the right kind of empathy

Emphasizing how Distorted empathy affectS our children

We all possess empathy since birth. It is a magical gift from Source, the creator of life, given to help us clearly navigate our short time here on earth, along with the gift of intuition and sensitivity. These gifts are heightened in childhood because of the embodied purity and innocence; they allow an open channel for receiving divine insights that manifest as art, ideas, and wisdom. To the unconscious caregivers, these creations may seem unimportant and often are ignored, not realizing they are God’s provision. In our modern society, artistry is less encouraged in children, replaced by too many activities meant only to satisfy societal expectations and traditions; it becomes about external validation, competition, and obsession until the soul is suffocated. Children’s artistic abilities are divine gifts meant to be treated with sacredness, with truth, where they can breathe and expand, because when this happens, the soul, too, can breathe and expand. Not everyone grows up to be an artist, but when all is said and done, creativity is what humans crave after years of satisfying fleshly desires, which is essentially the body longing to return to the soul.

When the intuition is weakened, and empathy is distorted, the act against the true self is inevitable because they are overpowered by the external noises and influences, making humans, even those with good intentions succeptible to lies and deceptions. And defending the pure and innocent becomes an unconscious, impossible task. The endless outpouring of love and energy without deep acceptance or reciprociprocity turns empathy into a silent resentment, codependency, jealousy, denial, over compensation, manipulation, escapism, control, fear, depletion, avoidance, and aggression, because the self no longer has a surface to safely return their deep care and emotions, as their truth and vulnerability have been exposed without validation, appreciation, and true acceptance—their authenticity and sense of self, shattered into pieces.

Self-abandonment is a silent form of neglect of a child’s wellbeing and natural gifts compensated by the superficial. Once, I overheard a mother say to a child after the child expressed her truth that the child needed to be kept on her toes while laughing to a friend; a seemingly innocuous act, but deeply damaging to the soul. This is an empathy driven by external validation, the kind that is controlled by societal expectations and traditions, not suited for the soul. Then, there’s the kind of empathy that overgives to a child, the kind that suffocates, unknowingly teaching the children to diminish the self through self-sacrifice. It is an empathy driven by unworthiness wound, where receiving almost feels illegal. The worst kind of distorted empathy is the empathy with no substance. These are individuals whose empathy only goes as far as what they can receive from another, which means their empathy is only a facade because fear precedes everything in their existence—they deplete rather than pour.

“To not know thyself is to not know thy child. To abandon thyself is to abandon thy child.”

Consciously choosing to look away from these wounds disempowers the self to see past the illusions and to stand firmly in one's truth, shrinking the self to fit into someone else’s false idea of truth. In respect to the children, their embodiment of love and light is devalued, where they become the root of the problem, as their very existence triggers these wounds within the unconscious caregivers. Their light dims because they silently end up carrying the emotional weight of those around them without a loving place to safely unload the heaviness, which then becomes energetic blockages of the seven chakra centers that affect their overall well-being, purity, and innocence. The earthly challenges that arise with raising children, coinciding with satisfying fleshly desires for the unawakened, leave no room for introspection, thus creating an unconscious vicious cycle of self-abandonment from one generation to the next.

“When one is devoted to bettering the self for the self, then one's devotion is to God. Being devoted to God through the mind without actively obeying His will is devotion to society, not the self, nor to God.”

The right kind of empathy does not involve self-sacrifices that are not for the highest good, but it circles back to nature, to the untainted child of strong intuition that exposes the intentions of others. The right kind of empathy does not conform to what does not feel right to the soul: it knows when to say yes, and it knows when to say no without haste, anger, resentment, or guilt, because it simply knows what is best for the self. This empathy is stern, but loving; it heals as presence, but it does not enable; it feels, but does not submerge itself into the pain of others; it transforms it instead, where true growth lies. This empathy simply stands on its own with nature as its guidance. It is the kind of empathy that creates positive change within others. The kind of empathy that generates a fulfilling life, because it knows how to love with boundaries, to love in peace, because it knows how to protect the self once again from those who are unconscious of their own internal wounds.

