the world around me. This often is overwhelming. I feel the joy and anguish of other beings within a heightened sense of awareness. Add my own feelings to the mix, and I easily can become incapacitated. My lifelong way of dealing with this has been to immediately express what I’m feeling, be it positive or negative, in order to prevent implosion. As a child and young adult, my expressions were usually outbursts and weren’t always appropriate or tactful. Experience and practice have taught me to temper my utterances with a bit of forethought. Innumerable times my body assumed the physical signs and symptoms of a friend’s ailment, always prior to knowing of their condition. Once I learned the specifics, my symptoms disappeared within a day or so.
It’s comforting to have a dear friend who thoroughly understands, and with whom I can share in a mutual exchange of venting and counseling. You’re a precious gift, sister ❤️❤️
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Bestow my heart Tina. Thank you for sharing here your own experience with being a sensitive. It helps people understand a little deeper what we experience through energies. I know well about you my sister. Now you have generously shared some of yourself here for others to take in. Sistah! ❤ ❤
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Grateful hugs ❤️❤️
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❤
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I’ve always been drawn to empathetic people, so perhaps it’s no surprise we became blogging friends, Debby. Keep up the positive energy.
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Thank you Pete. Especially now that I’m reading your book, it isn’t difficult to see you too are a sensitive. 🙂
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Loved this, Debby. Toni x
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Thank you Toni xx
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You summed it up nicely with these words, Debby, “An empire is a receptor of energy.” Great post! Thank you for sharing.
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Lol! I hate it when I hit the enter key, then see the typo. “An empath is a receptor of energy” not an empire. 🙂
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Lol, thanks for correcting. But I did get you the first time. Lol. 🙂 x
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Thanks so much Jan x
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Great explanation for being an empath, Debbie! I liked your metaphor of being like a paper towel, absorbing the energies. Thanks for sharing your perspective.
Many Blessings
Lisa xoxo
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Thanks so much Lisa for dropping by and leaving your nod. As you are a specialized empath, much appreciated. ❤ xx
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🥰😘
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❤
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Most interesting, Debby!
I might be an Empath. When someone close to me is ill, I get their symptoms.
The part about smells was interesting to me. I get strong smells that can’t be pinpointed to anything happening. My N never smells these odours. I run around seeing if the stove is on, looking out the window to see if there is something going.
These smells happen during the night or early in the morning.
They include burnt toast (I do not have migraines) burning meats (I’m a veggie, but remember from childhood) burning oily smells, gas, like home heating gas leak, an acidic metallic like uber strong exhaust from cars.
Heading to Sally’s! xx
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Wow Resa! Your first sentence tells me you are an empath. Interesting about the smells that only you can smell? If you are a sensitive, that could quite possibly mean you could be sensing spirits of either someone who was in your life, or quite possible a spirit of someone who once lived in your home, or the land it is on. ❤
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I’m sympathetic but more than a tad short of being an empath. Thanks to that crazy Lupron injection to slow the cancer down, I’ve taken a short ride down the sympathy to empathy line. Or at least got an emotional amplification. Try watching the Joni Mitchell performance of Summertime at this year’s Newport Folk Festival. It’s on YouTube. Yes, she’s back–part of the way, since that aneurysm. Lots of friends on the videos.
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Hi John. Thanks for the Joni Mitchell tip. As for that shot, no surprise, when playing with hormones. But remember gratitude that you are getting good care. 🙂
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