Authentic Empath Versus Highly Sensitive: 13 Differences

In this read, we are going to discuss two different personality traits: an authentic empathy and a highly sensitive person. Both of these qualities have a few things common, but the differences are greater and more interesting. We will discuss them also. First, let’s have a brief look at an authentic empath and a highly sensitive being. 

Authentic empaths have a rare gift and that is they are experts in understanding human psychology. The reason being, they have a very sharp intuition and due to that, they can easily sense and then describe different events even before they take place. 

A highly sensitive person generally experiences severe mental, physical, and emotional responses to any sort of provocation. When compared with other people, a highly sensitive being can get involved with any matter in a very particular manner and that can result in a physical or emotional uproar. 

Here, I will discuss 3 most fascinating overlapping characteristics of an Authentic Empath and a Highly Sensitive Being. Let’s have a look! 

The foremost thing common between an Authentic Empath and a Highly Sensitive Being is that most of them are introverts. Authentic Empaths can be both: an introvert or an extrovert, but a major chunk of them consists of introverts. 

In most cases, authentic empaths are also highly sensitive people. That is why they can detect the fore coming events. Being highly sensitive can be a blessing or even a curse, as it can make you experience a lot of uncomfortable things. So both of these types go through a lot of emotional doling out. 

Without any doubt, authentic empaths and highly sensitive people are careful observers and extremely intelligent. They possess the ability of sensing stuff that other people might easily ignore. That reflects their extraordinary emotional capabilities of learning, feeling, and thinking.  

Both of these traits include people, who spend more time in observing their surroundings. They do not like socializing much and avoid petty situations that can drain them in any manner. Above all, they have sheer respect for other people, as they notice or understand their emotional conditions. 

We can say that the basic instincts are the same, but the process of spotting and inferring different energies and emotional thoughts is quite dissimilar. 

Now, let’s have a look at the 13 Difference between An Authentic Empath and a Highly Sensitive Being - will discuss each peculiarity in one point. They certainly make themselves stand out from each other, through some remarkable dissimilarities and that establishes their own respective identity. 

The meaning of authentic empath has changed tremendously during the past few years. In the beginning, an empath was described as a person having paranormal abilities to judge the emotional and mental state of other people. Some people even link empaths with some sort of spiritual beings, but that is not the case. It has become a very common word now that is mostly used to describe those people, who can process emotions easily. 

Commonly highly sensitive people are often misunderstood. You must have noticed around you that the word ‘sensitive’ is being used abundantly in an insensitive manner as if it describes something really bad. Calling someone a sensitive being in that manner makes them feel guilty about their emotions. In reality, highly sensitive people can process a handsome amount of observation about the events happening around them. It has nothing to do with sensitive people being labeled as easily offended folk. They are avid observers. 

Empaths experience the emotions of others right beside them and they might even reject this fact that they notice emotions easily. In reality, they are trying to absorb the emotions of the other person and their own – at the same time.

While highly sensitive people think deep and notice things that others might ignore. This information can overstimulate the brain activity especially during a gathering of people. Emotional dimensions attached to the processing ability of a highly sensitive person are somewhat different from the empaths, as the level of sensitivity is quite high with them. 

When dealing with emotions, stressful ones can even lead to fatigue, depression, or panic attacks. In the same manner, physical symptoms can also arise that are difficult to address through a traditional medical diagnosis. This can be hard because empaths do not know how to control these emotions and it takes a lot of practice to do so. Have you ever noticed an empath going all anxious from a perfectly happy state? That is because the emotional energy of others affects them hard.

Also, highly sensitive people can easily feel overwhelmed under noisy, fast, and crowded situations. But it has been found that sensitive people inherit these qualities from the genes of their parents. Because they also have the same unique brain activity, as of their parents. This is nothing abnormal it is okay! 

The good thing is that empaths can easily absorb feelings and that is because they can understand others. They soon make a perfect connection with other people and hence turn out to be an extremely good friend or a partner.

While highly sensitive people face some difficulty in processing the information that they comprehend. They might avoid people, who do not resonate well or might easily break connections. Their instinct of noticing things is very sharp and that prevents them from entering or being a part of any negative source of energy. 

Empaths have this ability to absorb energy from their surroundings. This means that they can also process it easily without reacting in an obvious manner. For them, it is something natural and easy to understand.

On the other hand, highly sensitive people lack this ability to absorb energy, efficiently, from their surroundings. They create a barrier to protect their emotional energy from being effected. A highly sensitive person will at once leave a place, which is not giving good vibes. And in extreme cases cut the connection from those people, who drain them emotionally or physically. 

An empath can easily transit from one emotional state to another. It is very easy for them to adapt according to the available situation. Though it takes time, even for empaths, to understand and conduct this swift transition of emotions.

While a highly sensitive person will take a lot of time to relax after spending time with others. It is emotionally overwhelming for them to be surrounded by a mix of other energies. And the reason for that is: sensitive people have a slow mechanism of transition of emotions and that can be tiring.

Some say that authentic empaths have a spiritual side linked with their personality, which helps them with adjudging events before they develop. While on the other hand, highly sensitive people do not have this ability and are good emotional responders. 

It is interesting to state here that a highly sensitive person can act as an empath too, as there are certain common features between both personalities and they have been discussed in the beginning. But the question is that if a highly sensitive person can become an authentic empath or not? 

To be honest it is possible and the major reason for that is a highly sensitive person has no major rift over the empathic spectrum.  Both of them are quite close to each other due to factors of empathy and sensitivity and hence the chances of this transition are possible. 

It might take some time to understand emotions and how to absorb them and properly project them. The brain does all the work and for that, you need a lot of practice on how to stay composed. 

I hope that you found this read interesting and equally informative. I was intrigued while researching and drafting content for this topic. It has helped me in understanding myself in a better manner. I am amazed to observe the amount of vastness that we humans experience due to our emotional instincts. 

Authentic empath Versus Highly Sensitive: 13 Differences will help you out too, to realize your potential and make sure that you can train your emotions in the right manner. Stay focused and you will know how to deal with negative emotions and overcome them with your positivity. Authentic empath all the way!