Once tarnished, these gifts are difficult to retrieve, but possible. Intuition is a muscle that needs strengthening, often through circumstances that require decisions between polarities. Subconscious wounds, whether generational or learned negative behaviors, serve as major blockages in sensing both distorted and pure energy. The intuition may pick up on it, but the wounds may speak louder than its processor. The muscle awakens through a series of energetic activation which happens in a nonlinear fashion, and requires a period of solitude to fully regain its independence from external influences. The crown chakra must be activated and open to serve as the antenna for receiving divine energy, which passes through the intuition. One must be discerning when the crown is active, as the interception of negative energy is simultaneously high; a strong intuition helps filter what belongs and what does not.

Healing distorted empathy is more delicate and complex, as it requires one to go through cycles of boundary breach: betrayals, manipulations, and being pushed far beyond one’s limit by people and circumstances. It is a grueling healing process of assembling fragments of the soul that can either make or break a person. Through these repeated offenses, a sense of inner strength starts to build gradually. The tendency to show anger or resentment may surface from time to time, but it is part of the process. The inner transformation happens during these seemingly endless internal or external chaos that could bring one down to its knees. The pain must be felt for it to be healed, released, and integrated in silence and in due time, allowing the body’s natural healing process to take its course. This process is how pain is transmuted into love and light. The biggest challenge for most is detaching from the source of distortion, both physically and energetically. It takes courage and resilience to let go of an attachment to society, traditions, and the familiar negative patterns — the safety net for the old identity.

In some cases, empaths return to addictive behaviors because the healing process becomes too overwhelming or the journey is too isolating, so negative cycles that may have been closed may repeat themselves. However, some would go the distance to continue transforming and evolving at an accelerated rate, learning their own boundaries and non-negotiables. During this accelerated spiritual awakening, empaths learn not only about themselves but about others, gaining a fresh perspective on who is safe and who is not. It is also when they learn to set stronger boundaries both physically and energetically, having the ability to sense authenticity versus performance (pattern recognition). Access to universal truth and wisdom reveals that not everyone deserves access to their light because it is sacred, and it is meant to guide others on their journey without succumbing to their suffering.

Part of healing distorted empathy is rediscovering one’s self-worth because empathy is not just about having compassion for others, but mostly, having compassion for the self first and foremost, which ultimately forms into a greater respect and love for oneself, where self-abandonment becomes an impossible choice. This level of healing for an empath is referred to as the Sophia Stage in spiritual awakening; a stage where an empath has elevated into a higher level of consciousness, reaching energetic sovereignty, where divine indifference is perpetuated in the physical, not as an act of cruelty, but as self-protection and of those around them. This stage seems paradoxical to the outside world because the transformed empath is able to shift between polarities when it calls for it (light and dark, masculine and feminine, kindness and indifference, softness and sternness, etc.). They carry a sense of gratitude for those who have wronged them in the past, rather than resenting them because of a deeper awareness that healing could not have been done through comfort. For the lucky ones, transmuting pain is a practice that’s been ongoing since childhood, so the task is second nature for them, the lightworkers, as some would call it; the ones who spent most of their lives in an unconscious or conscious solitude guided by the divine.

Children need a stable and peaceful companion on their journey for them to expand on a soul level, to offer authentic, balanced, energetic support, not enablement, suppression, or fleshly companionship. This is what the children deserve. To be a caregiver to children is a priviledge and an opportunity to return to self, not an obligation — it is a divine order of the highest power.

With love, Maricel

(Publish Date 3.6.2026)

Note: Please only take what resonates with your own journey and beliefs. This content is drawn from a personal experience of intense healing per the soul blueprint. Some may refer to God as Source, Universe, or Higher Power. You will know in your heart if this message is aligned with you. Thank you.