A while back I was invited to write for Brenda at Space2Live.net about the things that can sap our energy as HSPs and introverts without us necessarily realising. You can read the article here.

In this week’s episode I unpack some of this stuff a little bit more.  I’ve come to realise how important it is to notice the things that can stop us from being as effective as we might be.

Being highly sensitive means that you are more easily overwhelmed because you have a sensitive nervous system and process the world at a deep level. Once again I want to remove or dispel the myth or image many of us may have in our heads when we hear the term highly sensitive – it is about being emotionally weak, whimpy or quick to cry or whatever. It is about the deepness and intensity with which we encounter the world.

Elaine Aron, author of The Highly Sensitive Person says, “If you notice everything, you are naturally going to be overstimulated when things are too intense, complex, chaotic, or novel for a long timeâ€..

Knowing WHY you feel a certain way makes it a lot easier to cope with and recognise HOW you can address it. It’s amazing how much more effective you can be when you have even a slight increase of understanding about yourself and your relationship with the world.

So here are 12 potential energy suckers that we all experience, but that may be especially poignant to the highly sensitive person.

1. 
   
2. Subtleties in the Environment
   
3. Pain
   
4. Sudden Noise
   
5. Information
   
6. Being Rushed
   
7. Change
   
8. Emotional Environments
   
9. Over-Thinking
   
10. Too Much on Your Plate
    
11. Confrontation
    
12. Being Observed
    
13. Being Labelled
    

Do you identify with any of the stimulating factors on this list? Do you subject yourself to over-arousal without being consciously aware of it?

Photo Credit: A Foggy Empire by Chris Ford (via Compfight)

The post #090: The Insidious Energy Takers and Stimulation Makers [Podcast] appeared first on Sheep Dressed Like Wolves.