Four Gifts That Deserve A Particularly Sensitive Person
When we see ourselves as part of a minority against a large majority, our first reaction is usually to feel a little more disadvantaged and fearful. Why do I experience things differently? Why do I suffer more than others? Why do I find solace in my own loneliness? Why do I notice and feel things that others tend to ignore?
But being in one-fifth of the population who identify as a highly sensitive person (HSP) is not a real disadvantage, nor does it compartmentalize you into “differentness”. It is quite possible that throughout your life, and especially in your childhood, you were well aware of this emotional distance from the rest of the world and how you might sometimes have felt as if you were living in some kind of bubble of loneliness and alienation.
We get to thank Elaine N. Aron, who in the early 90s explored the introverted personality type deeper than the surface, and described in detail the common and unifying traits of highly sensitive people — thoughtfulness, empathy, and at the same time emotional sensitivity and responsiveness.
If you can identify with these traits that Dr. Aron left us in the form of his book “The Sensitive Person,” then it is also important for you to understand that special sensitivity is not a reason to feel alienated or different. On the contrary, you should feel yourself just as lucky to be one of those who possess the following four gifts and abilities.
1. Deep understanding of emotions
Even at a very young age, a particularly sensitive child perceives a combination of pain, contradiction and fascinating strangeness from different aspects of his daily life . Their eyes capture and capture details that not even adults will ignore.
The grimaces of their teachers ’frustration, the worried look on their mother’s face – they are able to distinguish things that other children can’t see and this in turn teaches them from a young age that life is sometimes difficult and contradictory. They see the world through the eyes of a child, as ones that open too early to the world of emotions, without an understanding of what dominates them, what makes them throb, or what sharpens the experiences of adult suffering.
Sensitivity is like a light that shines brightly, but at the same time makes us more vulnerable to the behavior of others, such as white lies, disappointments, irony… You are always so stuck in everything! they often say to you, You are so sensitive! commented by others.
And that’s how it is, but you are who you are. Your gift requires a high sense of responsibility, your deep knowledge of feelings also requires that you know how to protect your own. That you really know how to take care of yourself.
2. Appreciating loneliness
Particularly sensitive people get a kind of enjoyment of time spent alone. They are looking for corners where they can complete their homework or practice their hobby. They are creative people who enjoy music, reading and other artistic pursuits. And while this doesn’t always mean they enjoy less of the company of others, they find the most satisfied solitude.
Highly emotionally sensitive people are not afraid of loneliness. These are the moments when they can, on the most intimate level, connect with themselves, their own thoughts, free from attachments, addictions, and staring at others.
3. Living from the heart
A particularly sensitive person is often prone to suffer emotionally. They tend to be depressed, experience sadness, feel vulnerable to external stimuli, and use other people. However, there is something outsiders don’t know: highly emotional people also experience feelings of loving and being loved more strongly than others.
And we’re not just talking about emotional relationships right now. Friendship, daily care, or simple doing like seeing and understanding beauty in a painting, landscape, or melody — these experiences corrode and take root in the hearts and minds of particularly sensitive people.
4. Internal growth
There is no cure for hypersensitivity. You come into this world with it, this specialty, this gift that can be seen even in a small child. It brings with it questions, intuition, perfectionist tendencies, high pain tolerance, irritation from bright lights or strong odors, emotional sensitivity …
It is not easy to live with this gift. But as long as we recognize it purely what it is in itself and what it adds to our lives, there will eventually be a moment when we can learn to live with many of these insignificances. You just have to make sure you don’t allow yourself to be filled with negative emotions .
You also need to learn that others are marching at their own pace, that their threshold on an emotional level is not the same as yours. They don’t experience some things with the same intensity as you, but that doesn’t mean they love you any less, for example. Respect them, understand them. Understand yourself.
