Managing Your News Intake: How HSPs Can Stay Informed Without Overwhelm

Managing Your News Intake: How HSPs Can Stay Informed Without Overwhelm

by | Oct 14, 2024 | Activism, Anxiety, Highly Sensitive Person

As a highly sensitive person (HSP), managing your news intake is crucial to staying engaged with the issues you care about. The sheer volume of news, especially when it tugs at your empathy, can quickly leave you feeling emotionally drained. 

While staying informed is important for your safety and the ability to take meaningful action, it doesn’t mean you need to subject yourself to endless news cycles.

But how much information is enough? How do you navigate the emotional impact of the constant stream of negative stories and unsettling images?

To find balance, it’s crucial to establish practical boundaries, engage in ways that respect your limits, and find healthy outlets to process what you witness.

In this article, I’ve put together some strategies for managing your news intake to help you stay informed without sacrificing your emotional health.

7 Practical Strategies for Managing Your News Intake and Safeguarding Your Well-being

1. Set Boundaries for Mindful News Consumption

The first step to finding balance is being mindful of how and when you consume news. Without boundaries, it’s easy to spiral into overconsumption with 24/7 access to information.

  • Designate news time: Instead of scrolling or reacting to notifications all day, choose specific times to catch up on news and set a time limit.
  • Choose a few trusted sources in advance: Go straight to these sources to avoid getting lost in endless browsing or sensationalist content.
  • Assess your capacity: Before diving into news, pause to assess how much bandwidth you have.
  • Check in with your needs: Sometimes we’re seeking distraction. Someone in our HSP Circle suggested asking yourself, “Is there something else I need?”

2. Curate Your News Sources

Most news outlets use sensationalist headlines to grab attention and drive traffic. Nearly all media have some bias, but some are more balanced than others. Choose sources that prioritize in-depth reporting over rhetoric designed to provoke fear or outrage.

  • Pick a better medium: Cable news thrives on ratings, while social media amplifies division. Look for longform articles and investigative journalism for a more accurate, nuanced view.  It’s also helpful to choose larger news organizations with stronger accountability standards and diversified funding, such as public news outlets, which are often more reliable than unaccountable pundits or highly partisan sources.
  • Check bias: Sites like All Sides use multipartisan analysis and community feedback to rate media bias, helping you get a more balanced perspective.
  • See all sides: Ground News compares coverage across the political spectrum—left, center, and right—so you can view multiple perspectives on the same story.
  • Narrow your focus: Subscribe to activist groups focused on issues you care about to get updates and calls to action directly. This can help you bypass the broader news, but remember to fact-check emotionally charged claims.

3. Be Mindful of Triggers and Make Space for Emotions

Many news stories or headlines can evoke strong emotional reactions, especially for HSPs. It’s important to remain aware of how the news affects your emotions and have outlets to process.

  • Recognize emotional manipulation: News outlets often use charged language and visuals to provoke emotional reactions. Consider avoiding news from video sources. Reading the news can help soften the emotional punch often inherent in video, giving you more control over how you process information.
  • Pause and reflect: When a story triggers intense emotions, it’s important to create some distance. Take a moment to notice and name what you’re experiencing.
  • Step away to process: If emotions become overwhelming, step away to give yourself time to process what’s come up.
  • Develop a grief ritual: Create personal grief rituals, such as journaling, making art, talking with a tree, or making a nature mandala to honor both losses and your own feelings.

4. Balance Information with Action

Passively consuming news can leave you feeling helpless. Balancing it with even small actions creates a sense of agency and a way to channel what you’re feeling.

  • Channel your emotions: Whether it’s donating, writing to your representatives, or volunteering, taking action helps combat feelings of powerlessness.
  • Start small: When thousands of people take similar small steps, these voices add up to create a larger movement.
  • Get involved locally: Engaging with causes close to home can have a direct impact and foster a deeper sense of connection.
  • Express through art: Art is a powerful way to process emotions. It can also be a form of activism. Art has the ability to make the invisible visible, and the distant more intimate.

You may also want to check out this book by my friend, Omkari Williams: Microactivism: How to Make a Difference Without the Bullhorn.

5. Seek Out Positive News

Managing your news intake also means reading news that highlights solutions and positive change. Amid the challenges, there are many meaningful advancements that can inspire hope and motivation.

