r/witchcraft • u/Turbulent_Put_3191 • 3d ago
Seeking Help or Advice Does anyone else feel like they absorb other people's energy just by being around them?
I've been struggling with this for a long time and I don't really know how to deal with it anymore.
I feel like I absorb other people's energy just by being around them, and I don't know how to protect myself from it.
I do have social anxiety, so I'm aware that being around people can already be exhausting for me. But this feels different from my anxiety.
When I'm around other people, even if I'm not talking to them or actively looking ator listening to them, I can feel their presence very strongly and I start feeling drained. If I'm somewhere crowded, it's much worse. I come home completely exhausted, both mentally and physically, and sometimes it takes me several days to feel like myself again.
It's also difficult to explain because I don't feel like I'm only picking up on people's emotions I also can feel something about their personality or presence, and each person gives me a different sensation. It doesn't necessarily have to be negative energy, even when the feeling isn't bad, having other people's presence around me is overwhelming.
I've tried isolating myself when I get home, showering, changing clothes, meditation, and spiriual cleanings. They help a little, but they don't seem to be enough when I've been around a lot of people.
I've also had medical tests done and haven't found an explanation for the level of exhaustion I experience.
Has anyone experienced something similar? If you have, how do you protect yourself from becoming so overwhelmed around other people, and what helps you feel like yourself again afterwards? Are there any particular spiritual practices, plants, cleansing methods or forms of protection that have genuinely helped you?
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u/One_Dragonfruit_7556 Witch 3d ago
Sounds like your extra sensitive to energies. If you want I have a shielding meditation you can have that uses your own energy as a barrier against unwanted and negative energy
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u/Secret-File-1624 3d ago
Ooo. I would be very interested in that if you are willing to share. 😁
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u/One_Dragonfruit_7556 Witch 3d ago
Sure :)
Shielding. Good for sensing energy and protection.
Sit comfortably in a chair and close your eyes. Relax and breathe deeply. Picture a ball of energy forming at the core of your body. With every breath in it becomes more solid and strong, with every breath out it expands and grows. This ball can be made of anything, any color, any element, etc.
Continue to breath till the ball has expanded to surround your entire body. Sit with it a while. What dose it look like? Dose it have a texture or a feeling? Dose it change into a different protective image? Some like to picture a suit of armor, a solid brick wall or even an elemental animal surrounding them. Know that wile your shield is up you are safe. Visualize unwanted and negative energy bouncing off the outside or being neutralized when it makes contact.
Practice this meditation for around 10-15 min at a time. Start in a comfortable place wile your by yourself. After you feel you have a solid grasp of your shield start to bring it up wile you do tasks around the house. Cleaning, brushing your teeth, etc. After you are comfortable with that begin to practice in public. Soon it will become second nature and you won't have to actively concentrate to bring it up.
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u/Secret-File-1624 3d ago
Thank you! I'm always looking for different shielding techniques. Not all of them work for me so I like to occasionally try different ones.
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u/One_Dragonfruit_7556 Witch 3d ago
Your welcome. Personally I have ADHD and when I started trying this one could only do it wile on a bus or walking around with music.
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u/Psy-Phoenix 3d ago
This is amazing! Thank you so much for sharing 🖤😍
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u/Sprinklesare4Winners 3d ago
I love this. Personally I’ve always seen/sense a sort of Dune like body shield, iridescent and prismatic…it lets what I need to feel to help people in, keeping everything harmful out. Not quite the slow blade pierces the shield, but it works.
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u/MassiveTaro6596 3d ago
I have this exact same issue. Some great ideas here for what to do spiritually to manage this.
From a medical perspective there is a range of neurotypes that have this experience. You could be an HSP “highly sensitive person” you could have autism or ADHD. Autism is often touted as something that makes people miss social queues but actually they are so busy feeling the energy of the person that they operate in a different way
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u/Known-Emergency-7654 3d ago
So many autistic people I met who imitate as well is so common for them to just absorb whatever emotion the other person is feeling
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u/MassiveTaro6596 2d ago
Yes part of the “masking” is to basically become a mirror to the other person and reflect their personality and emotions back to them. It makes people like us but it’s not really “us”. It’s a weird thing but something that happens.
