The experience of empathy paired with love and caring. Healthy when the person receiving compassion cares for himself and feels real gratitude for the love and care he is given. Unhealthy when the empath cares more than the receiving person and is taken advantage of or feels drained by the experience. Healthy compassion generates more energy. Unhealthy compassion quickly depletes energy and rather than really help, enables unhealthy patterns. When we recognize unhealthy codependent patterns, setting boundaries is a compassionate and empowering response for everyone involved.
