Embracing Venus: Achieve a Life Lit Up for Highly Sensitive People

By Doreen A. Lang

Are you a highly sensitive person (HSP) or an empath? Have you ever been told to "toughen up or grow a thicker skin"? Has your intuition been so accurate that you've wondered how you knew it to be true? Do you question why you are often overwhelmed and can sense things others don't see? What if you discovered that, as an HSP, you have unique gifts, which can translate to psychic superpowers? Experience the transformation with Doreen as she shares her intimate and life-changing story. Embracing Venus will bring you to tears, clarify your questions about your sensitivity, intuition and spiritual messages, and jolt you into acting on what you learn about yourself. This book will light up your life and change it in the best possible ways.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Balboa Press
• Release date: Apr 15, 2024
• ISBN: 9798765250150

Doreen A. Lang

Doreen A. Lang, founder of “Embracing Venus Academy,” is a universally recognized author, HSP Coach, Reiki Master, and energy and spiritual mentor. She specializes in clarifying, validating, guiding, and supporting highly sensitive people and empaths to tune in, protect their energy, and use their deep intuition and spiritual gifts for a happier and more authentic life. After experiencing a transformational and life-changing event, she began to consciously develop and research the connection between sensitivity, intuition, and spiritual connection. Today she offers group sessions and individual mentorships through her Signature Program, “Embracing Venus: 7 Activators to Achieve a Life Lit Up for Highly Sensitive People.” This program offers highly sensitive people clarification, validation, and guidance so they can embrace their intuitive gifts. In her teachings, she provides cutting-edge knowledge of intuition, spirituality, and energy healing using results-driven practices. In her three-book series, Hang on to Your Stars, she guides executive leadership to create an employee- and heart-centric environment for optimum results. The First 90 Days: A Step-by-Step Employee Engagement Solution for the Senior Living Community was released in 2017; How to Drive Employee Retention in the First 90 Days Part I, released in 2018; and Putting Differences to Work Part II, released in 2019. Doreen has been featured across media platforms, including The Boston Globe, WATD and WMEX Radio, Cape and Plymouth Business Media, and many others. She was an adjunct professor at Bay State College and a visiting professor at Bentley University and Regis College. She runs workshops and speaks publicly on the subject of highly sensitive people (for men and women) and empaths. Doreen has a BS in education, a master’s degree in management, and is a PhD candidate. She guides and supports her clients virtually from all over the country and, currently, in person at her Blossom Healing Studio in Norwell, Massachusetts. She can be reached at [e-mail].

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Copyright © 2024 Doreen A. Lang.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

The author of this book does not dispense medical advice or prescribe the use of any technique as a form of treatment for physical, emotional, or medical problems without the advice of a physician, either directly or indirectly. The intent of the author is only to offer information of a general nature to help you in your quest for emotional and spiritual well-being. In the event you use any of the information in this book for yourself, which is your constitutional right, the author and the publisher assume no responsibility for your actions.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

ISBN: 979-8-7652-5016-7 (sc)

ISBN: 979-8-7652-5015-0 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2024904471

Balboa Press rev. date:  03/13/2024

Contents

Welcome to Embracing Venus

I Crashed—A Blindsided Awakening

What Is Reiki, and Does It Really Work?

Mom Came to Me

Tom’s Time to Travel

A Scent Was Sent

Two Kindly Visitors

Who’s Afraid of Whom?

Small Red Eyes

Four Types of Sensitivity Explained

Narcissists

The Majority of People Have Empathy

Highly Sensitive People (HSP)

Empaths

Embracing Venus Sensitivity Spectrum Assessment

Two Distinct Camps

A Good Ending Makes a Great Beginning

Acknowledgements

About the Author

Bibliography

Welcome to Embracing Venus

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H as the world felt overwhelming to you for as long as you can remember? Maybe as a young child, you were told, Grow a thicker skin, pull up your bootstraps, or toughen up. Were you also told, You’re too sensitive? Or perhaps, people looked at you with their heads tilted to the side, expressing sympathy for what they perceived as your weakness.

Do the following statements describe you?

• You struggle with stress, confusion, and exhaustion daily.

• You spend inordinate amounts of time looking for ways to escape from noise, conversation, and the world’s energy, preventing you from fully enjoying life in the present.

• You need to retreat regularly to a quiet, sacred place to rest and reset.

• You need to rest or sleep after an event to recover.

• You wonder why you’re so fatigued and overwhelmed.

• You have incredible interpersonal skills with strong intuition and a penetrating sense of what others are thinking and feeling.

• You have trouble trusting your intuition, causing you to ruminate, overthink, creating doubt and anxiety.

