Okay, people, it’s time to get serious about empathy. This can be commonly confused with sympathy. However, sympathy is when you share another person’s feelings, and you do your best to support them. However, empathy is when you go deeper in trying to have an understanding of what another person is feeling as if you were in their shoes. I truly believe that if we all were to be more empathetic with one another, rather than having an “us-versus-them” mentality, society would be just a little bit better. There’s an article that was published by Total Health magazine that has inspired me to address my thoughts on this subject. I think it is important to know, when you experience empathy, it doesn’t always mean putting your own needs aside. Also, as much we would like to avoid it, we may need to deal with deep and painful feelings. The first step to all of this is communication!
One thing that stuck with me from my communications class I took freshman year, was that nowadays people tend to listen to respond, rather than listen to understand. This concept ties into my empathy theme because you WILL NOT know why someone is the way they are based solely on the surface level. The human mind is super complex! It’s important to listen and pay close attention to the “why?” behind their words. You may not like it or agree with it, but at least you will no longer be angry with them.
It has been assumed that when you show empathy towards someone, you are obligated to put aside your own needs to get an understanding. This is not the case at all! In reality, when you allow yourself to open up to others more, you develop a connection with them, meaning no one cares about anyone less. In fact, there’s just more love to go around. As these connections begin to grow, that warm and fuzzy feeling will grow in your heart, making you feel a little less lonely.
Lastly, there could be some pain you have to endure while experiencing empathy. You know how sometimes when you are watching a very sad scene in a movie, it makes you want to cry? Well, that is essentially empathy, my beautifuls! Sadly, that negative feeling can hit deep but fear not. It’s actually better to face these emotions head-on. After all, it’s where most of life’s lessons come from. I’m not saying you should bare the world’s problems on your shoulders because that isn’t meant for you to carry. Essentially, this is to gain insight on a world view that isn’t your own, bringing us back to the golden rule we were taught since grade school: treat others the way you would want to be treated.
The world out there is pretty rough, but this does not mean it can’t get better! Empathy can be a very useful tool to start a change in society. Everyone being more compassionate means issues would drastically disappear. It would bring us closer together making people feel more loved. I know it seems like a fantasy, but everything big once started out as small. It is best to remember that we are all trying our best out here. We all have the power to be great, but only if we set aside the small differences and help each other out.
Source:https://totalhealthmagazine.com/Lifestyle/Empathy-The-Bridge-to-Understanding.html