Black woman with clear framed glasses smiling and looking down in front of a black background. This illustrates that Sacred Circle Holistic Healing provides counseling to women who identify as Highly Sensitive People.

Holistic Therapy and Coaching for Highly Sensitive People

Being Highly Sensitive in a Non-Sensitive World

You’re a deep thinker and deep feeler. You often find yourself asking questions that no one else seems to be asking. Which is hard, because other people don’t seem to understand your perspective or why you can’t just “lighten up.” You also tend to notice details others don’t notice—like subtle social cues that reveal how someone really feels—but it can be hard to trust yourself when no one else notices the things you do.

Interpersonal conflict is stressful for you. So much so, that you’ll do whatever it takes to avoid it, which leads to people-pleasing and difficulty setting healthy boundaries and asserting yourself.

You tend to feel other people’s pain deeply, sometimes almost as if it’s your own. Which makes you compassionate, but at times you get so caught up in your empathy for others that you forget about yourself. In the past, this has made you vulnerable to abusive relationships where you were constantly giving and the other person was constantly taking.

You wish you were more outgoing, but usually you need to hang back and read the room before you're comfortable enough to put yourself out there. It’s frustrating how this often leads to being overlooked or underestimated in group social settings. You might have been called “sensitive” or “shy” as a child.

Portrait of a young woman with red hair and tattoos looking off camera and smiling. This represents that Sacred Circle Holistic Healing offers therapy in Kansas for Highly Sensitive People who are often women who view the world alternatively.

Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

Anxiety is a struggle, mostly due to the high standards you have for yourself. You have a loud inner critic and you often find yourself reviewing social interactions—going over things you did or didn’t say, thinking of things you should have done differently, worrying about how you may have been perceived or potentially misunderstood.

It’s important to you that your life be meaningful. Often the things that other people find interesting and fulfilling feel quite the opposite to you. You desire a different level of depth, which sometimes feels isolating and lonely. But on the flip side, because of your deep thinking and deep feeling you have a rich and complex inner life, you’re creative, you’re perceptive—all of which you value about yourself.

Having a highly sensitive nervous system comes with many strengths,
it's just a matter of understanding how to work with your sensitivity instead of against it.

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High Sensitivity is a trait held by 20-30 % of the population.
1 in every 5 people are Highly Sensitive.

What is a Highly Sensitive Person?

Highly Sensitive Person (HSP) is a term that was coined by Dr. Elaine Aron, who began studying High Sensitivity—also known as Sensory-Processing Sensitivity (SPS)—30 years ago.

Sensory-Processing Sensitivity is not a disorder, but rather a trait that is found in the minority of the population.

High Sensitivity is also not just a popular self-help idea. Research has shown that High Sensitivity is innate, impacts both the immune system and the central nervous system, and has been found in over 100 species.

It is believed to be a survival strategy that allows one to process information thoroughly before responding. The brains of HSPs have been shown to function differently than the majority of the population.

Why Therapy for the Highly Sensitive?

Being Highly Sensitive has many benefits... such as being creative, having a rich inner life, being conscientious and empathic, being spiritually curious and attuned.

But being Highly Sensitive can also be challenging for several reasons.

HSPs are more easily overwhelmed and overstimulated than the general population because our brains are processing (noticing and digesting) more information at any given time. You might also feel your emotions more intensely than non-HSPs.

Highly Sensitive People are more vulnerable to the impact of trauma. As a result, HSPs who had difficult childhoods are more likely than non-HSPs to struggle with depression, anxiety, and shyness* in adulthood. This sensitivity to trauma is not due to an innate weakness, but rather due to the neurological wiring that leads HSPs to take in more information from the environment. If the environment is negative, or traumatizing, HSPs are more likely to be affected by it because they were taking more of it in.

The world is designed for the 80% percent of the population that does not share this trait with us, therefore, we HSPs often find the world we live in, the way it functions, and it's expectations fundamentally a poor fit.

On top of that, because many HSPs don't understand why they're different, they think that something is wrong with them if they are unable to keep up with their non-HSP counterparts, which often leads to low self-esteem.

HSPs are commonly misdiagnosed as having a mental health diagnosis (when they don't) by professionals who are not familiar with the trait and/or are not highly sensitive themselves. This just perpetuates the misconception that being highly sensitive is a problem that needs to be fixed, instead of a strength that can be maximized when understood for what it is.

(*Shyness is not the same as introversion. Inhibited behavior referred to as "shyness" comes about due to fear of social judgment.)

Online Therapy in Kansas for the Highly Sensitive Person

Learn the common traits of Highly Sensitive People and how to work with them instead of against them.

Learn to recognize the emotional and physical symptoms of sensory overwhelm and how to work with it.

Learn what most highly sensitive people need in order to be happy and healthy, and review you own life to see if these needs are being met.

Learn how to advocate for yourself—and for your needs as a HSP—at work, home, and in your relationships.

Unpack the messages you received about your sensitivity in childhood and deepen your understanding of how these experiences continue to influence you today.

Many highly sensitive people (HSPs) enjoy therapy, and there’s evidence that highly sensitive people have the potential to benefit more from therapy than the general population. Therapy, in large part, is about introspection and turning our attention inward, and as an HSP, you already do this naturally! Your brain is wired to deeply process experiences and therapy is a safe, non-judgmental place to work though all those thoughts bouncing around inside your head.

As a Highly Sensitive therapist, I love creating a comfortable, safe space for fellow HSP clients to dive deep and heal the wounds underlying their symptoms, leading to deeper levels of self-awareness and confidence.

Interested in working with me?

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Other Mental Health Services Offered by Sacred Circle Holistic Healing in Kansas

My Lawrence, Kansas counseling practice also specializes in providing therapy for anxiety, therapy for self-esteem, therapy for childhood trauma, narcissistic abuse recovery, and holistic life coaching. I help people overcome shame and the fear of being their true selves. Breaking the cycles of people-pleasing and self-abandonment is possible, and I'm here to help.

I offer online counseling throughout Kansas and Colorado. Reach out today to schedule your free 15 minute phone consultation. I'd love to hear from you!