My name is Rachel and I am a “highly sensitive” person.
I’ve been called ‘too sensitive’ all my life. I am highly empathetic, I’m an observer, someone who sits back and assesses before taking action. I cry easily, am quick to take things personally, and I feel things more deeply than many of the people I know.
For a long time, I built up walls around myself, to numb the many overwhelming feelings… to protect myself from the ever present pain of the world, as well as against people who like to take advantage of empathetic souls.
And yet, that also numbed me to the many joyful, heart-filling experiences the world has to offer.
I’ve come to realize that my high-sensitivity is a gift. That being a big feeler, a person who can easily tune into the feelings of others, also gives me the ability to more easily connect with and understand those around me.
It has given me a talent for keen observation — and for writing! For listening and connecting deeply to the feelings and lived experiences of others, and for explaining those experiences in words… so others can see just a glimpse into what it’s like to live with abject poverty, horrific abuse, unending food insecurity... or how it feels to walk along a trail breathing in the deep earthy scents of the forest... to put your heart and soul on the line trying to save lives in a crowded hospital... or just how it feels when an abused animal licks your face for the first time.
It's given me the ability to see and show and express just how much compassion, beauty, hope and wonder there is in this world. How so many people work selflessly, day after day, trying to make this world a better place to live.
And that, my friends, is a gift like no other. One that brings much pain and sorrow, but also much joy and peace, and a very, very full heart.
Are you highly sensitive too? Have you experienced it as a gift or a curse… or maybe a little of both? Any recommendations for me and others like me to make the world a little easier to live in? I welcome any and all insights.
