It’s hard to be a highly sensitive person in this world.

We take everything to heart and feel so deeply.

We Tigger-jump when we are startled. The other night when my husband fell asleep, I decided to go to the kitchen to get a late-night snack. As I was digging through our snack cabinet, I heard footsteps getting louder and closer.

"Hello, hello, HELLO!" I shakily echoed, jumping back, hitting the cabinet, convinced I was about to come face-to-face with a perpetrator who probably had an axe. BECAUSE MY KILLER TOTALLY HAS AN AXE.

It was my husband, who decided to get his work shirts from the laundry room before he fell asleep. HOW DARE HE!

We also take in everyone’s moods and emotions and hold onto them as our own. If my daughter is having a bad day, I have a bad day. If my husband is stressed out, I feel his tension so much that I become stressed out. We are human sponges, and it's hard always being sopping wet with everyone’s EVERYTHING.

Sometimes we wish someone would wring us out to dry. But they can’t. Even if they try, trust me, my loved ones have tried to talk some sense into me often—but I still feel.

Because of that, conflict and disarray hurt our souls. If someone is mad at us, or if we’re upset about something we feel it so hard. We wear it on our faces and in our moods. We can’t help it. The toxicity seeps into our pores, filling us with absolute sadness. And then we obsess about it because it takes completely over.

We turn down invitations and not because we’re anti-social, it’s because we just can’t do it after a long day. One more thing would put us over the edge completely. Rather, we opt for alone time to recharge and relax. We need to just take time in the quiet.

It’s hard being so sensitive in this world.

We often question if we are too sensitive for it. If perhaps, we don’t belong.

If maybe that’s why we are so anxious and fearful.

But, even though we may be sensitive, we are the good in this world.

We want to make a difference.

We want to make meaning and help others.

We are the world changers.

To feel with such Intensity is not a weakness—it’s a strength.

And for that, we are strong.

This post originally appeared on the author's Facebook. Her book Living FULL: Winning My Battle with Eating Disorder is available on Amazon: https://amzn.to/2O4mJId