Have you been called "too sensitive" all your life and tried to fit yourself inside the box of the "normal"? Do you absorb other people's feelings like a sponge? Do you find yourself drowning in these feelings and sensations? Do you feel that your acute sensitivity sometimes lets toxic people in and makes you into a victim? If yes, you might be an empath, a Highly Sensitive Person who is finely tuned in to energy but who can also get overwhelmed because of this tendency to notice details. In The Empath's Journey, San Francisco Bay Area-based writer Ritu Kaushal takes you on an intimate journey to rediscover and recover what it means to be an emotional empath and a Highly Sensitive Person. Combining personal stories with insights from Jungian Depth Psychology, Transactional Analysis and Art Therapy, The Empath's Journey shows empaths how to reclaim the core of their sensitivity from the deeply injuring stories they have been told about it. In this behind-the-scenes look at an empath's life, we first meet the author at a pivotal point after she has relocated from India to the United States. As she gets inundated with noticing thousands of small differences in a new culture, she finds herself face-to-face with the same old dilemma: Is feeling and noticing so much really such a great thing? Over the next six years, we journey with her as she struggles with questions that every emotional empath has battled with. How do you cut through overwhelm when you feel swamped by noticing subtle details and feelings? How do you set boundaries when you almost feel other people's emotions in your own body? Is being an empath even a real thing, or is being an empath a maladaptation, the same as being codependent? As the author cuts through the muck of old beliefs, we see her finding pieces of her answers. We accompany her as she assembles different tools to channel her crackling sensitivity so that it can be harnessed as a source of power instead of leaving her feeling overwhelmed and spinning out of control. Instead of seeing themselves through the lens of the labels of "too weak" and "too soft," The Empath's Journey shows empaths that many of their struggles with being highly sensitive come from the fact that they've been taught to treat their sensitivity like a dragon, something to fight against, instead of seeing that this seeming dragon guards their very treasure. In this believing mirror of a book, you will find all those lost, wounded parts of yourself that have numbed out because they were not seen. You will also find the thread back to that soft sensitivity that makes you You, that You you have always been, and will always be. The Empath's Journey is calling you back home to your sensitive self. Editorial Reviews: The Empath's Journey is essential reading for anyone struggling with being an empath or seeking support as a Highly Sensitive Person. If you have ever felt misunderstood as an intuitive, this is the book for you. It's a powerful key to unlocking the enigma of the empath and helping unearth our gifts as well as our purpose here. -- Lauren Sapala, author of The INFJ Writer. Empaths have an intimate experience with the world around them which is hard to describe and even harder to write about. Ritu masterfully takes other empaths on her inner and outer journey from self-discovery to self-mastery. She journeys across cultures, archetypes, and psychological challenges to claim the gifts of being a highly sensitive person and an empath. This is an inspirational book for other empaths seeking their journey to self-mastery. Highly recommended! -- Maria Hill, Founder, Sensitive Evolution and author of The Emerging Sensitive.