Garlic and Sunlight: How to Thwart the Energy Vampires in Your Life
We all know them.
The people who seem to drain your energy whenever you interact with them. The friends, family members, co-workers, or acquaintances who leave you feeling disoriented, exhausted, annoyed, and longing for a nap after spending time together.
Enter the energy vampires!
These metaphorical vampires don’t suck your blood, but they do suck your precious life force like a milkshake through a straw until you feel utterly depleted. Dealing with energy vampires can be frustrating and tiring. You feel wrung out like a dishrag that has been through all the kitchens in town and more…
What can you do? Let them haplessly transform you into one of theirs? Become one yourself? Join them if you can’t beat them? Help them transform into self-sufficient energy humans?
I wouldn’t suggest that as a wise course of action! You most certainly do NOT want to become what feeds on you and others or take the responsibility of their transformation into something decently human. Are they even willing to do the work required? Besides, have you seen how truly ugly they actually are, inside out? Agh!
With the right strategies, you can outsmart this nosferatu and protect your energetic reserves. Fight back with these seven very effective tips:
1. Wear Garlic
Vampires hate garlic, so try hanging some figurative garlic around your neck to ward off the energy suckers. This means establishing strong boundaries and limiting contact with the most toxic energy vampires. Don’t invite them into your home or engage more than necessary. Be straightforward in communicating that you have limited time and energy and are busy with something very important and very official, which of course is protecting yourself but you do not have to spell that out in as many words to them. Use whatever excuse works for them. Also remember, the less exposure, the better.
2. Let the Sunshine In
Like literal vampires, energy vampires shun sunshine. They thrive in negative environments filled with complaints, gossip, and toxic energy. Fight back by radiating positivity. Share good news, express gratitude, talk about things that light you up. Bring like-minded, positive and optimistic friends along, the more, the merrier! Your bright spirits will repel the energy vampires, who feed on doom and gloom. They may eventually realize you’re not an all-you-can-eat melancholy buffet.
3. Hand Them a Mirror
Energy vampires are experts at dumping their problems and eliciting pity. They thrive on sympathy and attention and wish to keep the focus on themselves and their story. If cornered, instead of sympathising, hold up a figurative mirror to reflect their behaviour back at them. Say things like “It sounds like you’re having a tough time. What do you plan to do about it?” or change the topic to a different narrative peppered with juicy details. This will be enough to distract them in some cases, keeping their minds grappling with the new story while you plan your escape. Don’t give them your energy — deflect their vampirism back at themselves.
4. Grab the Holy Water
Holy water burns energy vampires (metaphorically of course). For you, this holy water is enforcing boundaries and choosing when to interact. You decide when, where, and how you engage. Set parameters and don’t let them trap you into endless conversations, especially if you’re tired or overwhelmed. You’re in control — sprinkle that holy water! Make a sacred circle around yourself that nobody can disrespect or enter without your express permission!
5. Wear a Crucifix
Like vampires, energy suckers recoil from crucifixes. This represents faith in the divine connection with one’s own power. Your crucifix is the knowledge that you are strong, capable, and unwilling to let others diminish your light. When energy vampires go in for the attack, clutch that metaphorical crucifix as a reminder of your inner strength. It will repel their parasitic tendencies. They fear people who are grounded in themselves and cannot be shaken.
6. Pack a Stake
When confronting an especially persistent energy vampire, come prepared with a metaphorical stake. This means having an exit strategy planned so you can make a swift and decisive departure when needed. Give them an inch and they’ll take a mile, so have a stake handy to finish them off when they try to suck you dry. A simple “Sorry, I really have to run” can drive the stake through their energy-sucking heart, leaving them a-standing mouth half open, fangs stuck mid-air! Polite yet firm excuses to make your getaway are an essential tool when dealing with the most stubborn of soul-suckers. So arm yourself with a reliable stake, and use it when the bloodsuckers come knocking!
7. Invest in a Coffin
When all else fails, have a coffin ready to discreetly escape into. Your coffin symbolizes healthy boundaries and leaving a situation when you’ve reached your energetic limit. If an energy vampire is draining you, simply say “Well, it’s been coffin to see you, but I really must run!” Then spirit yourself away before they try to latch on for more.
Escaping energy vampires may take patience and practice. But with time, awareness and practice, you will gain confidence fending off their sinister ploys.
Remember, your energy belongs to you. Nobody has any stake in it for no reason whatsoever, not because of relationship, duty, guilt, responsibility, emotional manipulation or whatever.
Shield it from thirsty vampires and let your radiant light shine! Now go forth and (metaphorically) impale those energy-sucking fiends through the heart once and for all!
As a mindfulness practitioner and life-design coach, I help clients focus on well-being and personal growth and make life choices that prioritize their mental and emotional health. I work with them to resolve confidence issues and Imposter Syndrome. This leads to personal freedom and independence allowing the person to blossom and manifest the life they deserve. If you’re looking to expand your horizons and/or overcome issues, connect with me.