• You have received visions, sightings, or messages from spirit.

If you answered yes to many of these statements, you may be a highly sensitive person (HSP). This can feel troubling, I understand. But the great news is you have come to the right place to gain a deeper understanding of your unique sensitivities.

If you are still feeling unsure, don’t go down that rabbit hole thinking, Oh no, this is me! Hang in there because I am about to show you that being an HSP is not a weakness; it is a superpower! Yes, you read that correctly, A SUPERPOWER.

How do I know this?

Have people said to you, You have a beautiful calming energy? or You have inspired me? Have total strangers said to you, I could talk to you about anything? It is important to be aware of these positive aspects as well. The reason we often push aside these positive affirmations from others, paying little attention to them, is because we think many people are just like us and these are common characteristics. But let me tell you, other people aren’t like us, we are special.

According to Medical News Today, Psychologist Elaine Aron, back in 1996, developed the concept of highly sensitive persons (HSP) to describe those who display notable sensitivity to various forms of stimuli. Aron estimates roughly 15–20 percent of the population is highly sensitive.

Another reason we discount the importance of how we positively affect people is that we struggle so hard to understand how being a HSP negatively impacts us. We acknowledge the positivity we have on others and appreciate this ability, but we can’t help but focus on the negative aspects because of pain and discomfort it can create in our lives. The pain outweighs the positive.

If your feelings of sensitivity have only magnified with age, you are probably more open at this point in your life to seek a deeper understanding of what this all means and consider alternative means of healing. This could also be a reason you feel more in tune with your intuition and the idea of spirit as a guide or teacher. This is all important self-work, and I can confidently tell you that you have come to the right place. If you have determined and accepted the fact that you are a highly sensitive person, this book could save your life.

Why?

Because it could prevent you from suffering from an incident like I had. You see, I crashed. My body and mind slammed on the brakes and stopped me in my tracks. Our bodies listen to us regardless of what we’re doing, who we are with, or where we are. Eventually, it wins. For me, it happened to be during a beautiful vacation.

I had a busy career working in a fast-paced and demanding industry while running a family. My career soared, and my responsibilities multiplied. I wore the clothes and the smile each day, but I always struggled with overstimulation. My life was a chronic marathon on a hamster wheel, but that was what the job required. Stimulation was everywhere, and everything seemed to bombard me. I lived with feelings of being overwhelmed and exhausted and suffered from excruciatingly painful, chronic stomach issues. I worked like hell and suffered in silence.

I hid my symptoms and conflicting feelings like a seasoned actress and pushed on. I spent a lifetime trying to ignore the distress. When things got too hard to ignore, I listened to doctors who told me it was probably just brought on by stress, and ultimately, they dismissed me with a prescription for medication. I figured they were right. But then one day my body wouldn’t stand for it anymore, and it brought me to a hard stop.

I will be very honest with you: To say it was painful and frightening (which I will explain more about in a subsequent chapter) was an understatement. But the golden result was that it was also an Awakening. I refer to this as my Awakening because that’s when I woke up. I literally woke up after sleeping for almost two straight weeks, and I also woke up to a new reality and understanding.

It was through a combination of concentrated sleep and awakened reflection that I recovered. I was amazed by the power and strength of my mind and body working in perfect harmony. It was trying to tell me something, and for once, I was paying attention. This experience played out a story and brought in a series, one by one, of past synchronicities, strange occurrences and events, coincidences, and visions I had ignored. It all came pouring into my mind like a waterfall full of light, and it all made sense. My mind, soul, and spirit came together and came alive with crystal clarity. This revelation felt like nothing less than messages from above—from some higher spirit space that I had not known existed. It was as though I had grown new, functioning windshield wipers over my eyes, and they were working for the very first time. This experience made it clear to me that I didn’t have a problem. In fact, I had an amazing gift—which I spent a lifetime ignoring. My sensitivity was not a weakness; it was a superpower in that I could feel and sense what others could not.

My Awakening brilliantly arranged the abstract and disparate pieces of all my past mystifying messages and strange occurrences into a beautiful tapestry. It was during my Awakening that I learned about meditation and how it taps into our quiet mind like a beautiful new world that is waiting to be seen. I also learned about Reiki as an amazing way to relax and heal. It was upon this deep reflection that I became determined to understand more, and my research began. Through it all, I came to understand that I am not only an HSP, but I am also an empath.

An empath is a person who is highly attuned to the energies and emotions of those around them. We feel what others are feeling so deeply that we absorb or take on the emotions themselves, often at the expense of our own emotional well-being. Additionally, we can receive messages from unknown sources without thought or reason.