6. Prioritize Self-Care and Collective Care

Balancing your news intake with restorative activities and community support is essential for maintaining resilience. 

  • Take breaks: Step away from the news and social media for a day, a week, or longer to give your nervous system time to reset.
  • Tap into support: Whether it’s with friends or by joining a local group, find a supportive circle that offers a space to share, grieve, and celebrate together. Connecting with others who care can reduce isolation and remind you of the kindness and resilience in the world.
  • Nurture your body and mind: Find practices that truly restore you—whether it’s yoga practice, creative expression, or time in nature. If you struggle to make time for this, consider signing up for a class to create structure and accountability.

7. Acknowledge Your Limits

As HSP, you may feel the pain of the world, but it’s crucial to remember that you can’t fix every problem. Safeguarding your energy is necessary to continue making meaningful contributions.

  • Know when to step back: Get to know your capacity. Pay attention to the signals of your body. Trust yourself when you need to take a break. You can return when you’re ready.
  • Set realistic goals for staying informed: Be intentional about how much time and energy you give to the news. Focus on issues that align with your values and set boundaries around how often you engage.

Final Thoughts on Managing Your News Intake…

As an HSP, your deep empathy and connection to the experiences of others are gifts, but they might also make you more prone to overwhelm. By setting boundaries, curating balanced sources, recognizing emotional triggers, and prioritizing self-care, you can stay informed and sustain your activist energy. In doing so, you’ll be able to contribute to the causes you care about without burning out.

You may also wish to read:

Navigating Collective Grief as Highly Sensitive People
A Guide to Balancing Social Action and Self-Care During the Holidays
For Highly Sensitive People Who Feel the Pain of the World

Struggling with Focus? Try These Tips for Neurodivergent Minds

Struggling with Focus? Try These Tips for Neurodivergent Minds

by | Aug 23, 2024 | Anxiety, Highly Sensitive Person, Neurodivergence, Personal Growth

I wish I could say I’m super organized with my time, but the truth is, I often find myself struggling with focus and organization in my work.

This might surprise you if you’ve attended one of my retreats. Guests often praise my organization and attention to detail.

I can be organized and detailed, especially when others rely on me. But the context matters and there are areas in my life and work where I really struggle.

It often takes me much longer to complete certain tasks than it might take the average person. Sometimes I have a full day to dedicate to a project, but my brain just says ‘no.’

Recently, I attended a wonderful retreat led by Amber Karnes, which she designed for solo entrepreneurs contemplating a business pivot.

Interestingly, every participant identified with some form of neurodivergence—whether ADHD, autism, or sensory processing sensitivity. So, Amber organized a “neurodivergent skill share” where we could exchange tools and practices that help manage our work challenges.

A Common Theme Among Neurodivergent Entrepreneurs: Struggling with Focus

The conversation naturally gravitated toward the familiar challenge of focus. It was incredibly affirming to realize I wasn’t alone in facing these difficulties.

I took notes on the focus tips that were mentioned and compiled them into a list. It’s not exhaustive—if I were starting from scratch, I’d likely organize it differently, omit some ideas, and add others not mentioned, including yoga tools and techniques.

But as I went through my notes, I got distracted by the urge to research some ideas further. When my browser tabs began multiplying, I paused and reminded myself of my original goal—to simply share this collaborative list.

The Value of Collaboration and Support for Neurodivergent Minds

What I love most is that we created this list in community, much like the peer support we foster in our HSP Retreats and Resilience Circles.

We’re all different. No one person has a magic formula. Some tools may work for you and not for me.

It’s part of why I use this kind of emergent model of peer support in the groups I facilitate. The real magic lies in the unfolding of diverse knowledge and experiences, leading to enriching exchanges and unexpected outcomes.

In this case, we ended up with a meaningful share, bringing fresh perspectives and creative solutions to a common neurodivergent challenge.

Struggling with Focus Isn’t Limited to Neurodivergent People

In today’s attention economy, where screens and endless platforms compete for our attention, almost everyone I talk to mentions feeling unfocused and distracted.

But for some of us, focus struggles can be more intense. Our brains may work differently, making it harder to stay on task or filter out distractions.

In fact, neurodivergent folks may need creative tools and strategies tailored to our unique ways of processing the world.

