For a long time, I have somehow assumed the terms highly sensitive person and empath meant the same thing. I believed highly sensitive people like me not only felt deeply and were easily overwhelmed by excessive stimuli. They — we — also felt other people’s emotions simply by being around them, to the point that we didn’t know whose sadness, excitement, or anxiety we were feeling.
However, although you can be both a highly sensitive person and an empath, they are two different things. In fact, the two ‘official’ resources to get started are:
- The Highly Sensitive Person to learn more about HSPs and Dr. Elaine Aron’s research, which started in the early 1990’s;
- Dr Judith Orloff to learn about empaths and Dr. Orloff herself, who is considered “the godmother of the empath movement.”
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Are all highly sensitive people empaths? An answer to the most burning questions.
While researching this topic online, I kept seeing two main questions. Now I know the answer to both, although I have realized why there is so much confusion between these terms. Answering them will help clarify whether you are a highly sensitive person and empath, or somewhere in between.
Is an empath and a highly sensitive person the same thing? No.
Can you be an empath and a highly sensitive person? Yes.
Honestly, the confusion arises from the fact that there is quite an overlap between the two. I’ve considered myself a highly sensitive person and empath for so long, when in fact I’m mostly sensitive. But after my due research, I am confident you could summarize it this way: most empaths are highly sensitive, but not all highly sensitive people are necessarily empaths.
It’s no coincidence that Dr. Orloff groups empaths and highly sensitive people into the same category on her blog.
For instance, I consider myself an introvert, a highly sensitive woman, and kind of an empath (I’ll tell you more about it later on).
It has taken me literal ages to realize that, while I was all three, each of them was something different that could be taken and explored in itself.
The first label I became aware of was ‘introvert’, which activated a crucial part of my inner work. The next step was discovering that I was a highly sensitive person. My blog post Highly Sensitive Introvert? Here Are 3 Science Facts On Sensitivity (You’re Not Alone Or Weird) is my gift to anybody who identifies with both and struggles to separate these two aspects in themselves, since they feel so intertwined.
Let’s look into the concepts of highly sensitive person and empath to understand their differences and shared traits.
HSP.
As you may already know, HSP stands for Highly Sensitive Person, and the correct, scientific term for high sensitivity is Sensory-Processing Sensitivity (SCS). Psychologist Dr. Elaine Aron began researching this trait at the beginning of the 1990’s and went on to write multiple books on the subject.
As of today, about 20% to 30% of the population is highly sensitive, according to Dr. Aron’s website. We know it is not a psychological disorder, and it is partially genetic. As an HSP, you:
- need plenty of alone time
- tend to process information deeply
- are emotionally responsive and highly empathetic
- are more affected by your environment, be it positive or negative
- get more easily overwhelmed
- need more time before entering a new situation
- tend to avoid large groups
- do better in smaller groups (preferably with people you already know)
This is not a comprehensive list of all the possible characteristics of highly sensitive people, but it offers a good overview of what it means. However, if you’re learning about this topic for the first time, I’m sure you’ll see yourself quite strongly in at least a couple of them.
Empath.
As pointed out by psychologist Katie Turner “the concept of empath is more nuanced and less researched” than HSP. Nonetheless, Dr. Judith Orloff and her website are the go-to resource for information and scientific evidence on the subject.
In fact, there are clear signs that can help you determine whether you’re an empath.
- As an empath, you take on the energy of a room and the people in it. You feel the emotions of others as if they were yours, to the point that it becomes difficult to tell the difference between your own feelings and the ones you have absorbed.
- You are like a sponge. Dr. Orloff refers to this process as the ability to sense – and absorb – subtle energy (also known as shakti or prana in Eastern healing traditions) from people and environments.
- You have a deep relationship with nature that feels replenishing and healing.
- Finally, you have “profound spiritual and intuitive experiences”. According to Dr. Orloff, “some empaths are able to communicate with animals, nature, and their inner guides.”
