Lessons From An Empath and HSP

The beauty, science, and self-discovery behind being an empath and highly sensitive person

For as long as I can remember, I’ve felt everything deeply. I thought everyone did. When I so passionately expressed my feelings, thoughts, or ideas I could sense that it didn’t land the same way for everyone. I just assumed everyone felt music, didn’t just hear it. That they felt sunrises, didn’t just see them. 

Until a few years ago, I had no idea that my nervous system was simply wired differently, a trait shared by only about 15 to 20 percent of the population. This trait has a name: Highly Sensitive Person (HSP). People hear this term and assume being highly sensitive means taking things personally, but that's not what it is. It’s not about ego, it’s about input. While I'd long understood myself to be an empath (someone who absorbs and feels the emotions of others), I finally learned that the core of the issue was that my HSP nervous system creates a heightened awareness of my surroundings. It forces me to process all sensory input—sights, sounds, emotions, and subtle environmental shifts thoroughly and intensely. It’s a heightened awareness that can make life breathtakingly beautiful and sometimes utterly exhausting.

This explained why I sometimes feel joy so deep it’s as if my heart might burst, and other times I feel heartache so heavy I swear my heart might break. It’s why overstimulating environments, like the hospital where I started nursing right as COVID began, left me emotionally and physically drained. I was so disappointed that I disliked working in the hospital. Even though my intention was to gain experience and eventually work in hospice, I still wanted to excel in my role no matter where I was working. I would have been a lot easier on myself if I would have been aware that my nervous system processes the world differently. But now I understand. I was completely overstimulated.

The constant bed alarms, pump alarms, phones ringing, call lights flashing, people crying, people scared, people angry—it was relentless. I didn’t realize it then, but my nervous system was on overdrive. Knowing that about myself now changes everything. I can work in healthcare with more awareness, stronger boundaries, and better recovery habits. And I can do it without guilt.

The Gift of Feeling Deeply

It’s feeling the volume of life turned up, both the beauty and the pain. It’s reading the energy in a room before anyone speaks. It’s noticing when someone’s actions don’t match their words or tone, or when their tone softens just enough to reveal something they’re not saying.

That level of awareness can be both a blessing and a burden. You absorb so much — the joy, the sorrow, the tension. And if you don’t protect your energy, it can become overwhelming. But once you learn how to filter what’s yours and what isn’t, something shifts. You start to see your sensitivity not as a flaw, but as a form of emotional, spiritual, and intuitive intelligence. 

It’s what allows you to connect deeply, love authentically, and notice beauty others might miss. It’s also what helps you create art, healing, and meaning out of moments that might seem ordinary to others.

How Learning I Was an HSP Changed My Life

Understanding that I’m an empath and an HSP has given me permission to live differently. I live more intentionally, more gently, and more truthfully. I now have the knowledge on how to prepare and recover. Even though I’m far from perfect at putting the following strategies into practice, I’m now aware, and it has changed my life for the better. 

• I rest without guilt. I don’t apologize for needing solitude to recharge.

  
  

• I protect my peace. Not everyone gets full access to my energy anymore.

  
  

• I trust my intuition. If something feels off, I no longer second-guess it.

  
  

• I stop explaining myself. Sensitivity isn’t a flaw that needs defending.

  
  

It also gave me self-compassion. I used to feel like I had to toughen up or “get over it.” Now, I see sensitivity as a neutral trait. One that can be either a strength or a struggle, depending on how I choose to care for it.

The Science Behind Sensitivity

Science actually backs up what many of us feel. Research shows that HSPs have more active mirror neurons, the parts of the brain that help us empathize, and greater activation in areas tied to awareness and emotional processing. We’re literally wired to notice more and feel more.

Our world needs all kinds of kinds. Humanity needs all types of nervous systems. We need people who can make quick, bold decisions without overthinking, and we need people who pause, feel, and notice the subtleties others might miss. The world works best when both exist together.

For Those Who Love an Empath or HSP

If you’re not an HSP or empath yourself, this information can still be powerful. Chances are, you know someone who is—maybe a partner, child, coworker, or friend. Understanding how their nervous system works can transform your relationship with them.

When they need downtime after social events, it’s not rejection—it’s recovery.

When they get quiet in noisy places, it’s not disinterest—it’s overstimulation.

When they notice things others miss, it’s not judgment—it’s attunement.

Your empathy for their sensitivity can help them feel safe and seen, just as theirs often helps others feel understood.

The Gift and Responsibility of Sensitivity

Being an empath and an HSP comes with its own set of challenges and gifts. I used to wish I didn’t feel so deeply, but now I see it for what it is: a form of wisdom. I notice when people’s words don’t match their energy. I sense when someone’s hiding pain behind humor. I feel beauty and love and grief with a fullness that can’t be faked.

And that’s not something I need to fix. It’s something I need to honor.

Learning to Honor My Sensitivity

I wish I’d known about HSPs and empaths sooner. It would have saved me years of confusion, guilt, and burnout. But I also think I found it exactly when I was ready to understand it. If you’re reading this and some of it sounds familiar, maybe it’s the same for you. Or maybe you’re realizing someone close to you moves through the world this way.

Either way, I hope you walk away with more compassion. More compassion for yourself, or for the person in your life who feels things deeply. Because the truth is, sensitivity isn’t a weakness to outgrow, it’s a strength to understand.

This awareness hasn’t made life quieter; it’s made it clearer. I no longer try to feel less. I simply choose to feel wisely. I protect my peace, trust my intuition, and let my sensitivity work for me instead of against me. In that clarity, I’ve found peace, purpose, and a deep appreciation for the way I’m wired to feel the world.