A Couple of Important Notes…

This list is not all-encompassing, nor does it make any scientific claims. I have not tested all these ideas myself. There are no affiliate links in this article and my mention does not constitute my endorsement.

We also need support from other humans. It’s important to recognize when professional help is necessary. This list is not a substitute for medical or psychological advice. Please be cautious with self-diagnosis and treatment. Seek professional help when needed.

Tips for Managing Distractions and Staying Focused

As you read through the list, keep in mind that you don’t need to overhaul your entire life. Some tips are simple and straightforward, while others may require more effort. I suggest starting with just one or two ideas. Test them out and see what impact they have before adding more.

Phone and Digital Tools to Minimize Distraction

  • How to Break Up With Your Phone: A book offering practical steps to adjust your settings, apps, environment, and mindset to help manage phone usage.
  • Buy an Analog Clock: Keep your phone in a room outside your bedroom and give yourself phone-free time each morning (such a game changer!).
  • Remove Apps for Social Media & Games: Delete distracting phone apps. Set a limited time each day or week to check your social media from a computer.
  • Focus Mode: Try your phone’s focus mode setting to restrict app usage. There are many focus apps–to help manage apps. One Sec is one that prompts you to pause and breathe before opening apps.
  • Try a New Browser: For organizing tabs and online projects without the clutter or distraction, one person recommended Safari Tab Groups. My partner really likes Arc.
  • New Facebook Account: If you manage or participate in a group, consider creating a separate account solely for that purpose to reduce distractions from other content.
  • Email Auto-Responder: This may be more work-related. Use auto-responders to manage expectations about what you respond to and when you’ll respond.

Self-Regulation Techniques for Better Focus

  • Know Your Overwhelm Signals: Recognize early signs of overwhelm and have 3 “go-to strategies” to regulate (nature walk, stretch, close your eyes for 10 minutes, etc).
  • Earplugs or Loops: Use earplugs or specialized earplugs like Loops to reduce sensory input. (My review on Loops is mixed, but many people love them.)
  • Music: Create a playlist that helps you focus. Listen to it when you are focused to train your brain to enter that state. Then, listen when you need help to focus.
  • 4-Legged Stool: One person spoke of their 4 primary well-being needs as food, sleep, movement, and writing. When one leg is missing, the stool can stand, albeit wobbly. When two go missing, it falls over.
  • Low Dopamine Mornings: This trending ADHD strategy involves starting your day with low-stimulation activities to reduce dopamine hits from screens. While not scientifically precise, if not taken to an extreme it may help to build healthier morning habits.

Tools for Managing a Busy Brain

  • Brain Dump Everything: Write down all your thoughts and tasks to clear your mind and reduce mental clutter.
  • Create Visual Diagrams: Mind Mapping can help organize ideas and tasks, making it easier to see connections and priorities.
  • Morning Pages: From The Artist’s Way, write 3 pages of consciousness each day to process thoughts and clear mental space. I’ve used this for brain dumping to-do lists.
  • To-Do List the Day Before: Write down 1-3 tasks you need to do tomorrow the night before to start your day with a clear direction.
  • Keep a Running List of Positive Moments: Refer back to this list to boost your self-compassion, motivation, and focus.

Support and Accountability Strategies

  • Body Doubling: Simply working alongside a friend, either in person or via Zoom, can make tackling difficult tasks easier.
  • Work in a Café: As a form of body doubling, the energy of others, even strangers, can serve as a form of body doubling and help improve focus.
  • Talk to Yourself Aloud: Vocalize supportive self-talk and be a loving adult to yourself. Coach yourself through challenges, praise accomplishments, and encourage breaks.

Time Management Tips for Neurodivergent Entrepreneurs

  • Work Within Energetic Times: Consider your most productive times of day and prioritize just one important task to work on in that window.
  • Sitcoms to Track Time: While not for me, some people use a familiar sitcom as a background timer, helping them segment work into manageable chunks.
  • Visual Timer to Stay on Track: Using a visual timer on your desktop monitor can help structure and monitor your time.
  • Apps to Track How Long Tasks Take: Clockify is a time-tracking tool to better understand how long tasks actually take and improve time management.
  • Set Timers to Manage Hyperfocus: While people with ADHD may struggle with focus, many also experience hyperfocus and lose track of everything else.

This list could go on, and there’s also no one-size-fits-all solution. I invite you to give one or two of these strategies a try, and feel free to comment any other suggestions you have below.

