The Benefits of Empathy

<p><b>The Benefits of Empathy</b></p> <p>The empathetic person takes on the feelings of another. When you act with empathy, you share emotions and feelings. Some people can almost physically feel what another person is going through.</p> <p>Others might have a less intense experience. In any situation, empathy helps you to understand and relate to others. It's a social skill that everyone should develop. Empathy can help you build trust in your personal and career relationships.</p> <p>Like sympathy, empathy means you feel bad about what someone is going through. Unlike sympathy, empathy always means following up with kindness. You do something to try to help the person get out of a negative situation or experience.</p> <p>What's really neat is that empathy doesn't just benefit the person on the receiving end of kindness.</p> <p><b>The Benefits of Empathy for the Giver</b></p> <p>Studies show that the empathetic person experiences less stress and anxiety than others. Everyone is different. Some people just aren't that empathetic. It doesn't mean they're mean people or that they don't care about others. It just means their emotional radar isn't as sensitive as someone who's highly empathetic.</p> <p>That's a shame, because empathy lowers stress.</p> <p>Experts believe this is because of a shared emotional experience. It could be that there is a physical process internally that triggers the release of "feel good" hormones and chemicals. Whatever happens, data clearly shows that if you want less stress, anxiety and depression in your life, learn to be more empathetic.</p> <p><b>Empathy Makes You Grateful for What You Have</b></p> <p>Sometimes getting in the emotional point of view of another person can help you appreciate what you have. You see someone struggling emotionally. You ask a few questions. Likewise, you get to know the situation. Perhaps you were in a similar spot yourself at one time.</p> <p>You can identify very clearly with the emotional issues that person is experiencing. It causes suc