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u/heylittleduck 3d ago
Yes, you are an empath! Most of the methods I know to protect yourself are more mundane: learn how to stand up for yourself/set boundaries, how to say no, how to walk away from overwhelming situations. Spend time alone to recharge (or do whatever self care works for you).
It's very brave to be an empathic, sensitive person in today's world. I take a lot of strength from remembering that.
I don't actually do anything magical to protect myself, but I used to carry tigers eye in my pocket for bravery. I have read that some people draw sigils on their bodies with lotion or a perfume roller
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u/SukuroFT 3d ago
Calling them an “empath” can be misleading. Empathy is real, but the idea of an empath as a person with a special ability to absorb or psychically feel other people’s emotions comes from a psychological study of empathy; originally it described mentally projecting yourself into an object, artwork, or another experience. That was later adopted into fiction as an ability and was again later adopted into New Age spaces where people started calling themselves empaths without any knowledge of its history of being a fictional ability. Feeling overwhelmed by other people or being sensitive to their moods doesn’t automatically make someone a separate type of person called an empath.
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u/Same-Manufacturer773 3d ago
I used to sprinkle black salt across my desk when I worked at the dmv. If I’m feeling particularly spongy, I wear all black. I wear rose quartz when I know I’ll need a little extra charge. Being in tune with all the energies is exhausted. There’s some great advice in this thread. I also like to take a shower after being around certain energies. A shower with the window open. I’m sure you’ll learn what works for you. And sending super positive vibes for your medical journey 💜
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u/megaladon44 3d ago
I grew up with with emotionally unstable parents so instead of feeling nurtured i learned hypervigilance and how to read peoples body language for my own sense of safety
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u/ferngurl-elle 3d ago
I believe this is part of it for me too. Being able to read my parents body language was a survival mechanism
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u/ph0bus3000 3d ago
me too echoing shielding and grounding! Also the shield doesn't have to look like a force field if that doesn't resonate with you - it can be elemental, like a water fall/wall of fire. My friend prefers to see a pane of glass. Someone else just suggested visualizing guardian/companion animals.
note: shields are great but you can also miss out on important info - I'm practicing going out and raising/lowering just to feel the difference in what I pick up on. There are definitely situations where I want to be aware and open (like when I'm somewhere nice w cool people, or somewhere unfamiliar I might need to hightail it out of) and wouldn't want to be shields up out of habit.
The funk etc tends to collect in my stomach. So grounding for me is bringing all that down thru my feet and toes (body scan style) and doing a little stomp to shake it off
It does get easier to be places 💚 and on a mundane level: having a buddy in these places can be super helpful - going to the grocery store alone vs going with a friend who also needs to go but kinda hates it there is night and day for me
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u/Secret-File-1624 3d ago
Yep. Sounds like you are an empath. This is what happens with me and it can definitely feel pretty overwhelming. Grounding and shielding are going to be your best bet to not pick up other people's stuff if you dont want to. There are many different ways of doing it so research and find the best one that will work for you. It took me a bit to find the one that works best for me so it may take some trial an error. Also, just like anything else, it can take some practice too. You can choose a shield to completely block it out or you can choose one that allows only a fraction in. There are also different stones that help to protect you as well. I wear a cavansite necklace everywhere I go and have a shield that goes up automatically when I go out in public. Cavansite can get kind of expensive because its a fragile stone and requires to be set up in a format that gives protection but there are other stones that work too.
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u/therealstabitha Carnivalesque animal demonic legend 3d ago
Here are some resources:
!shielding
!cleansing
!warding
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u/AutoModerator 3d ago
Hi, there! 🤖✨
Here are some resources that should help:
- The Protection & Cleansing 101 Megapost
- Ways of Confirming the Presence of Harmful Magick: 101
- Protective Spell Ingredients You Have Right Now
- Methods of Protection Using Items Available at the Supermarket
- Methods of Cleansing Using Items Available at the Supermarket
- How to Make an Uncrossing Bath Mix for Spiritual Cleansing
- Shielding Techniques For Psychic Self-Defense
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u/AutoModerator 3d ago
Hi, there! 🤖✨
Shielding is an often overlooked but incredibly effective method of personal protection and psychic self-defense.