Whether you consider yourself neurodivergent or not, struggling with focus is a common challenge in today’s distraction-filled world. Remember, you’re not alone.

Too Much Empathy? Try This Instead

Too Much Empathy? Try This Instead

by | Jan 11, 2024 | Highly Sensitive Person, HSP Relationships

Do you ever feel like you have too much empathy?

Empathy is generally seen as a strength. It allows us to resonate with the emotions of others and understand their perspectives.

However, for highly sensitive people who are finely attuned to the emotions of others, sometimes empathy can feel like a burden.

Sharing in someone’s joy may be uplifting. Yet, absorbing their suffering can lead to feeling overwhelmed and helpless, prompting the need to detach.

Detachment is a natural response to emotional flooding. Some amount is necessary for us to function. But it can also signify what’s known as empathic distress, which we’ll discuss shortly.

Recognizing that empathic distress is common for highly sensitive people, my goal with this article is to provide insights into more beneficial ways to channel our empathic responses.

But first, let’s clear up a subtle but important distinction.

Cognitive vs. Emotional Empathy

The two primary types of empathy are cognitive and emotional.

Cognitive empathy, also called perspective-taking, is the ability to understand how a person feels and what they might be thinking. Emotional, or affective, empathy is about actually sharing the feelings of another person.

I believe both kinds of empathy have a place, and like most things, are highly context-dependent. But in this article, whenever I mention “empathy”, I’ll be referring to emotional empathy.

Two Paths to Respond to Suffering

Empathy and compassion both describe how we react to suffering, but there’s a difference in the reactions they elicit.

Empathy involves feeling with others, and sharing in their emotional experiences.

Compassion, on the other hand, entails feeling for others, and is most often coupled with a desire to offer assistance.

The Science of Empathy vs. Compassion

Findings in neurological studies conducted by neuroscientists Tania Singer and Olga Klimecki, among others, have shown empathy to activate neural networks associated with a first-person experience of pain – as if the pain belonged to the empathizer. These neuroimages were also coupled with self-reported negative feelings.

According to Singer and Klimecki, empathic distress is a “strong aversive and self-oriented response to the suffering of others, accompanied by the desire to withdraw from a situation to protect oneself from excessive negative feelings.”

It’s that feeling of being so affected by another’s suffering that you feel it in your own body, and may even feel the need to detach from that suffering, in order to protect yourself.

In contrast to the first-person pain experience seen in empathy neuroimaging, compassion practitioners trained to notice the feelings of others and offer support show activations that are more other-focused, linked to prosocial behaviors, and altruism.

Compassion has also been shown to trigger neurological processes and neurotransmitters associated with positive feelings and affect.

Some suggest that empathy is limited in its capacity. We can only put ourselves in so many “other pairs of shoes” at one time. We might empathize with a few individuals, but would seriously struggle to extend this emotional connection to a group of thousands.

From this lens, it’s possible that the “feeling with” empathy we’re discussing can prevent us from effectively addressing the needs of a larger population.

Embracing Compassionate Response

Picture this: You feel concern for a friend’s pain while remaining grounded and aware of the distinction between their feelings and yours. Instead of absorbing their pain, and getting wrapped up in how that experience feels for you, you are able to be more present and available to be of help for what they’re going through.

A compassionate response is marked by feelings of genuine concern and warmth for another person along with a strong motivation to help them. This concern, the actions you take to address it, and the way it feels for you in the end, can amount to a much more effective response to suffering.

Whereas, a response that is rooted in empathy alone can often lead to a doubling of the total suffering and even reduce the likelihood of taking corrective action, due to empathic distress.

Strategies for Managing Empathy & Practicing Compassion 

I want to pause briefly here and address a possible misconception that I’m saying empathy is universally bad and should be discarded. That is not the case.

Empathy has served us well as human beings, and in fact many other Earthlings share this capacity besides just us. But, like many other things, what served us well in an ancient context can backfire in a modern context.

I don’t think that HSPs who experience a heightened empathy are in any way “bad” or in need of fixing themselves. It’s just that we need to be aware of where this can go wrong and do what we can to mitigate the harmful side effects.

That being said, I believe the cultivation of compassion can be an effective pathway to respond to suffering which also avoids compromising your own well-being.

