Empathy Is Essential

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I was raised by someone with a severe empathy deficit. Watch for the signs and don’t let such a person get too close to you. As Mr. Rogers said, “Look for the helpers.”

JM

[Also note: Years ago, anthropologist Margaret Mead was asked by a student what she considered to be the first sign of civilization in a culture. The student expected Mead to talk about fishhooks or clay pots or grinding stones.

But no. Mead said that the first sign of civilization in an ancient culture was a femur (thighbone) that had been broken and then healed. Mead explained that in the animal kingdom, if you break your leg, you die. You cannot run from danger, get to the river for a drink or hunt for food. You are meat for prowling beasts. No animal survives a broken leg long enough for the bone to heal.

A broken femur that has healed is evidence that someone has taken time to stay with the one who fell, has bound up the wound, has carried the person to safety and has tended the person through recovery. Helping someone else through difficulty is where civilization starts, Mead said.”

We are at our best when we serve others. Be civilized.

– Ira Byock.]

“Empathy Deficit Disorder is a pervasive but overlooked condition. In fact, our increasingly polarized social and political culture of the past few years reveals that EDD is more severe than ever. It has profound consequences for the mental health of both individuals and society.

He explains that when you suffer EDD, you are unable to step outside yourself and tune in to what other people experience, especially those who feel, think and believe differently from yourself. That makes it a source of personal conflicts of communication breakdown in intimate relationships and of adversarial attitudes – including hatred – towards groups of people who differ in their beliefs, traditions or ways of life from your own.

Here are some signs that will help you identify if someone around you lacks empathy:

They jump fast into criticizing others without putting themselves in other people’s shoes.

They seem to be cold or just out of touch for people that are suffering or are less fortunate.

They believe 100% in the rightness of their own ideas and/or beliefs, and judge anyone who does not hold their beliefs as wrong, ignorant or stupid.

They have trouble feeling happy for others.

They have trouble making or keeping friends.

They have trouble getting along with family members.

They feel entitled to receiving favors and use you to serve their needs without showing appreciation. They will even get offended if they don’t get their way.

In a group setting, they will talk a lot about themselves and their lives without really caring about what other people share.

They do or say something that hurts a friend or a loved one, and tend to blame his/her actions on them. They truly believe that the fault is in the person receiving the hurt because they reacted poorly, were rude or were oversensitive.

The truth is that without empathy, it is hard to create deep emotional connections with others.”

https://www.lifehack.org/749842/why-some-people-have-a-lack-of-empathy-and-how-to-deal-with-them