Being able to tap into someone's emotions and get affected by them can either make you a great friend or destroy you as a person. This is common with empaths.
Understanding how to maintain a healthy mental state as an empath will help you have healthy relationships with others and with yourself. These guidelines will help you in setting boundaries that will protect your mental well-being.
Know who you are as an empath
When dealing with people as an empath, you tap into different energies and may end up losing sight of who you are. Finding out who you are as a person and how you react to different triggers will help you avoid this. In doing so, you know how to deal with yourself better. This translates to being able to deal with people better.
Put yourself first
This will sound foreign, especially since you put everyone else before yourself. Before getting involved in any issues that come your way, ask yourself if you are mentally able to handle them and if you are in the right mindset to help. This way, you take care of your mental state before you get emotional burnout. It may sound selfish, but everyone else is looking out for themselves and you need to look out for yourself too.
Know you are not responsible for people's actions
Thinking you are responsible for other people's actions may get to you. There is only so much you can do to help out with people around you. At the end of the day, you need to realize that everyone is in charge of their actions and there is nothing you can do about it. Avoid blaming yourself each time something bad happens in someone's life.
Take the time to recharge
You will get burnout if you spend all your time listening to people's issues. Have a little time for yourself each day to take walks or just sit in silence so you can recharge. This will help you put your emotions right, so you do not get overwhelmed.
Know where to draw the line
The one thing most empaths have an issue with is knowing where to draw the line when it comes to being involved with someone. It often ends up with them overexerting themselves in a relationship or when helping someone out. You end up emotionally drained, which translates to issues like depression if you keep doing this.
To help with this, have clear guidelines on how far you can go when it comes to investing your emotions. This can be hard at first, but once you do this for a while, you will be in a position to say no when you feel like you are getting too involved in a situation.
While you may want to keep helping everyone get themselves together, it is essential that you know you cannot pour from an empty cup. Start by taking care of yourself. If you are in the right sense of mind you can be in a position to ensure everyone around you is too.