It might involve setting healthy boundaries to protect your own emotional well-being, engaging in self-care routines, or actively participating in activities that promote positive change.

Pause to Acknowledge

Acknowledging suffering is a crucial initial step in practicing compassion because it lays the foundation for genuine understanding and connection. Pausing to recognize someone’s pain not only allows you to truly notice what they’re feeling, but it also gives you time to distinguish your own emotions from those of others. I offer a few concrete techniques for differentiating our emotions of self and others in my article, “How to Stop Absorbing Other People’s Emotions”.

Train Your Mind

Most studies have used contemplative practice and meditation as methods to train compassion. The Center for Healthy Minds is a non-profit founded by Dr. Richard Davidson, who has been a leader in contemplative practice and compassion research. They offer several free resources, including a compassion meditation training and a free Healthy Minds app to cultivate well-being.

Take Helpful Action

Not only is action important for the person, people, or cause, but it creates a positive feedback loop of compassionate response for the action taker. There is some evidence showing that people who have helped before are more likely to repeat these behaviors. Let’s build this habit.

Psychologist Susan Silk developed a model called Ring Theory as a guide for managing emotional support in a crisis. In a series of concentric circles, the person most directly affected is at the center. Around them are rings representing levels of emotional proximity. The idea is that those providing support offer comfort toward those in the center rings and seek support from those in outer rings to avoid burdening those at the center.

When you notice your emotional empathy kicking in, find which ring you’re on and direct your action somewhere toward the middle. The article I referenced by Adam Grant offers an example of using this theory in response to collective suffering.

When You’re Feeling Too Much Empathy…

Again, empathy isn’t intrinsically bad. But having too much, like anything, can lead to bad outcomes. Hopefully, by keeping watch on your empathy, and avoiding its overuse, you can prevent overwhelm and maintain well-being.

Remember that compassion offers a pathway to respond to suffering with genuine concern and assistance, without losing yourself in the process. Through compassion, we can better navigate our emotional landscapes and cultivate healthier relationships with ourselves and others.

Can You Trust Your Intuition?

Can You Trust Your Intuition?

by | Apr 18, 2023 | Highly Sensitive Person, Sensitive Seeker Series

Should you trust your intuition? Well, it depends.

Intuition is often regarded as a sort of sixth sense or infallible means of knowing things and making decisions.

I hear from a lot of highly sensitive people who aim to listen to their intuition, and I also believe intuition is important. There are contexts in which highly sensitive people can really benefit from following their intuitions.

While not proven, it may even be possible that highly sensitive people could have particularly adept intuition (in certain contexts) due to our deep processing and sensitivity to subtleties.

Yet, phrases such as “always go with your gut” and “your intuition never lies” are so commonplace that people don’t pause to consider whether this is always wise advice.

While intuition can play a valuable role in decision-making, it isn’t always the best source of truth. There are many situations where it can lead you astray or even be manipulated by others.

Lets look at what intuition is and how it’s developed in order to discern when to trust your intuition.

What is Intuition?

Before going further, I want to recognize that some view intuition as wisdom from a higher source, or even equate it to an inner voice from one’s authentic self. Both of these ways of seeing intuition are worth discussion, but here we’re working with the widely held way of understanding this concept.

While there’s no universal definition, intuition is generally understood as the ability to know something without the use of conscious reasoning. It’s an embodied reaction or gut feeling that just feels right or wrong to you, even if you don’t know exactly how you know.

Intuition can also be thought of as a faster, pre-cognitive way of thinking that is built by both evolution and life experiences. Our minds and bodies evolved together, gaining the ability to understand the world and then use that understanding in order to survive and procreate.

Rather than the primal instincts we’re born with or the kind of memory recall associated with conscious thought, intuition is more about certain types of learned knowledge that we’ve embodied, and then feel guided by in certain situations.

These feelings, grounded in past experiences, allow us to make predictions and decisions quickly without having to engage conscious thought or analytical skills.

Intuition can be an incredibly powerful guide, but it’s also context-dependent.

How Intuition Can Go Wrong

It’s important to know that intuition also has the potential to get “confused”, leading to mistaken assumptions or misleading judgments.

Intuitive feelings can be prone to error due to our biases. Something as abstract as a belief or political identity can become embodied and automated as a fast-felt reaction. So, when we hear about an idea, our learned intuitive reactions can give us a strong inclination one way or the other.