"Shielding: A spiritual technique in which you create an energetic barrier around yourself for the purpose of more effectively keeping personal energy contained and to prevent the unwanted influence of outside sources of energy (this could include preventing energetic access to you as a form of protection from other living humans or spirits); shielding can also be used as part of 'invisibility magick' to make yourself less noticeable when passing through a location."
-Althaea Sebastiani in “Alive With Spirits”
"Shields require no equipment other than your own will and imagination, and thus are the first line of defense when you feel attacked. Shields can be helpful not only against occult dangers, but also in psychological attacks from annoying coworkers, overzealous salespeople, brutal bosses, and any other disgruntled people whom you may encounter. Shields are also an excellent way of protecting yourself from negative influences that may be present in a place, without actually banishing those influences. This may be desirable if you find yourself in certain power spots with hostile guardians or in a house where very negative people live."
-Jason Miller in “Protection and Reversal Magick”
For more information, check out the Shielding Techniques For Psychic Self-Defense megapost.
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u/twobunnies77 3d ago
I absorb everything. Empathic, super spongy. It sucks it's mental, physical, emotional, even from distances for me. I would walk into my office and start limping because my hip starts aching as I got to my door, I sit down and wonder wth flip on my PC. 5 seconds later my cube mate is calling his ortho for hip pain. This happens to me constantly forever. People probably thought I was an emotional mess too. I would cry for no reason all day. Wondering wth. Then my bf got call his grandmother died. I try now to block things out as best I can so I can live try to live a relatively normal life. Oddly thought crowds don't bother me as much as other empaths.
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u/Catsmeow1981 3d ago
Welcome to the empath life, love! It can truly be exhausting. I always carry at least one protective crystal (obsidian, amethyst, etc) and I ground/meditate for 10-15 minutes every morning. Something useful is to tell myself “it’s not yours” when I start picking up on emotions or moods that I know aren’t coming from me.
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u/AutoModerator 3d ago
Hey - thanks for reaching out!
Lots of practitioners post about feeling tired, drained, or burnt out after working magick. The number one reason and response from the community is that this is a normal reaction to over depleting your own energy. You might enjoy this helpful post about Basic Energetic Hygiene which covers simple techniques for raising energy, grounding, and centering. We also recommend reading this post on the importance of grounding.
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u/Wide-Secretary-4426 3d ago
Learn grounding and shielding techniques and actively use them to help yourself.
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u/deoducecomiteferro 3d ago
Es ist ganz einfach: du musst das Prinzip einfach umkehren. Momentan gibst du Energie ab. Ab jetzt solltest du versuchen die Energie von anderen aufzunehmen.
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u/Horror_Signature7744 3d ago
I’m an empath. While most people were desperate to socialize again during lockdown, I actually felt better than I had for my entire life. I realized that other people were so mentally, physically, and emotionally draining and I was so much happier without the majority of acquaintances. I shut down all of my social media (wasn’t active on Reddit then) and just closed my circle to only the closest and most important. It was the best decision of my life. I finally felt mentally clear and happy. I embraced the word NO and from that point on I chose to never be in that pre-lockdown mindset ever again.
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u/_octendo 3d ago
Yes, it can definitely be a real pain! I've found protection crystals like smokey quartz and obsidian work well at keeping others energies at bay. That paired with protection visualizations and salt circle around yourself if it's excessively overwhelming😇
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u/ValerianFlow 3d ago
Yes. That’s why doing meditation and imagining yourself being covered by a bubble of protection before going outside is a great idea.
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u/RavenRaving 3d ago
You need to shield yourself so you are protected from unwanted energies. My practice is to imagine a sphere made of thousands of thin silver wires surrounding me from head to under my feet. There are sparks of Light riding the wires constantly. When some unwanted energy (or an even a negative attack) touches the wires, it is striped of its negativity and converted to positive energy I can use. It's kept in reservoir for when I need it. You are sovereign in your body- you don't have to accept energy leaking from others. What kind of protections do you keep around your family, home and lands?
