9 Simple Daily Practices Every Empath Will Benefit From

An empath is a person with the ability to apprehend the emotional and mental state of another individual.

To put it simply, an empath is the opposite of a narcissist.

Empaths are not just highly-sensitive but rather on a more extreme end of the emotional spectrum.

Being an empath certainly has its benefits, including a deeper connection with other people and greater creativity, compassion, and intuition.

However, living in this state of high sensitivity comes with its challenges, like:

• absorbing negativity and stress from others;
• becoming easily exhausted, over-stimulated, or overwhelmed.

When an empath is grounded, he has a stronger sense of self and can recognize that the emotion is not his and then let it go.

But, when he is not grounded, he can become a psychic sponge absorbing the energy and emotions which can pollute his whole being.

Here Is A List Of 9 Simple Daily Practices Every Empath Will Benefit From:

#1 Yoga

Maintaining a regular yoga practice can:

• sharpen concentration;
• center attention;
• relax the mind;
• relieve chronic stress patterns;
• increase body awareness;
• create mental clarity and calmness.

Also, practicing yoga moves you from the sympathetic nervous system to the parasympathetic nervous system, or from fight-or-flight to rest-and-digest. You usually enter a more relaxed state since you have less anxiety.

Since empaths are characterized by feeling too much for other people, the daily practice of yoga can bring empaths back into their own reality and encourage them to focus on themselves in order to live in the present moment.

#2 Pranayama

Pranayama represents regulation of the breath through certain exercises and techniques. Basically, pranayamas are yogic breathing exercises that have the capacity to quickly increase your energy, improve your mental clarity, and release stress.

Other benefits include:

• these exercises act as a massage for your internal organs helping to get things moving;
• they provide stimulation for the metabolism;
• they increase overall oxygen intake;
• they clear the lungs of carbon dioxide.

For an empath, breathing exercises also help lessen the impact of negative energy and emotions picked up from others.

#3 Spend Time In Nature

Scientists have found that spending time in nature improves memory, attention, and cognitive functioning. The study’s authors write:

“Nature, which is filled with intriguing stimuli, modestly grabs attention in a bottom-up fashion, allowing top-down directed-attention abilities a chance to replenish.”

Regularly spending time in nature is uplifting for all people, however, for an empath, it activates the removal of impurities from the energy field and quietens a stressed mind.

#4 Avoid Alcohol

Empaths are more prone to addictive behaviors since fundamentally the addiction is to dopamine, a chemical produced by your brain which plays a starring role in motivating behavior.

In addition, alcohol is classified as a depressant. Most people drink alcohol for the stimulant effect, but if a person consumes more than the body can handle, she then experiences alcohol’s depressant effect.

A depressant can negatively affect your feelings, thoughts, and actions. To sum up, alcohol is a big no for empaths.

#5 Eat A Healthy Diet

An unhealthy diet can disrupt your sleep, take a toll on your mood and brain, weaken your immune system, and sap your energy. On the other hand, switching to a wholesome diet, can improve your sleep and mood, give you more energy, and help you to feel your best.

In addition, consuming animal products makes an empath suffer energetically as he becomes responsible for the suffering and pain which happened to the animals he consumes.

Foods that boost mood and have a high vibration:

• blueberries;
• blackberries;
• red kidney beans;
• lentils;
• oranges;
• chia seeds;
• walnuts;
• cashews;
• red cabbage;
• apples;
• mangoes;
• papayas;
• pineapples;
• strawberries;
• bananas;
• almonds;
• chickpeas;
• pears;
• plums;
• radishes;
• spinach;
• kale;
• broccoli;
• Brussel’s sprouts;
• carrots;
• sunflower seeds;
• quinoa;
• cauliflower.

Foods that adversely affect mood and have a low vibration:

• foods that have trans fats or anything with “partially hydrogenated” oil;
• fried fish;
• hamburgers;
• fried chicken;
• cheeseburgers;
• burritos;
• margarine;
• hot dogs;
• coffee;
• beer;
• cakes;
• wine;
• potato chips;
• French fries.

#6 Meditate

Meditating isn’t just for spiritual people – studies have shown that a daily practice of meditation increases daily experiences of positive emotions. This, in turn, decreases depressive symptoms and increases general life satisfaction.

A significant reason why meditation helps so much with mental health is that it forces the practitioner to stay present at the moment, release negative thoughts, and control her or his breathing. This lowers stress and anxiety, that makes people much happier.

Meditation is extremely beneficial for empaths since they absorb other people’s energy that can lead to feelings of anxiety, depression, fatigue or just feeling apathetic.

Getting started with regular meditation is very easy; there are plenty of meditation apps you can download to your smartphone or other digital devices that will guide you.

#7 Get Enough Sleep

Restful sleep is foundational to most aspects of health, and unsurprisingly, getting enough of it can make you think positively. For instance, a study of 100 university students has established that shorter sleep and delayed ability to get to sleep are strongly associated with repetitive negative thoughts.

Furthermore, restful sleep is necessary for empaths to decrease their sense of being overstimulated by life due to the fact that getting enough sleep sets you up for being in a better mood the next day.

Tip – keep it cool for a good night’s sleep. The optimal temperature for sleep is between 60˚ and 67˚ Fahrenheit.

#8 Surround Yourself With Like-Minded People

Happy and healthy people never go at it alone. Whether a group or a blatantly honest best friend, they have a support system that defines their “why” and keeps them on track.

Research has demonstrated that you become the people you hang out with and that your friends can define whether you are happy or not so happy.

#9 Drink Plenty Of Water

Are you drinking enough water daily? The health benefits of drinking water are endless. You need water not only for your physical health but for your mental health as well. Actually, several studies established that drinking lots of water can alter your emotions and improve your mood.

There is no official set amount of water that is best daily. Level of physical activity, climate, age, and general health are important factors.

A general rule of thumb is 8 to 10 eight-ounce glasses of water, or about 2 liters, a day. More on hot days, and increased in measure with greater physical exercise.

Image credit – Shutterstock

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References

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/11040898_Food_and_emotion
https://etd.ohiolink.edu/!etd.send_file?accession=osu1408917206&disposition=inline