Common HSP Positives & Challenges

Common HSP Positives & Challenges.png

Today’s HSP Tip: Spending time with other HSPs in person or even in online courses or HSP social media groups helps to validate and normalize your experience in the world and that can lead to beautiful self-acceptance! 

In my work with HSPs all over the world I have come to see that we have a similar set of positives and challenges with having the trait of high sensitivity.  When we can learn how to reduce our challenges we get even more access to the positives! How many of these positives and challenges do you relate to? 

Common HSP Positives 

  • Kind, Empathetic, Compassionate 

  • Intuitive

  • Genuine 

  • Have a Super-computer brain 

  • Work rated higher by supervisors 

  • Can read microexpressions & body language up to 80% of the population miss

  • Advanced awareness/consciousness

  • More insightful

  • Make people feel comfortable and safe

  • Good listener

  • See many angles and are a good problem solver

  • Prepare well and generate good ideas

  • Notice subtleties and can therefore read people well

  • Are more in tune with others

  • Feel positive emotions more than others

  • Feel more love and passion

  • Are more creative

  • See, feel, and experience more when you hear music or see art

  • Can see images in nature, such as a sunset, and be more moved by beauty

  • Are a more creative parent/know child's needs

  • Attentive partner, knowing their needs often before they do

  • More conscientious

  • You have strong insight and are deeply aware and in-tune with others.

  • You are very conscientiousness, know what others need, and go out of your way to be courteous.

Common HSP Challenges:

  • Overwhelm/Stress/Anxiety/burnout high

  • Rate higher stress levels at work

  • Often find home life more chaotic

  • Crowds/Busy activities more draining

  • Bright lights/loud sounds/textures tags/seams/smells may impact you more

  • More reactive to emotions

  • More affected by the news, violence, injustice, and other difficult events

  • Feeling different/misunderstood 

  • Perfectionism

    • Like to get things done right the first time & Criticism harder

  • Often tend to be a people pleaser, overgive, and be at the bottom of your priority list

  • Hard to say no & create boundaries

  • High expectations of self and less self compassionate

  • Feel guilty putting self first

  • Self-blame/self-judgment high

  • Resentment can be higher in relationships both personally and professionally because of overgiving and depletion

  • Hard to be vulnerable, impacting connections

  • Change is hard/need extra time to prep

  • Reactive immune system/sensitivity to meds/chemicals food/air

  • You may get headaches and/or digestive issues frequently

  • Your increased empathy and compassion often leads to self-sacrifice

If you related to many of these you may find it interesting to take this sensitivity quiz. Much of my work is focused on training the sensitive brain to reduce the challenges and access more of the gifts of this trait so we can be more resilient, calm and positive. What’s fascinating about the brain is that we can activate certain calming, positive centers intentionally that deactivate the stress centers!  We can live fully as HSPs when we learn how to reduce the challenges because you have so many positives and gifts that truly allow you to bloom brilliantly in the world. If you want more access to those positives and to reduce your challenges check out all the wonderful resources created especially for the highly sensitive person. www.empoweredhsp.com. If you want to have all the tools in one place, join my highly recommended online course, 7 Steps to Embody the Gifts of Your Sensitivity, Understand Your Emotional Brain, Navigate Overwhelm, & Flourish as an HSP. You can even download replays of the video or audio teachings as well as all the transcripts! 

Here’s what HSPs are saying about their experience in the course:

“I think it’s great we can download the material, there is so much great stuff.. WOW.. amazing class.”
“So thanks again, Julie, for both the validation AND the practical steps. That’s what I always love about every class, that wonderful combination. I keep raving about this class to all my HSP friends and sharing your tips.”
“My stress level was 10 (out of 10) and has been for a while now.... it has affected my health and after module 2 my stress levels are down to a 5!!!.....one of the reasons I joined this course is to find my grounding again, coming from my inside.....SO THANKFUL for the course and a HUGE Aha!”
“I’m so grateful for this class. I can’t believe the changes in me. I have not reacted like I normally would in some situations over this past week. I am staying in the present.”
“Wow, I really needed that example of what over-compromising is and that it is not kind/loving to do so, as it may build resentment. I recently did the over-compromising in a work situation and I still have time to adjust it. Thank you, thank you!”
“It is SO big (that’s not a big enough word) to really, really, get that there is NOTHING wrong with me, with being a person who picks up on other people’s feelings all the time, with needing more rest, being drained by being in groups even when they are really fun or rewarding, being drained around loud talking, etc. Priceless. Two techniques really helpful from today: what you described about how we HSPs pre-compromise before the compromise conversation (oh yes), and visually protecting myself with light, or a bubble, or a shield, or cutting the cord. Very helpful.”
“Grateful for Julie’s heartfelt guidance, and for the dynamic and caring group energy here.”
“First of all I’d like to say a HUGE thank you for this class. Thank you also for this place to write & talk to people who understand me. It was just what I needed.”
“The new skills and HSP awareness we’ve been learning, is helping me release decades worth of stored physical and emotional tension.”
“It’s great to hear others’ examples of how they’re successfully asserting their boundaries as I learn to protect mine.”

Because you can download all the materials, you can still join us! It’s life changing. Learn more


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About Julie Bjelland, LMFT

Julie is a psychotherapist, author, and leader in the field of high sensitivity, and has helped thousands of highly sensitive people (HSP) around the world. As an HSP herself, Julie understands what it's like to live with high sensitivity and strong emotions, and is on a mission to empower HSPs to live their best lives.

Julie has developed proprietary tools and techniques to help reduce the challenges and increase the positives that HSPs experience on a daily basis. These techniques have been developed over years of working with highly sensitive people and have proven extremely successful for her clients and students.

In her free time, Julie loves being in nature, around animals, gardening, learning, and daydreaming about having a little farm one day. She shares her home with her partner, two children, and a houseful of pets and plants. www.juliebjelland.com

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