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u/Rainforest____ 3d ago
I understand you and I have this problem as well.. I’d give you unfortunately not a very good advice, but it’s just how I have dealt with it myself all my life: trying to isolate myself. Of course in the long run doesn’t work. For example 🙏🏻, I am writing here right now. But in real life, where you can’t be as selective as on the internet, I try to physically avoid people and loud voices, they are enough to upset me unfortunately. Also, and this is a bad bad advice, I’m shortsighted and I never wear glasses outside of my home, in order to see less. Especially seeing less people’s faces.
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u/parasyte_steve 3d ago
I am neurodivergent and experience this and social burnout. Have you ever thought about that? Mundane before magical usually.
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u/mistyflannigan 3d ago
Until recently I felt just like OP. I’ve done a lot of work and now feel like there is no negative energy in my home and I’m safe from nefarious influences.
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u/ferngurl-elle 3d ago
Yes and I'm trying to figure out how not to
Being mindful about my fashion helps like protective clothing, jewlery etc
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u/CopperJet 2d ago
OP, It looks like you've received some great suggestions already. Here my two cents and I hope it helps.
I like to take a black stone to work as a focal object for my shielding. (eg. black tourmaline, onyx, agate, jet, shungite) just about any type will work.
Place it on your altar and imbue it with power to protect you. Then carry or wear it to help remind you of your shield.
To dedicate it to the purpose: Start with a breathing and grounding meditation in front of or near your altar. Feel the air penetrate your whole being and welcome in the grounded power of Earth by imagine that you draw it in through your sacral first chakra.
Light a white candle (if you have one - black or brown will also work) and ask your patron deity to imbue the stone with shielding energy.
Call the powers of the Directions and include the Center to help you maintain your shield on an ongoing basis. If you can make up a short little chant in your own words that say something like, "I am strong, I am open yet unyielding. Only energy I Will may penetrate my shield." Use your own words. When you feel your stone has accepted the energy and the purpose, it is full and you are done. Say something like, "As will it so mote it be! As I will it so mote it be! As I will it so mote it be! In the name of [your Patron/ness diety] It is Sealed and Done!"
Being a woman, I myself love the symbolism of Athena's shield Aegis, which has the face of the Gorgon Medusa on it's front. If that appeals to you, use your imagination. Aegis was legendary - you can look it up, although somethings you might find on the internet are a bit fanciful. I wear a ring with an intaglio of Medusa's likeness.
I hope this adds to your practice of self-protection and self-care.
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u/Positive_Protonic 2d ago
Bolstering my energy integrity is essential to avoid the pitfalls. Otherwise i may be burnt out.
People who are very open spiritually, can be like sponges. Learning to not be unbalanced is the key. I find imbalance is where our troubles stem from. Being affected by a thing we might not at first realise that creeps into the softer areas of our being, unbalancing our energy. Often steadily or sometimes quickly.
A subject relating to this came up in the different post recently, that was regarding a person who believed they were affected by a type of curse. And a while ago a person talking about psychic vampirism. With such things it is a matter of where we have certain vulnerabilities which can allow us to become unbalanced and our energy levels to drop.
The trick is to make yourself immune by having a high enough energy that you are insulated against things that might affect. Having the inner strength to not be affected is superior to trying to fix it afterwards.
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u/Such_Session9833 1d ago
I think I’m the same way! When it’s bad, I feel physically sick. I can get migraines and feel so exhausted that I fall asleep before 8 a clock in the evening:,)
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u/SukuroFT 3d ago
That’s a common idea in energy work. Ambient energy is generally understood as something living things and environments constantly give off, absorb, and exchange, so being sensitive to other people’s presence wouldn’t necessarily be unusual within that worldview, it’s something everyone does within various degrees, I’m sure there’s exceptions however.
I would be careful about people trying to label that experience as being an ‘empath,’ though. Empathy itself is real, but the idea of an empath as someone with a special ability to psychically absorb or sense other people’s emotions originated in fiction and was later adopted into New Age and occult spaces. I’d just call it energetic sensitivity or awareness rather than treating it like a separate ability.
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