After the November 13th terrorist attack on Paris, I was on empathic overload. I woke up the next morning feeling nervous, nauseous and out of sorts. I knew that it was my empathic ability tapping into the collective consciousness of the tragedy. I was feeling everything. I was obviously bombarded with Facebook postings, news feeds,etc. from social media. It became overwhelming. I made the decision to stay off the internet for a few days. I unplugged and went to Wukoki, an ancient Anasazi ruin. I sat there on top of this ancient site, the warm sun beating on me, the wind blowing—and I meditated. And after that, my energy was at a high vibration that I can only explain as deeply spiritual. I felt surrounded by the ancients; their wisdom and knowledge flooding me. I decided then, that I would make it a habit of NOT going on the internet. I knew, inevitably, there would be posts and images of the tragedy in Paris and ultimately the Muslim bashing that would occur afterward. It was time I completely unplugged.
And there is a very good reason why it’s not best to overwhelm yourself with news, especially if you are an empath. It WILL affect your energy in a negative manner. Constantly absorbing “bad news” which is what most news is, will subconsciously create a negative vibration. And as an empath, having yourself constantly “open” is a very bad thing. You will find yourself exhausted, drained and depressed.
Being unplugged has been one of the greatest choices I have made. It’s not that I don’t go online at all; I just limit my “intake” to 15 minutes a day. The heartbreak that occurred in Paris made me realize how stupid social media is. When Facebook began to add the “share memories” posts—and I realized all the insignificant things I had been posting: what I was drinking, where I was going, what I was doing—that really, in the bigger picture, it’s all trivial. And when I started reading other peoples posts, it was the same trivial things.
I decided at that moment that I needed to spend more time doing good things: meditation, journaling and most of all, learning gratitude. As a Reiki practitioner, one of the 5 codes is “just for today be grateful.” Living the reiki principals is easier said than done, but I incorporate them as best as possible into my daily life—and I have been neglecting the gratitude principal. So I started to keep track of my thoughts—and whenever I started to have a negative thought – I would remind myself what I was grateful for. If I felt like I had no money, then I would remind myself that I was grateful that I had a job. If I was feeling sick, I would remind myself that I am grateful that I am healthy. I started living with an “attitude of gratitude.”
In the grand scheme of things, the stuff that we *think* is important is trivial and the things we worry about are inconsequential. Life is about living fully-and encompassing and appreciating all we have; not seeping in the mundane world of the internet and social media.
