Anyone who is deeply sensitive knows that it can be a burden at times. Personally speaking, I have a lot of difficulty with letting go of negative feelings, thoughts and experiences. Whenever I feel deeply wounded, it is like a blow to my heart. My heart literally begins to hurt, and depending on the severity of the situation, the pain does not let up for days. In those moments, I truly believe that I will never be okay again and do not how I will go on. Slowly, but surely, the pain does begin to subside; however, it never completely dissipates.

For a long time, I avoided getting too close to people because of the inevitability of getting hurt and the possibility of being abandoned or rejected. I know rejection and abandonment are part of the human experience, but those are probably the two most difficult feelings for me to experience. Lately, I have been making a conscious effort to let people in a bit more because I have learned that in trying to avoid rejection and abandonment, I will end up being alone.

While I can continue to discuss all the burdens of being a sensitive person, I will keep it to a minimum because there is bright side to it as well.

Occasionally, when I do meet another person who is as sensitive as I am, the chemistry between the two of us is unbelievable. It feels amazing to know that there are other people out there in the world who truly understand the way I feel.

Another upside to being highly sensitive is that it is easy to have compassion for others. I will admit that I am not the best at expressing how deeply I care for others, but I care to the point that I actually take on the feelings of those I care about. Though this quality can be exhausting at times, it allows me to have an incredible amount of empathy for others. I like to think that my ability to empathize is one of my greatest assets.

The best part by far is that I experience positive emotions deeply as well. When I am genuinely happy, a feeling of euphoria washes over me and it is one of the most extraordinary feelings in the world.