I’m what you would call a highly sensitive person. I cry at the drop of a hat and I can’t even watch movies that focus on animals “in case they get upset at some point.” Don’t even get me started if the animal dies; I’ll go into a meltdown for about a week. Maybe that’s more about me being a Crazy Person than sensitive.
When it comes to being sensitive, it isn’t all bad. There are even some significant benefits. You have to take the bad with the good, and either way it becomes obvious that there are a lot of things that highly sensitive people do differently.
1. They Feel More Deeply
This is simple and self-explanatory. They simply feel things more deeply than some other people.
2. They Cry Easier
The downside to the above is that they’re also more likely to cry easily.
3. They React With Their Emotions
Someone who feels deeply and cries easily is naturally also more likely to think with their emotions. Even those who are incredibly capable of utilising logic and reasoning may have an initial instinct to go with how they feel.
4. It Can Take Longer For Them to Make Decisions
Those who are acutely aware of the way they make choices may take longer to eventually come to a decision. This is most likely due to the above; they’re weighing up their emotions with logic.
5. They Can Get Upset Over a Poor or Wrong Decisions
Because highly sensitive people tend to be intuitive (more on that later), they can get incredibly upset if they make a bad decision or poor choice. As people who feel things more deeply, this is hardly surprising.
6. They Are More Prone to Anxiety and Depression
One of the biggest downsides to being highly sensitive is the higher likelihood of having a predisposition for anxiety and depression. Although these can also be hereditary, feeling things deeper and stronger than others means that these illnesses are all the more likely to occur. If you feel like you’re suffering from either, make sure you talk to someone and seek professional advice.
7. They Can Be More Detail Orientated
Highly sensitive people are generally quite aware of their surroundings and thus notice fine details.
8. They’re People Magnets
People tend to be drawn to those who are sensitive, as they tend to have a kind of draw power, whether they wish to or not.
9. They’re Listening Magnets
People also tend to want to talk to highly sensitive people about their problems. Perhaps its the aforementioned intuition or the fact that they are so in tune with how people feel.
10. They’re Advice Dispensary Magnets
Listening tends to go hand in hand with advice. Again, highly sensitive people are so in tune with others, observant and empathetic that they’re the perfect people to offer life advice.
11. Animals are Drawn to Them
Animals also seems to be drawn to sensitive people. They can sense love and empathy and are thus drawn to the people who care deeply about all creatures; they will love and look after them better than anyone else.
12. They’re More Intuitive
As previously mentioned, highly sensitive people seem to have a predisposition for intuitiveness. Particularly if they’re aware of it; they can sense when something is awry with someone and can see problems coming in relationships before anyone else can. The slightest look or seemingly unimportant comment can enable them to predict the outcome of a situation.
13. They Can Read People
Being more intuitive means that highly sensitive people can also read people far easier than most. This means that it’s difficult to lie to them because they’ll see right through it. This skill can also be quite handy during poker.
14. They Can Sense and Feel the Pain of Others
Because of their intuitiveness, empathy and attention to details, they can also feel the pain of others. Not literally of course, but they care deeply when someone (especially if they’re close to them) is hurt or upset. If a sensitive person ever says “I know how you feel”, they probably truly do.
15. They Love Passionately
Highly sensitive people will love with every fiber of their beings. Whether it’s familial or friend related emotions, they will love those closest to them for life. When it comes to romance, they will love profoundly. particularly when it comes to their chosen life partner. The downside to this is that they take loss particularly hard.
16. They Can Also Hate Passionately
It isn’t all sweet-smelling roses though. Although it’s an ugly word, highly sensitive people also have the ability to hate, or at least dislike passionately, too. If you hurt, offend or betray one of these people they will feel it deeply and are not likely to forget, even if they do eventually forgive.
17. The Problems in the World Profoundly Affect Them
Highly sensitive people will be more likely to take note of the problems in the world and take them to heart. They will truly worry and care about world issues and may even go so far as to get involved in organisations or protests in order to help.
18. They’re More Spiritual
This doesn’t necessarily mean that sensitive people are likely to be more religious; quite the contrary. Instead of following mainstream religions, highly sensitive people tend to be spiritual in terms of their relationship with themselves, those around them and the world. It’s more this reason that these kinds of sensitive people will lean more towards Buddhism or Wicca if they choose to follow a particular religion.
19. They’re in Tune With Their Bodies
Sensitive people tend to listen to their bodies more and are aware if something is wrong or off balance. It’s for this reason that many sensitive people turn towards spiritual exercises such as yoga and tai chi as they get older; these pursuits teach them how to be even more in tune with their bodies, as well as how to keep them fit and healthy. These kinds of sensitive people are also more likely to abide by a ‘clean eating’ lifestyle.
Featured photo credit: Sensitive via allthingshealing.com
