Limiting Exposure to Toxic People

Last week I was talking about how constantly watching/reading the news, while tempting, is actually toxic for your mental health. Being exposed to this type of negativity isn’t beneficial, for anyone. Well today I want to talk about exposure to people that can have the same effect.

Do you feel drained, exhausted, anxious, fearful or overwhelmed after spending time with certain people in your life? Think through your most recent interactions with people and make a mental note. Because it’s often subtle, it can sometimes be hard to recognize this, but it can be very easy to unconsciously pick up other people’s fears, anxieties, and “stuff”.

With all that’s happening in the world these days (and it’s A LOT!), many people look to others (often unconsciously) to help share the burden of their stress, overwhelm, or “stuff”. This is perfectly normal and human, but it’s NOT benefiting you or them. When we are stuck in stress, fear and overwhelm, we are in a totally disempowered state. If you pick up or take on their fears and their “stuff” then they have just spread that disempowerment to you. Again, not helpful at all.

So even though it sounds harsh, it’s best to limit your exposure to these people until you feel impervious to it. This is especially true when you yourself are feeling tired, run-down, moody, or just “off”. We are more susceptible to unconsciously picking up other’s negativity when we are not feeling strong ourselves. This also applies to online interactions, whether via Zoom or FaceTime and the like, or social media platforms or online communities or forums.

It can be very easy to pick up other people’s toxicity. I think we can all agree that there is already too much of that in the world right now and that the world needs to change. And for the world to truly shift, we are going to need to spread healing and empowerment, not toxicity and disempowerment.