These reactions can do damage and misguide us. For example, they can show up as racial bias (because we learned the wrong associations), confirmation bias (because we really want something to be true), or groupthink (because we got swept up in the energy of a crowd).

The problems that come from overly trusting your intuition are also partly a result of the modern world being so vastly different from the world in which we evolved. Before the complexities of modern civilization, we could more easily trust our intuitions to be broadly applicable in the kinds of contexts in which we were likely to find ourselves.

But in today’s world, with its nearly endless specializations, artificial environments, and vast infosphere, it’s less and less likely that we can apply our intuitions broadly.

Intuitions can help you make faster choices, reduce cognitive load, and can even save your life, but discernment about when to trust them is essential.

When to Trust Your Intuition

If you find yourself in a situation that evolution couldn’t have prepared you for, or that you are not experienced with or trained to understand, then view your intuitions with a healthy dose of skepticism. A few examples might help here…

Intuitions can be useful in these contexts:

  • Making simple choices (ex: ordering off a restaurant menu).
  • Listening to your body’s needs (when to rest, move, eat, etc.)
  • Performing tasks in which you have ample training and experience (being honest about this is key!).
  • Assessing your personal safety (be sure to check your biases, early and often).
  • Searching for greater meaning or purpose in one’s life (watch out for narcissistic leaders).

Intuitions should be questioned in these contexts:

  • When trying to understand medical advice or scientific research from a field in which you are not highly trained (particularly if it’s a polarized matter).
  • When absorbing information from a source that is optimized for engagement (TV news, social media, opinionated talking heads, etc.).
  • When anyone with power or charisma is trying to convince you of something (politicians, cults of personality, influencers, etc.).

Some of these latter examples may be quite subtle, which is why it’s critical to take a step back and consider what might be happening.

While you don’t want to trust your intuition across all situations, it is wise to listen to it.

When intuition is honed over time, it may offer information that can help you make better decisions in some situations.

Furthermore, you tend to overthink simple decisions, you might benefit from learning to follow your intuition more often to avoid analysis paralysis.

Let’s also keep in mind that intuition and conscious reasoning are not diametrically opposed. Thankfully, they’re working in conjunction with each other most of the time.

My partner, Jason Brashares, contributed to this article.

Sources

Cademenos, A. (2022, January 26). When to trust your gut (and when not to). Better Up. Retrieved April 18, 2023 from https://www.betterup.com/blog/when-trusting-your-gut-can-get-you-in-trouble

Garrett, R.K. & Weeks, B.E. (2017, September 18). Epistemic beliefs’ role in promoting misperceptions and conspiracist ideation. PLOS. Retrieved April 18, 2023 from https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0184733#sec013

Kutsch, L. (2019, Can We Rely on Our Intuition? Scientific American. Retrieved February 17, 2023 from https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/can-we-rely-on-our-intuition/

Sutton, J. (2020, August 27). What Is Intuition and Why Is It Important? 5 Examples. Positive Psychology. Retrieved February 17, 2023 from https://positivepsychology.com/intuition/

Van Mulukom, V. (2018, May 16). Is it rational to trust your gut feelings? A neuroscientist explains. The Conversation. Retrieved February 28, 2023 from https://theconversation.com/is-it-rational-to-trust-your-gut-feelings-a-neuroscientist-explains-95086

(Photo by Vladislav Babienko on Unsplash).

How I Balance My Energy as an HSP Retreat Leader

How I Balance My Energy as an HSP Retreat Leader

by | Mar 22, 2023 | Highly Sensitive Person, Travel, Uncategorized

People often ask me how I balance my energy as an HSP when I’m leading retreats.

This is a question I’ve had to ask myself repeatedly over the years. Despite the capacities people see in me when I’m facilitating a group, I’ve faced plenty of leadership challenges.

Like most HSPs, I have a tendency to experience sensory overload when traveling. While I can handle quite a lot, my nervous system freaks out if I push past a certain point.

I also care deeply about the people I serve. I value providing experiences in which my clients feel supported. Yet, as an HSP who gives and feels a lot, I can wind up absorbing other people’s emotions if I’m not careful.

To show up fully for my retreat groups, it’s imperative that I make space for my own needs. Learning to balance my energy as an HSP has taken discernment and practice, but I’ve found a few things to be supportive.

