No, you're not imagining it. It doesn't always feel good to be around some people, places or situations. So how can we protect ourselves from negative vibes that aren't our own?

But negative vibes aren't contagious ...or are they?

To be honest I used to think this was pretty much a load of crap... I mean, our thoughts and energies are our own surely? Private to each one of us, and negative vibes are not something that other people can catch...

Until that is, Covid-19 thrust itself violently upon the world. When every time I ventured from my house into a public place, I'd be entirely overwhelmed by unsettling emotion and feel an undeniable urge to ball my freaking eyes out.

Which didn't make a whole lot of sense to me, as in myself I was feeling pretty good. Lockdown here in New Zealand (a relatively short and one-time only circumstance) on the whole was, for me at least, largely a positive thing. But as these mysterious internal reactions continued unabated, bordering on the ridiculous it felt, I began to wonder if these emotions I was experiencing were even in fact my own...?

When I thought it prudent to mention it to my clinical psychologist, she agreed that it was not out of the realms of possibility that I was feeling the fearful energy of other people.

Since then, I've had the realisation of just how often I subconsciously pick up on both the positive and negative vibes of other people ...and that I always have. But because it's something that always been there, I'd just never realised this was what was going on. I suspect we all have the ability to be an "empath" in this way, but it may come more naturally to introverted and/or highly-sensitive folk much like myself.

As I explain to my 7yo son about other peoples' energy...

Sometimes when stuff is going on for people
and they’re not very happy in themselves
(whether they realise it or not)

…well, those feelings can be so freaking uncomfortable
that they don’t know what else to do
except to try and get rid of that discomfort
by trying to pass it along to you.

Hence why some folk’s actions and behaviour
can seem very selfish, weird or unkind,
and which can be extremely bloody difficult
to have to be around.

Or that just in general,
how people are feeling; their general state of vibe
can, quite unwittingly, reverberate out into the ether
and attach itself to us.

Then, for those who are more sensitive (like me, and maybe you)
for whom simply being around a lot of people
with all their different energies
can sometimes feel like quite a hard thing to do!

(It's also probably worth noting that we've likely all had turns at being both the sender and receiver at different times of such negative vibes. Being that we're human everything.)

Shielding ourselves against toxic or negative vibes

1    Find a quiet place and sit comfortably. I like to sit crosslegged on my bed or couch, but just whatever feels comfortable for you.

2    Breathe - inhale and exhale deeply and consciously. Do this repeatedly to centre yourself, Feel your breath and it's effects on your body from your toes and up through to the top of head. Return your focus to your breath in this way whenever you find yourself getting distracted.

3    When feeling relaxed and centred, visualise a shield of white or pink light surrounding your entire body and keeping you protected from all unwelcome toxic or negative vibes and stresses. Feel yourself being protected, happy and energised inside this shield (which blocks out the negative vibes but still enables you to feel everything that is positive and loving.)

4    Express thanks for this protection. Then take a last long breath in and out. Slowly open your eyes and come back to the room and being completely in your body.

Much love,

xAnthea