Developing your intuition as a highly sensitive person can be a tremendous gift. Listening to your intuition can give you subtle information from the world around you to and help guide you to answers for all sorts of questions or dilemmas. It can help you to know what direction to take in your personal life, with work or training;  ‘Knowing’ who or what to trust (in all kinds of relationships or situations), helping you navigate setting your personal boundaries, easing anxiety as you trust in your ‘knowing’ or intuitive hunches etc. 

This will happen once you begin to develop your sensitivity superpowers more as a HSP and start living a more intuitive life - this does not mean you will always have the answers at your fingertips. Some things you may discover can remain a blank mystery purposefully. Here are some of the reasons why and what you might be experiencing when it happens…

1. You’re not meant to know

When my intuition goes blank or I ask my Guides a direct question and they go silent or I feel them step back or with draw, I realise I'm not meant to know the answer or I might be missing the point. Our ‘conscious self’ often wants certainty and answers and we can look to our intuition to give - guidance, 'knowing' or direction. However his approach can also be somewhat linear and sometimes there might be important lessons we will learn in a non-linear journey.

Our patriarchal society supports this - driven approach, wanting clear answers, with immediacy which we can apply to our intuition. I know because as someone with very yang tendencies I can do this - it makes me think of a Mcdonald's drive in, get in quick, queue, speedy, get what was required, done. But our logical mind (seeking certainty, or in desperation) can be driving the intuitive questioning which leaves no space for the mysterious unfolding of life. 

I'll give you an example, about once every 6 months I will go and see a Medium I know to get a sense of direction or reassurance when I need it i.e. Am I on track with my work (as it is an unfolding mystery!). The last time I went to see her the message was, ‘stop asking us, we can't give you the specific details you're looking for - what will be a success might surprise you’ - ha! So once again I had to let go of my sense of urgency, step back and trust the process which isn’t always easy if life pressures are snapping at your heels huh?

2. Having to trust the process

When life feels tough, it can be really tough to trust ‘the process’ when we are desperate for change. For example: At a point in my journey to date, there was a time where I felt like I was wading in treacle, unhappy, in emotional and physical pain feeling stuck, trying with great effort to evolve but going nowhere. Each time, I was being told by healers that the message was to trust, trust the process and healing or change was coming which is really hard when you feel frustrated, uneasy or really frightened. 

“Sometimes when you're in a dark place you think you've been buried, but you've actually been planted” Christine Caine. We can be unconscious that we are being ‘worked’ and are on a journey of learning or discovery. Sometimes a difficult process may actually be a cocoon of transformation for us, but we don’t know that yet. All we can do is go one step at a time in the dark with a torch, putting one foot in front of the other. It’s as simple as that. Subconsciously a radical shift may be being asked of you which takes time, energy and staying in the unknown.

At these times it can be helpful to hear from others that have gone through similar experiences and come out the other side: be it divorce, menopause, working with an illness, pregnancy or becoming a parent, trauma symptoms, changing careers etc. When we are in the thick of transition it can feel never ending and if there is no end in sight, it is hard to keep faith that a shift is coming, keep going and not fall into despair or old patterns. 

3. Painful lessons leading to growth

Adversity can bring growth. We are being asked to stretch ourselves and learn - expand to our true potential. But learning from discomfort, pain and difficulty is usually not what we would opt for consciously! There are some choices we wouldn’t make if we were conscious of the pain in store, but then we would miss out on the learning too, which perhaps is what we are here to do. 

I remember in the midst of dealing with severe trauma symptoms, not sleeping, shaking with terror continuously, overwhelmed, not knowing what to do or how to get through the day I saw a chiropractor who was a secret shaman. I asked him what or why this was happening and I saw him listen in to his guides then say something that felt life changing in that moment to me ‘You are going through this as you knew you were strong enough to handle it and heal. Then you will help others recover - it will take you a year / year and a half but then it will be over’

At that moment I was horrified. I didn’t know how I was going to get through the week let alone a year and a half. Also I had no idea at that time how I would heal. But it was true, that’s how long it took and that was the conviction I had by the end - to help others suffering with the same issues. Sometimes our suffering can bring out a mission for us. Sometimes it can make us realise just how strong we really are although we're stretched. Sometimes a failure might give us the idea that leads to success. The process may actually empower us and mold us to be able to bring the wisdom we have to impart.

