Ok maybe this is a silly question...This is difficult to explain. I get how to shield and why it's important, but what I'm trying to understand is what happens to your senses when you are shielded. Obviously it's working for many advanced people like Magnolia, Ash, and many others here, and clearly they are able to still be sensitive to the energies around them.
In order to understand what I'm trying to ask I have to explain how this came about. I give massage for a living and I've always felt people on a deeper level if that makes sense . All the positive and negative energy that comes with that, helps in deciding how the treatment needs to go. As uncomfortable as that is to experience for many hours a day, I'm used to it, and would feel crippled if I couldn't get to this level with the people that find themselves on my treatment table (cleansing is another issue entirely \ ). I'm afraid that if I keep a shield up I will be drowning out the energies I need to feel to interpret people. Now in some ways I'm just a whelpling ( as my WW loves to say ) and in others I've gained a ton of experience by now. This experience was no formal education mind you, and so my knowledge is patchy.

I'm also afraid that if I keep using shielding I'm going to dull my senses over time. Is this ridiculous?

I also feel there is so much weight put on positive energy, and I wonder how much we are missing out on learning from negative things if we are constantly filtering them out. I don't know how to phrase this any better. Is there a way to protect ourselves from the really icky stuff and still experience life in it's many colors?
Can someone help me out here?

Ah, the Shielding Conundrum.

I've thought of this as well. ALL Humans need a certain amount of Negative and Positive Energy. It's how we functions. The thing is, we NEVER want to Balance them out, rather, Polarize them. If everything was Balanced, nothing would progress, nothing would die, nothing would life, etc.

Shielding does not dull the senses, if you do it right. Before creating a shield, you could go through all the grounding and centering, and forming an Intention in your head. I'll admit, it's absolutely BORING. Is it necessary? Not at all, for some people who are naturally inclined or choose not to do so. But it makes the shields THAT MUCH STRONGER. You have to have an intention of what you want. Think of what you want, and focus on that as you create a shield.

Okay, first let me start out by saying, if you keep helping others without releasing your limit, you're going to be in for a roller-coaster of emotions and pain. It's great to give and give and give, but honestly, what about yourself? Think about it, if you keep allowing harm to yourself from all the idiocy of others, what's that going to do? Cause YOU more PAIN that you didn't even WANT or NEED, right? Before you help others, help yourself. It sounds selfish, but it's necessary to keep both the healer and clients' health in check. I wouldn't want a tired, caffeine-addicted doctor giving me surgery.

http://www.creepyhollows.com/phpBB3/vie ... 67&t=49937 <--- Read this if you so choose. It's helped me realize that being a Healer of any sorts ain't so full of Unicorns and lollipops, and requires many sorts of willpower, endurance, and rest.

Yes, there is a way to protect from the emotional residue/ick of others. DON'T, I repeat, DON'T USE THE WORDS "NEGATIVE ENERGY" IN YOUR INTENTION. As I stated above, we as Humans each require a certain amount of Negativity to function properly. Not all Negativity is "bad" and not all Positivity is "good".

For example:

If there was only Positivity in the world, EVERYONE WOULD HAVE CANCER OR AN STD. There's the kind of Positivity NO ONE WANTS.

Rather use such things as "Harmful Energy" or "Emotional Residue", this is a bit more specific and guides the shield to do just that. Protect against harmful or residual energies that cling to people like dust to my uniform.

Within Light and Darkness,
__________

EGOIST wrote: If there was only Positivity in the world, EVERYONE WOULD HAVE CANCER OR AN STD. There's the kind of Positivity NO ONE WANTS.

.....huh?

Aprophis wrote:

EGOIST wrote: If there was only Positivity in the world, EVERYONE WOULD HAVE CANCER OR AN STD. There's the kind of Positivity NO ONE WANTS.

.....huh?

Being a "positive" instead of being a "negative" when someone obtains their results from a doctor for clarification. For the most part, I'm very confusing when it comes to analogies and the likes.

Alright. I get it now. I was confused as well, but I see what you meant with that line. "Your results for your test have come back. You're HIV positive."

If you do your shield right, you can let in the things that you need to let in and keep out the things that you don't want!!!! It is like a fluid kind of thing, for like what was mentioned, you do need a certain amount of negative as well as positive!!!!

So shielding if done right will be more fluid like to your own needs and no you will NOT be numb, in fact you will be more aware of what is going on around you, what is affecting you at the time and in everyday life!!!! The shield can be adapted to your everyday life, and with spirit keeping, you can focus your attention on your spirits, without outside interference!!!!

In learning how to shield, you will become more aware of your surroundings, what kind of energy that will affect you the most and sensing other people's energy as well as well as your spirits and any unbounds that you may not want to have around you!!!!!

Another words, you will be more aware of things, places, and people, as well as your spirits!!!! 7\

starfire :dragons::

EGOIST wrote: Being a "positive" instead of being a "negative" when someone obtains their results from a doctor for clarification. For the most part, I'm very confusing when it comes to analogies and the likes.

Well, it doesn't depend on the words but on the intent, if you want to keep negative away, that means everything negative for you. Which means having cancer, an std or anything would be pretty negative for you, not everything containing the word negative. Unless you make a wish like that to a really mean being who likes to twist that.

Egoist,
I got what you mean .

Everyone,
So you mean 'flavoring' a shield to individual needs? This might take some experimenting.