As I was writing this blog, I wondered: are all highly sensitive people empaths? Well, they’re not, and these would be the key factors. Looking back, I can see how unique these three characteristics are and why I’m not a full empath myself.
Highly sensitive person and empath: traits they share.
As stated above, most empaths share the traits of highly sensitive people, but not every HSP is an empath. So, if you’ve ever wondered, “Are empaths highly sensitive?” The answer is: most of them! Here’s a more detailed list of what they have in common. As a highly sensitive person and empath, you:
- Are probably an introvert.
- Can be an extrovert: please know it’s normal, and we need your wonderful combination of gifts!
- Need plenty of alone time.
- Are sensitive to external stimuli (like light, sound, smell).
- Tend to avoid large groups.
- Function better with smaller groups of people.
- Love quieter places.
- Need more time to transition into new situations, especially after a period of high stimulation.
- Have a desire to help people.
- Love spending time in nature.
If you’re still reading, I’m sure you relate to many of the signs above. As I was compiling the list, it felt a little bit like writing my own resumé, you know? Weird sensation, but at the same time, it reminds me — once more — that I’m not alone in this!
Highly sensitive person and empath: traits that set them apart.
As you have read so far, an empath could easily be a highly sensitive person; yet, we have also seen you could be just an HSP without necessarily being an empath too — and the other way round. So, what are the key differences?
Firstly, I’d like to offer some context by quoting Dr. Orloff:
If you think about this distinction in terms of an empathic spectrum, empaths are on the highest end; highly sensitive people are a little lower on the spectrum, people with strong empathy but who are not HSPs or empaths are in the middle of the spectrum. Narcissists, sociopaths and psychopaths who have “empath deficient disorders” are at the lowest end of the spectrum.
Now, I would say the following 3 points represent the main differences between the concepts of highly sensitive person and empath.
1) Empaths can feel the emotions of others as if they were their own, while HSPs get overwhelmed by multiple stimuli, like being in a large group, without necessarily picking up on that aspect and bringing it into their energy field.
2) Empaths have a special relationship with nature, which is almost life-giving, whereas HSPs may prefer nature mostly as a source of some beloved peace and quiet.
3) Empaths are known for their spiritual, metaphysical experiences and intuitive knowing, which HSPs don’t necessarily have.
Personally, these three points were key in making me realize I am not 100% an empath, although I do “have strong empathic tendencies”, to quote the results of a test I took. I think it’s important to answer another question I found online: How can someone cope with being an empath and a highly sensitive person simultaneously? Do these traits have any similarities or shared abilities? In other words: Can you be an empath and a highly sensitive person and thrive? Yes, and I suggest reading my blog post below.
Useful resources.
The following websites are great places to educate yourself, read stories from people who have gone through similar journeys, access scientific findings, and discover helpful books on empaths or HSPs.
- Dr Judy Orloff to learn about empaths specifically, as well as empaths & highly sensitive people
- The Highly Sensitive Person is the home of Dr. Aron’s work.
- Sensitive Refuge to learn mostly about HSP with blog posts on empaths too.
- Sensitivity Research provides reliable information on sensitivity and valuable resources for highly sensitive people, educators, parents, practitioners, and researchers.
Labels like highly sensitive person and empath: use them to elevate instead of trapping yourself.
I would like to close this blog with a reflection I share whenever possible.
I believe that terms like highly sensitive person and empath should be treated as labels worth exploring to know and accept yourself for who you are. To go into the world and be more of who you came here to be, rather than more defensive or isolated. This is how I have tried to turn these intense traits into powerful strengths that help me be a better person to others and feel more confident in my worth.
Explore my human design readings and intuitive guidance: they are catered to highly sensitive people, particularly introverted, empathic women. Let’s turn feelings of isolation, not fitting in, and wrongness into an ability to set empowering boundaries, feel worthy, and serve others.