Are you empathetic? 10 traits of empathetic people

The characteristic trait of empathic people is that they are individuals who know how to put themselves in the shoes of others and understand their emotions and / or physical symptoms. They are extraordinarily sensitive people.

Their vision of the world is very intuitive, they relate to others prioritizing their emotions and sensations above calculation and coldness, and they usually struggle to describe and put into words everything that feel.

Empathy: a quality to develop

Being an empathetic person is something positive for life. But it also has quite a few less desirable points. People with this trait can also be more vulnerable to the emotional impact of things that happen around them.

For example, they may be more likely to have anxiety crisis, depression, chronic fatigue and other symptoms and disorders related to emotional instability.

However, empathy is a virtue that can help us a lot throughout life, especially if we learn to manage it effectively. The first step is to know if you are really an empathic person.

The 10 traits of empathy

In this article we have described the 10 characteristic traits (habits, attitudes and behaviors) typical of people who have a highly developed empathy.

1. They are more sensitive than other people

Empathic individuals are detached, open to new experiences, kind, and good "listeners." They are attentive people and know how to convey these good feelings when communicating with others.

They are always ready to help and offer a shoulder to cry on. But you can also feel hurt and offended with amazing ease.. They are very sensitive people, to the point of being truly susceptible in some cases.

2. Empaths "absorb" the emotions of others

People with high empathy are influenced by other people's emotions and humor. For better or worse.

They are able to feel what others feel more vividly than ordinary people, and this can sometimes be a difficult slab to overcome. If they are around someone who is anxious or stressed, it costs them horrors that their mind does not emulate those attitudes. Luckily, they are also infected with positive emotions.

3. They are usually introverted

In an article a few months ago we talked about the difference between introverts and extroverts. In the case of empathic people, it is often the case that they tend to be quite introverted. They do not enjoy large parties too much, preferring small groups or going out for coffee with a single friend.

Even among empathetic subjects who are more open to going to parties and places with a lot of people, they are usually careful and prefer to moderate the amount of time they spend in this type of environments.

4. They are more intuitive than average

Empaths perceive the world through their intuition. They like to develop their intuition and listen to their hunches on a regular basis. This allows them to surround themselves with positive people and to get away from those who may upset their emotional balance.

• Related article: "7 strategies to improve intuition"

5. They like to spend time alone

They are very sensitive people and they tend to be affected if they are for a long time listening and helping others. For this reason, they periodically need to be alone in order to return to their emotional balance.

6. They can overprotect themselves in romantic relationships

Living with a partner can be difficult for an empathic person, and they can even develop Philophobia or similar manifestations. They avoid falling in love with someone so they don't have to suffer later if things don't go quite right.

They can feel afraid to be emotionally swallowed up by your partner. They need to redefine their concept of love relationship in order to have positive and happy relationships.

7. They are easy prey for emotional vampires

Have you heard of the emotional vampires? Are those people who they have a bad habit of dumping all their negativity on other people, to which they "suck" their energy to be able to continue in their spiral of fatalism, anger and resentment.

Empathic people can especially suffer the effects of having an emotional vampire around, since they are especially vulnerable to all the bad feelings that those individuals.

8. They feel very comfortable in contact with nature

The obligations and stress of daily routines affect us all, but especially empathic men and women. They tend to disconnect and recharge batteries when surrounded by nature: climbing mountains, enjoying a sunny beach or simply strolling through a green meadow.

9. They have the sensations on the surface

Empathic people are more sensitive in general. They can feel very bad in noisy environments, or when they notice that there is a lot of tension in the environment.

10. They are good people, even to the detriment of their own well-being

Empathic individuals are good people - they have big hearts and sincerely care about others. They feel bad when they see someone suffering on the street, and they cannot help but attend to them to try to mitigate their pain.

Although it is an undeniable virtue, the truth is that empathic people can go too far and become obsessed with dealing with other people's problems, and feeling frustrated or bewildered if they can't solve their problems.

Manage empathy

Empathic people, as we have seen, they have a series of virtues that are associated with other problems for their emotional well-being.

There are techniques that can help these people to manage their personality and not be greatly damaged by their sensitivity. Control time and schedule, set limits with people who need help and habits like to meditate and practice Mindfulness they can restore psychological well-being.

Bibliographic references:

• Barrutia, A. (2009). Interpersonal skills. In A. Barrutia (Ed.), Emotional intelligence in the family (pp. 381-416). Spain: Toromitic.
• Carpena, A. (2003). Socio-emotional education in the primary stage. Barcelona: Octahedron.
• Goleman, D. (1996). The roots of empathy. In D. Goleman (Ed.), Emotional intelligence (pp. 162-183). Barcelona: Cairos.