Let me give you an example of the power of tuning in, listening and trusting your powerful intuition.

My client, Rosemarie, is an HSP. She had come in for many Reiki sessions to relax. During our sessions, she would often receive visions of past times she spent with her husband when they were both very young and in the happiest points of their marriage.

Rosemarie came to me recently feeling very sad. Her husband was in a senior living community with dementia and a physical disability, which prevented him from walking or communicating. I asked how I could help her, and she said, I really just need to relax and detach from my worries and sadness. She also said, I know this sounds terrible, but I need my husband to move to the light. There is no quality of life for him here, and I am exhausted from worry and dread. He has been failing now for over a year, and I don’t know how much more sadness I can take.

My heart went out to her as I watched her tears slowly roll down her face. I gave her a Reiki session, and when it was over, she told me that she felt beautifully calm.

During her session, I clearly saw her husband’s face, but he was a young man. Instead of looking ill, he looked vital and happy. He was smiling. When the session was over, I asked her if I could share with her what I saw during Reiki. She said yes. I told her that he came to me during Reiki, and he looked healthy, handsome, and young.

She smiled and said that he was a beautiful man and quite the looker.

Then, from somewhere, an unknown place from which I have learned to pay attention to, I told her, It will start with a fever, and he will go quickly. Honestly, I surprised us both.

But she looked at me with wide, worried eyes and said, I just left him this morning; he’s fine.

I told her I could not explain it or give her any more information, but the message came to me very clearly. That was on a Monday morning.

Wednesday morning, she texted me and said, The nurse at the community called me just now. Carl has a fever. I’m heading in. He’s quite sick.

Friday morning, Rosemarie texted me, Carl passed away early this morning. OMG thank you.

You see, scientists and naysayers might roll their eyes upon hearing this story, but you, my HSP friend, I believe you understand or at the very least are open to hearing more.

HSPs and empaths are prone to deep intuition and capable of communicating with spirit. Could this be you as well? You will get closer to that answer as you read on. There will also be more information on empaths later in the book.

To my HSP readers, Buckle up! You’re going to join me on a wild ride as you read about my honest and personal experiences and stories throughout the book. This is all to help you begin to see and trust yourself as a very special HSP.

Wherever you are on your journey, accept it as if you had chosen it. You were meant to be where you are right now, at this moment in time. As you are holding this book, I am holding your hand. I was meant to meet you, and I want to help you gain clarity and maximize your gifts.

I want to empower you and help you gain clarity around being an HSP. I want you to realize that things are not happening to you—they are happening for you. Get ready to feel transformed. Turning the light on for you and supporting you was the impetus for me to write this book.

There are many resources on the subject of HSPs that speak to the science, and many resources speak solely from a deeply spiritual place. This book is a blend as well as a first-hand personal account of a true journey. I hope you keep it and refer to it when you need personal validation on those days when our highly stimulating world feels a little too much for you. And do me a favor; please share the book. Please tell others whom you believe it could help. We HSPs love to help others grow.

What I am doing now

After working with hundreds of clients who come to me for Reiki and/or coaching to address the challenges of being an HSP, I realized one day that my work to relax and support them for their highest good was missing a critical, key result.

It became clear to me that HSPs need clarity around what they are feeling and sensing and how they respond to other peoples’ energy. Many HSPs are in relationships with narcissistic mothers, fathers, husbands, friends, etc. Some can’t set boundaries to protect their energy. The world can feel very difficult for HSPs. Ignoring self-care and not saying no is a constant. Not bending over backward for a friend goes against our very nature.

To respond to HSPs, to guide and support them to make changes that will get them tangible results, I created an exclusive program just for them.

My Signature Program, Embracing Venus Academy – 7 Activators to Achieve a Life Lit Up for Highly Sensitive People, consists of eight weeks of targeted and collaborative instruction delivering results.

I invite you, my reader, to reach out to me for a complimentary, 60-minute, one-on-one call to go even deeper than you where you are now to help you gain your next level of clarity and to support you on the next steps to take.

I am excited for you; your journey has just begun. There is so much to consider and comprehend. This is where your soul and spirit meet—you have arrived.

Your authentic self is where your true treasures lie. It’s time to embrace your Venus.

Doreen Lang

Embracing Venus

I hope to hear from you! [e-mail] or text me at 617-455-5636.

I Crashed—A Blindsided Awakening

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M y body started to shake.

It was around 10:00 a.m., and I started to feel sick—really sick. I was shaking and had horrible chest pains. The pain and tightness started in my chest, spread down into my stomach, ran up into my shoulders, and finally down my arms. My arms and hands were tingling, and I couldn’t take