It’s very easy for empaths to get caught up in situations where you’re giving, giving, giving all your energy away- to all the people, all the things, all the obligations- and then there’s none left for you. No more juice. Dead battery.
This is when exhaustion hits and overwhelm becomes too overwhelming, and your body literally halts you from doing anything else for anyone else.
You end up a blob on the couch or hiding under your covers or crying on the bathroom floor because you just can’t take it anymore!
When that scenario goes on for too long, too many days in a row, it can become empathic fatigue, adrenal fatigue, or chronic fatigue.
This is also when depression eeks its way in, begging you to please just not care about anything at all for a while so you can get some rest.
And then you can become forlorn and stuck, hidden within yourself and feeling miserable. Not good.
If you can recognize yourself in this scenario, know that you have the power to break this cycle and reclaim your energy! Here are 3 ways how to do just that.
1: Shore up your boundaries
Yes, you can be like a walking sponge, soaking up the energy all around you, and that’s when you become heavy and weighed down, feeling easily fatigued.
Just because you have spongy tendencies though, doesn’t mean you have to be privy to soaking up all the emotions around you.
You can shield and protect yourself, energetically, by imagining an egg-shaped shell of light around your entire body. It can be translucent and iridescent like a bubble, or have a certain color to it- whatever comes to your mind is perfect, just roll with it.
Close your eyes and envision this protective light around your entire aura, and set an intention for it to help you discern what energy to take in from the outside world, and what energy to shield away.
There are also physical world action steps to take in creating clearer boundaries with the people in your life, such as speaking up more often, saying no when you mean no, not offering to help so many people all the time, and creating new behaviors that align with the strong and centered person you seek to be, unaffected by anyone else’s “stuff”.
You’re also going to have to take an honest look at the relationships in your life and consider which ones are constantly draining on your energy, and create new clarity around how much time you’re willing and able to spend focusing on them. Some relationships will need to be put in the backseat for a while, some may need to be released completely.
Trust yourself and allow yourself to take the necessary steps to change your relationship patterns and protect yourself.
2: Learn to receive as much as you give
Are you the type who walks around giving out compliments and smiles and kind gestures and hellos and helping hands, only to feel like you don’t get anything back from the people in your life? Cue fatigue, yet again.
First off, you can’t give anything with the expectation of getting something back for it, but we know that empathic types are often compelled to keep giving and giving to others because they can truly feel their pain or need for support and want to be of help.
But helping others at the detriment or sacrifice of yourself does not a holy martyr make, it makes you tired, worn out, and exhausted, and it’s time to become more conscious of it and start giving back to yourself!
If you feel compelled to help someone, first ask yourself what you need in order to be your most vibrant and fulfilled self so that you can truly be there to support someone else, rather than showing up with a half-fueled tank.
Ask your body what it needs, ask your heart what it needs, ask your mind and your higher-self and your child-self what they need, and start to fulfill your own needs on a deeper level.
This will also train you in learning to receive from others. Practice the experience of receiving! Practice the feeling of wanting something and then giving it to yourself, of needing support and then asking for it! These simple things can be terribly hard for some empaths, we know. But you can’t give endlessly without suffering the exhausting, depressing consequences.
So, if you’re in a state of depletion and fatigue, ask yourself, “what do I need?” and allow yourself to receive it.
3: Release your excess emotions
You can’t absorb all that energy from everyone else around you and then just carry it on your body like a backpack filled with rocks. No wonder you’re tired all the time!
It’s essential as an empath to create a daily habit around releasing energy and emotions that don’t belong to you, that are too heavy to hold, that are unwanted!
There are many different ways to purge and express your emotional energy in a heathy way that releases its effects from your psyche and spirit. So pick your favorite, pick what works at the moment, and just do it! No holding on anymore to all the feelings!
Check out our 3 Emotional Clearing Practices for Empaths article for a great place to start moving the excess energy out. And here are some more ideas for you:
- Shake your body
- Stomp your feet
- Go for a ride in the car and yell and scream
- Sing as emotionally as you can to your favorite songs
- Play an instrument, loudly
- Stand in the shower and cry
- Scrub something clean like crazy
- Run around the block
- Kick the air
- Jump up and down
- Punch a pillow
- Rip up some junk mail
- Write out everything you’re feeling and burn it
There are a million ways to release energy! The point is not to keep all the emotions you’re carrying pent up, because that’s when they become a burdensome weight that can pull you into serious health issues- not just fatigue, but chronic illness, inflammation, digestive issues and pain.
Physical ailments can manifest from the toxic, negative emotions we hold inside our bodies, so it’s extremely important to let yourself express your true feelings in a safe way that doesn’t hurt anyone else (or yourself!)
With these 3 practices in place in your life, you’ll start to reap the benefits of more balance, more confidence, and more energy! And just imagine how many more people you’ll be able to affect in a positive way when your cup is full, your boundaries are clear and you’re shining brightly!