Even if you’re not leading retreats, you might find a helpful nugget of wisdom here.

6 Things I Need to Balance My Energy as an HSP Retreat Leader

1) I create spacious schedules.

I know facilitators who are like energizer bunnies. They can happily teach and socialize all day long. This is not me. The downtime I structure into my retreat schedules is just as much for me as it is for my clients. I need time to rest, as well as to process experiences and emotions that come up if I’m going to prevent depletion. Even when I was working as a social worker, I was capable of really challenging work. Yet, I did best when I had the flexibility and autonomy to take breaks so I could close my eyes for a few minutes or even let out a few tears in the bathroom.

2) I ensure I have quiet personal space

As an HSP retreat leader, I spend a lot of time being there for others. I need a space that I can rely on as a safe haven of quiet and solitude. I usually ensure I have my own room set away from others. Sometimes I’ll share a room with a co-facilitator since this can allow for easier check-ins and communication. If I do share, I inform the other person in advance that I’ll need silence sometimes when we’re in the room together.

3) I adapt my personal practices.

The practices that help me balance my energy as at home are not necessarily what I need when leading retreats. Recently, I started a Morning Pages practice. I was in a consistent flow of writing three pages every morning. But I accepted this would change during a retreat, as I knew good sleep would be a more functional practice. So, I wrote however many pages at whatever time of day I felt drawn to write. When it comes to my yoga practice, one reclined yoga pose or sitting in meditation before teaching yoga feels more grounding than an elaborate asana practice. The simplest of practices help me regulate and recharge. I lie on the ground with my legs elevated, close my eyes, and allow myself to be held.

4) I work with partners I trust to provide support.

I learned the value of support when I broke my foot in Guatemala two days before my first retreat ever. That’s a story, but it showed me how important it is to have people to lean on (sometimes literally). I typically hire an assistant and make a point to work with venues and guides that I really trust will provide support. It helps that the local guides I work with take the reins when they’re guiding. This gives me the opportunity to relax and enjoy experiences alongside my clients. One thing I’m still practicing is the skill of delegating–and recognizing when I’m taking on a role that someone else can do.

5) I communicate my boundaries.

As a facilitator, it’s my responsibility to be accessible to participants. This means that there are times when I sacrifice some alone time in order to answer questions or tend to someone’s needs. That being said, I also remind myself that I’m allowed to have boundaries. When I first began leading retreats, I’d often drop whatever I was doing to help someone. I’ve learned to reel in this tendency. Now I confirm I’m glad to help, but if it’s not an urgent matter, I’ll propose a time to chat after I’ve given myself time to recharge.

6) I embody “enough”.

There was a time I placed pressure on myself to get everything “right” in my retreats. I’d have a nagging feeling that I had to plan every detail of my classes. I constantly noticed shortcomings or would feel self-critical. I’ve faced major challenges during these retreats: breaking a foot, mountains of stinky sargassum seaweed washing ashore, and even a trip highlight being closed last minute. Still, even with the biggest setbacks, I have clients who will still comment about how much they loved their retreat. My experience over the last seven years has taught me that whatever I do is enough, as long as it’s with intention, care, and integrity.

Final Thoughts on Balancing Energy as an HSP Leader

There are many ways to approach energy management as an HSP. If you’re in a leadership role, it’s important to identify and assess your own strengths and needs to know what’s right for you. Making space for your needs will help sustain your energy and allow you to actually show up for others in the way you intend.

Of course, if you’re interested in joining me on a retreat, I invite you to check out my upcoming HSP Retreats.

Photo by PNW Production

Generational Junk #2: How to Keep Your Junk out of Landfills

Generational Junk #2: How to Keep Your Junk out of Landfills

by | Jul 19, 2022 | Environment, Highly Sensitive Person, Personal Growth

Are you looking to get rid of old generational objects, but want to keep your junk out of landfills?

If you’ve followed my work lately, you know that I’ve opened up a conversation about “generational junk” in its many forms with one of those being heirlooms, collections, and mementos that can become burdens that we unwillingly inherit and unwittingly pass down.

When you begin to examine generational junk you’ve acquired, you may realize it’s time to let some things go to avoid passing down the burden of too much stuff to future generations.

There may be emotional processing that is needed to part with these objects, but there’s also a practical aspect for HSPs who care about environmental impact.

