It's You, Not Me: How to Tell the Difference Between Your Own Emotions and Someone Else's

Ever notice how you get around someone and start feeling differently? If you are like me, a full on empath you do it regularly, and intensely! In fact, the more masked someone is in his or her personality, the more I feel the very thing they are hoping to hide. It's as if that emotion is screaming to hop out over the mask and on to me.

Many people are uncertain as to whether or not they are feeling their own emotions or someone else's. The very first thing you must do in order to discern is to know what is typically your emotional content. For instance, if you never drank much and you suddenly feel a desire to party your butt off, this is likely you picking up someone else's emotion, and even a compulsion--the action of an obsession. I once lived near a suicidal, former heroin addict and yes after a few weeks there, I actually wanted to use heroin (which is not my thing) and found myself considering different methods of suicide (also not my thing). All of this subsided when I moved. If the emotion is one that is familiar to you, from your own wound structure, it is likely yours. Occasionally, you might meet someone who shares that wound structure and really struggle to discern. This is where you can ask for help. Either ask for help from people who know you well, or ask the divine to make it incredibly clear what is your emotion to own, and yours to 'return to sender'. You can save yourself so much heartache once you realize you are taking on the projections of others.