Empathy is something you cannot learn. You can learn behavior and adapt into a pattern simulating that of someone with empathy, but it is impossible to feel what you don’t. At the same time, it is impossible to turn off empathy. I have spoken to countless empathetic individuals who have time and time confirmed what I already knew: Even when your mind tells you that there are situations in which you would be much better off not having empathy, you still cannot stop feeling for those who might hurt you in one form or another. The only advice I have been able to give so far: Hide your empathy from others. The problem with empathy is that it attracts the … Continue reading What is empathy?