Isn’t tossing junk into landfills also burdening future generations?

One of my yoga students recently brought this up to me. It’s a good question, and one that I think about a lot.

I’m not an out of sight, out of mind person. I can’t stand sending something to a landfill if I think there’s a chance it can be of use or value to someone else.

Even if not visible, our waste affects communities somewhere, as well as the animals, watershed, and the very food we put in our bodies.

While I don’t have solutions for every item, I want to share some practical ideas that may help keep some of your junk out of landfills, as well as what to do when you can’t.

Before I go on, I believe there’s an important perspective we need to keep in mind.

Individual Actions Matter, But We Need Planetary Change

By all means, it’s important to reduce what comes into your home, repair and repurpose what you can, recycle properly, and keep your junk out of landfills when possible.

Your individual actions matter and ought not be dismissed. We should each do our part to reduce our environmental impact and find ways we can make nature a bit happier and healthier.

Yet, HSPs can get bogged down feeling the pain of the world and analyzing every choice. Without some balance, you may end up depleting your reserves that could otherwise influence the larger systemic changes we need to prevent the burden from falling on individuals in the first place.

Notice how much of your energy is going toward making the “right” or “responsible” choice. You may need to move forward with letting some stuff go for your mental health. Then, perhaps you can redirect your energy into action with a local or national effort working to solve climate change.

6 Tips to Keep Your Junk out of Landfills

What you do with your generational junk may depend on a few factors such as:

  • The overall condition of the object
  • Whether it’s personal or impersonal
  • If it can be used for its parts or has DIY potential
  • The emotional attachment you have to it
  • Where you live

The following are a mix of suggestions shared by a circle participant who works with museum collections, my partner, and of course, my own ideas.

I want to note that some resources I share are based in the U.S. since this is what I know. Many of you in other countries are already way more creative and resourceful with how to repurpose waste, particularly if you don’t have the luxury of it being invisible.

1) Exchange / Gift Economies – With sites like Buy Nothing or Freecycle, you can give items to neighbors who can use them and ask for things you can use. We just stayed with a friend who got everything in his home from his Buy Nothing community with the exception of a few items. You may not be able to unload your musty stuffed animals on your neighbor, but someone may be interested in your childhood wall hangings, collections, or antiques.

2) Curb Alerts – Put out a free pile and announce it on Nextdoor or FB Marketplace. Putting unwanted items out a few days before garbage pickup gives time for someone else to pick it up. The person I referenced earlier left a broken lawnmower on the curb. Someone came by with the same broken mower and figured he could repair his with the parts. She was delighted to keep one mower out of the landfill (for now) and that it could help someone else.

3) Specific Drop-Offs – How much time you invest in finding homes for items depends on your bandwidth, but here are a few ideas. Batteries Plus offers electronics recycling (may charge a small fee over a certain weight) if your municipality does not. Libraries and historical societies may take yearbooks and other historical records. Leave anything metal out for those reliable scrap metal folks. You may be able to donate CDs and DVDs to shops that sell used ones.

4) Change it – Baby spoons can become jewelry. Nostalgic artwork you’ll never hang can be taken out of frames to save space. Baby blankets and book sets can be yoga props. I’ve seen Star Wars pillow cases and button-down shirts turned into skirts and historic newspapers turned into bags.

5) Keep it. Not every object needs to be purged and not every human needs to be a minimalist. The guy with the packed car who took a bunch of free stuff from our garage sale may keep those items out of the landfills for a few more decades. It’s okay to keep things that are meaningful to you. It’s not always a burden. You might find a spot for a special memento that serves as a symbol of what’s important to you, as well as a reminder to refuse and reduce the new junk that has potential to enter.

6) Rituals – Some things may just be gross and need to go. Yet, if the object held meaning for you or someone else, you may struggle to let it go. Honoring an object (or person) through ritual can help with closure. You could share stories about it with loved ones or tune into what deceased ancestors might like you to do. You can burn it, wash it, or sing it a song. Even if it needs to go in the garbage, you could place flowers or sprinkle soil on top of it as a gesture of care.

Remember, show yourself some compassion and leeway in this process. Your individual choices and actions matter. Keeping your junk out of our landfills is important, but there are also many ways to get involved and support the health of our planet.

Read: Generational Junk #1: Examining What We Pass Down

(Photo by Pierre Bamin on Unsplash)