Naturally, I am one who doesn't enjoy seeing people in pain and would much rather be in pain than the other person. Now, hear me out, but I can take away people's pain and reflect it on myself, as long as it scales from minor pain to moderate pain on my pain scale. I have a pretty high pain tolerance.
The first time I ever remember experiencing this was my senior year of high school (I graduated May 2018, so my discovery of this trait is fairly recent). There was a girl who was extremely afraid of needles. We were doing a student blood drive and she wanted to donate; however, when it was her turn she started panicking. I went to calm her and held onto her arm so she could calm down and wouldn't freak out as much. When the phlebotomist began sticking the needle into her arm the girl spoke up: "Wow, I don't feel anything at all. I was worried over nothing!" Yet, I felt it. I could feel the needle being pushed under the skin. I could feel the needle digging around. I could feel it all. It didn't hurt as I often donate blood and they just don't hurt nor frighten me.
The second time I experienced this, my mother was complaining of a small headache. As a joke, I grabbed her shoulders and shook them, acting as if she were going to die, but several minutes of this joke and she said her headache vanished. When I let go, I was hit with the subtle pain of a headache. It wasn't nothing too painful.
The third time this happened, I was working as a Certified Nursing Assistant at a nursing home. I was waking a resident from their sleep and went to help them out of bed when I had a feeling they were in pain. They said they were and noted that their shoulder was pretty sore. I apologized for their pain as I continued to hold onto them. As I transferred them to their wheelchair, my shoulder began to ache, but nothing that really bothered me. I asked if their pain had left and they said the shoulder pain had stopped a few moments ago. Most of the pain my residents felt at this nursing home, I was able to feel and end.
Recently, my friend was complaining of a Charlie Horse, so I decided to put my "skill" to the test. I wrapped my arm around theirs and waited several minutes. Their pain eventually left, but I never felt any of it. I assumed this was due to the pain factor, as a Charlie Horse hurts even me. A few hours had passed and I was getting ready to leave. My friend told me they must have been sitting wrong because their neck was sore. We did our special handshake as dorky friends do, and quicker than ever before, I felt the soreness in my neck. My friend, who I asked about their neck pain, said, "Now that you mention it, it suddenly vanished. Must've been a little crick or something."
I did some minor research and found two answers to my special "skill" - Healer and Empath. I'm currently leaning more towards identifying as a Healer, as it seems to be more physically related than an Empath, but I've always been able to sense how others are feeling, much like in the case of the frightened blood donor and the elderly resident. Am I a Healer or an Empath? Can their be people who are both, and if so, could I be one?
Loading comments....
