Feeling Disrespected
One of the hardest things at least for myself has been to set boundaries if I'm being disrespected or in some way feeling harmed.
I encountered something like this recently, and my sense of fairness, ethics and my own sense of right and wrong were triggered. I found myself saying the situation rubbed the wrong with me. I felt that it would call my own integrity into question if I followed the advice given to me. Furthermore, there was the prospect of losing half the funds I had put into the item. I did not pull any punches and said that the advice was not just questionable, it was downright dishonest, and I needed to live with myself.
The situation was resolved in that I was able to return an item and pick another one, but it set off feelings of guilt in myself, even though I realized that I was not in the wrong in this. I simply could not sleep because I knew my lack of tact and response had offended. I kept thinking I could have used a LOT more tact.
Then I pulled this card, and it was an ah HA moment. I realized that I have been told my entire life that I had the tact of a Brama bull in a chinashop. I was told it was not lady like, unkind, and I needed to account for my words and how they might harm someone. I think if I look in the mirror, I ended up disrespecting myself for this trait. I was embarrassed by my lack of tack and could not reconcile it with the fact that I'm also an Empath and therefore should "know better." So, I became my harshest critic, endlessly thinking and rehashing what I'd said about something. However, my laser like words have been more than just a bane, they have been a gift. As I thought more about it, I realized that I had to love all of me, including my gift or in some cases bane of a gift with words.
There is a balancing act. Words are indeed life and death to the heart and soul, but we also can't be a doormat to allow others to walk on.