“I am deeply moved by things. I’d hate to miss the intense joy of that.”
― Elaine N. Aron, The Highly Sensitive Person: How to Thrive When the World Overwhelms You
While labels are not always my favourite, the Highly Sensitive Person (HSP) is a winner, winner, chicken dinner in my experience not only for my own life, but also for many of my clients in my coaching and spiritual companioning business.
Living life as an HSP is so entwined with our daily experience that we can stumble upon the term and materials with great relief and glee only to forget all about the awareness and strategies when we have turned our attention elsewhere a little while downstream. It is difficult to travel well with such a full and rich backpack after all. It is for this reason I believe that many of us who are HSP’s find it helpful to move through the world with a coach, spiritual companion, counsellor and/or other helping professional.
A good relationship with a helping professional can help us sort through the intricate and detailed ways in which we experience the world and the feelings and creative energy that can come from such experience. Increasing self-awareness through the ah-ha moments and self-care strategies can help our relationships, work and creative ventures flourish more fully.
The amount of information we typically download and expand upon on as HSP’s is immense and so help with discernment and strategies for self-care are important for those of us with this highly creative and innovative way of living, as is sorting out how to bring forth the extraordinary of who we are into the world to live lives congruent with our deep need for purpose, meaning and helping those we cherish and the greater good.
While I have taken the time to write about my experience of being an HSP in previous blogs through the years, I have yet to touch on it directly on this site, and will do so as time goes by. In the meantime, I want to share the work of my go-to for HSP research and information, Dr. Elaine Aron https://hsperson.com/ who as a pioneer in the field of HSP outlines the overall experience as well as diving into the main themes we as HSP’s may want to explore. Dr. Aron’s website, books and films are all good ways to learn and grow in understanding ourselves, and her self-test https://hsperson.com/test/highly-sensitive-test/ is an simple way to find out if HSP material might resonate with you, and/or is perhaps the experience of a loved, friend, or co-worker.
Life as an HSP is an extraordinary experience – rich and beautiful. And, with this, great self-care and support helps make the sticky and difficult parts of living this way smoother, and can help us live more fully in a world that doesn’t always dive into the life with the richness of experience that we do. So please fellow HSP’s……be extraordinarily gentle with yourself. You are the innovators and visionaries of our world.
