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Feeling like a sponge

alyou3Contributor09 Oct 2016, 1:29 am AEDT

Feeling like a sponge

Does anybody else find when watching TV or even reading a book, that you "feel" too much? Like you feel what the character is going through or the situation and you feel it right into your heart like it's you going through it? I have PTSD and lately I've been feeling like a sponge, I'm absorbing any possible kind of negative thought, feeling, energy, ANYTHING. I hit a bunny as I drove home from work tonight and I cried for an hour, I thought of how scared it would have been, did it feel pain, did it have baby bunnies to look after. And I know it's ridiculous but I "feel" it, like a loss. Even watching TV, even stupid innocuous harmless TV, I "feel" it all. I've cut back on technology and I've always found release/escape in reading a book but I just get overwhelmed by it. Listening to music does it too. Over it!

4 replies

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In response to: Feeling like a sponge

SaharaSenior Contributor09 Oct 2016, 8:02 am AEDT

Re: Feeling like a sponge

Hi @alyou3,

yes, I have had this experience and in my case it was related to depression. Everything took on a unhappy slant for me, when I was down.

I have always been a very sympathetic person and for that reason I seem to attract a lot of people into my life who want me to solve their problems! On some level, at least, I must be comfortable in this role and attracted to helping people.... however, I quickly became way too involved and overwhelmed by the problems of others, to the point where I was thinking about them all the time and it got me down. It was taking over my life and I could not seem to separate myself from the unhappiness of other people.

I would do the same thing if I saw someone on T.V. being interviewed who had problems... I would start to feel all their pain and wish I could do something. I found it very hard to separate myself and my life from all the pain I seemed to see everywhere I turned.

@alyou3, when you ran over the rabbit, it was natural for you to feel sad. Anyone would. But it was an accident... it could have happened to anyone. It could not have been prevented. It's sad, yes, but it doen't reflect on you, as a person.

I think it might be more the case that the incident was a kind of portal that led you inwards to confront a sadness that was already there inside you. At least that's what happened with me. The thing with the rabbit was kind of a trigger for your pain.

Are you seeing a therapist? You might like to discuss some of these things with them.

In my life now, I have found I have to draw firm boundaries and not let the world's problems bring me down. Yes, I still like to help people, but I tend to wait until they ask me.... if they don't actually ask anything specific of me, then I don't let myself dwell on their issues. I listen, I allow them to be heard and then I go off and focus on my own life and my own happiness until such time as I hear from them again.

With the T.V, I just switch channels!

I put my time and effort into the things I love to do.... like walking in nature, cooking nice dinners and making my art. I mainly read books that I find up-lifting and educational.

Please feel free to write more here if it helps you, @alyou3.

In response to: Feeling like a sponge

Gerry1Senior Contributor09 Oct 2016, 10:03 am AEDT

Re: Feeling like a sponge

I can hear you feel overwhelmed at times and I think it is a great strategy to minimise the use of technology as it can over stimulate thoughts and feelings.

In response to: Feeling like a sponge

pipSenior Contributor09 Oct 2016, 12:32 pm AEDT

Re: Feeling like a sponge

Hi @alyou3. You sound extremely sensitive. You actually felt the bunnies pain after hitting it, alyou, that's nothing to feel ashamed or embarrassed about. To admit to having empathy for another living creature means you are actually able to relate to someone else's pain. Be kind to yourself on this, PTSD can be excruciatingly hard to live with (I have it too, to a degree). How you cope with it, is to accept firstly you have empathy. Empathy is good. When you hit the bunny, it was an accident. You need to forgive yourself for that, knowing that had you seen the bunny, you obviously wouldn't have hit it. I would try to limit reality shows as they often show the negative argumentative sides only. Soaps are just that - soaps. A lot of soaps deal with religion, politics, MI, etc. You can learn from these without them upsetting you, by watching, then writing down what you've managed to get out of the program. Have you absorbed anything that would be beneficial to you in your everyday life? If you understand politics (that's incredible), politicians don't even understand politics. If it helps to understand MI, does it apply to you, if not, put the 'lesson' into a box and 'shelve' the box for future (if necessary) reference. Whatever you get from what you watch/ listen to, see how it applies to you. If it does, try to live by it, if it doesn't 'shelve' it for possible future reference. Does this help in any way?

In response to: Feeling like a sponge

Unknown userMember09 Oct 2016, 12:54 pm AEDT

Re: Feeling like a sponge

Hi @alyou3
I hear you with this. I absorb everything from others including peoples moods. I stopped watching TV 3 years ago because I would get triggered by something or get too emotionally involved. I also struggle with music from time to time. And for a while I was always emotional from stories on social media. I hardly ever get on social media now too.

Im exactly the same with hitting an animal. I saw a cat being hit by someone over a year ago and had to talk to my therapist about it as I couldn't get past it. To this day I still I remember it. I recently talked to my therapist about it because I was freaked out after seeing a truck loaded with pigs and one was hurt and I couldn't see it but I could hear it in pain and was a mess for the whole day. She helped me with this.

I think me avoiding TV for three years has not been a good thing though because I've isolated myself so much from anything that makes me feel emotional that I am now worse. It takes less for me to become emotionally reactive. Last week I watched a movie by myself for the first time in about three years. I am going to try and watch a bit more TV. I don't think being so sensitive is a really bad thing but it creates a few extra hurdles sometimes. I think if you have a psychologist it would be worth talking this through with them.
Wishing you best of luck with this. Keep posting too if it helps. 💜😊

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