I hear a lot of people in my clinic feel that they are too empathetic. They can feel the other person’s discomfort or pain and just want it to go away. This is the result of a high level of …
Category: Wellness
How to Develop Empathy
Empathy is a skill we learn in childhood. It comes from having attuned parents who meet our needs. With attuned parents, it is safe to feel what they are feeling. We learn that when we express understanding of our parent’s …
Understanding Empathy
Empathy is the ability to understand how others are feeling and show compassion towards them. It is the ability to imagine what someone else’s life is like, to stand in their shoes and feel what they feel, from their point …
How We Learn Empathy
If we grew up with unsafe and unattuned caregivers, it is a NORMAL adaptation to be reticent to ‘stand in someone else’s shoes’ and allow yourself to feel empathy. Imagine having a mother who is an alcoholic. Most of the …
Significance of Emotional Intelligence (EQ)
IQ counts for a lot, but research shows that people with a high IQ are NOT the most fulfilled or the most successful. Maybe you know people who are really smart, but struggle socially and in intimate relationships? IQ will …
How to Interact with Closed-Minded People
I don’t really like the term ‘closed-minded people’ because I think some of the people we label as ‘closed-minded’ just have a different point of view to us.
Considering the Perspective of Others
When we take on the perspective of someone else, a whole network of brain regions becomes activated. The dorsomedial and dorsolateral prefrontal cortices, the temporoparietal junction and the precuneus. These areas are responsible for memory, attention, social cognition, integration and …
Keeping an Open Mind
Being open-minded is generally thought of as a necessary quality to think critically. It helps us to see all the factors that might be affecting a situation. It is one of the factors that protect against dogmatism. Being open-minded can …
Healing Shame through Journalling
When we experience shame, our gut reaction is usually to run as fast as we can in the other direction. In the moment, this might be the safest thing to do, but after the moment has passed it can be …
Where Does Shame Hide?
It is easy to read posts about shame and think, “Oh, I don’t feel any shame. That’s not in my life”. If that is the case, you are an incredibly rare individual. For most people, shame is part of life. …