4. Limited information: Knowing something, but not knowing why

Sometimes our intuition can give us a piece of information to follow but not the full picture which can feel annoying - until we learn to trust it more (but even then if it is derailing our plans by telling us to go in a different direction it can be frustrating!). We may have this strong calling to visit a certain place, or to have an extended period of time off, or leave our job with nothing to leap to - and not really know why or what the next step is.

I'll give you an example. After I left the Arts I wasn't sure what I was going to do, I ended up doing temp jobs at the local council. Then I studied Shiatsu, not really thinking it would be full time but knowing I wanted to learn about the mind-body and spirit. Once I started practising I found I still had this itch, as much as I wanted that to be ‘it’ - study over, job done but it wasn't quite answering the questions I had or problems I wanted to solve, so I continued my studies - EFT, then NLP, then hypnosis, all exploring healing the subconscious mind. Soon I found my own style blending my skills and knowledge. I then had the confidence to go entirely rogue and began ‘channelling healing’. 

Each stage of the way I was following the thread of a feeling - ‘this isn't quite it’, this is a piece of the puzzle. I didn't even know what ‘it’ was. But now I have my own unique way of working, that satisfies my need for transformation. On my journey I have often had the strong sense of being held by ‘the sacred feminine’ - wordless wisdom, the unseen pull, the quiet whispers, the knowledge gifted in dreams, the internal nudges, a call beyond the veil. Although we are in the dark and may stumble we are being silently guided finding our way step by step with the light of a torch.

5. Blessing of right timing 

I received a healing session not long ago and my friend who could see a ‘structural’ block around my lower dantian,  asked her guides if it could be removed and the answer was no, not yet - this will happen in the Autumn. I found that disappointing, as it sounded positive to remove it but trusted it was in hand. Now at this time I was unaware that I was going to meet a new mentor in Autumn who initiated a huge shift in my consciousness in one session - so many ‘light levels’ I was able to access and see, I believe it was released at this point. 

This is the blessing of ‘right timing’ as sometimes we are not ready to receive what is required or to let go of what needs to be released. There is a phrase in Buddhism, ‘the dharma (teachings) which is caught not taught’ the mind has to be receptive. Just like the parable in the bible, that the seeds that are thrown on the earth will not all be sown and grow, it depends on where on the land they fall on, if they have the right conditions. Sometimes the timing is not ripe for the change to happen. 

Then on the flip side when the ‘timing is right’ sometimes things just fall into place, be it through a series of synchronicities perhaps we are led to the right partner, job, mentor, teachings, place etc. Sometimes it can even be off the back of ‘bad’ experiences - because that business failed, it led me to my new idea and that was a success etc. Often we only have a sense of the path when we look back at our tracks. 

6. Part of a collective evolution

When we are absorbed in our own ‘mess’ or dealing with our own life it can be easy to forget that actually the rise and falling tide of the collective is impacting our experience unconsciously - until a pandemic hits of course. There can be a larger journey of ‘souls’ happening as a collective over a large span of time that may be influencing our life experience - a shift in consciousness and evolution that is occurring that we are not privy to. Our process of ‘arrival’ in certain areas of our lives can be linked to ‘when the world is ready’ too. 

As highly sensitive people we are more likely to be affected by collective group experiences and will be impacted by them, I will give examples from my experience i.e. suddenly feeling really anxious out of the blue for three days - finding out other sensitives feel the same then discovering there is a huge shift in the magnetic field of the earth or solar flare. Feeling hit by enormous grief when you wake, not knowing why and finding out about massive devastating earthquakes. We are impacted but are unaware of what is occurring but are affected by the collective consciousness. 

This is when it can be really helpful and important to be around other people who are either on a similar healing journey or spiritual path as you. So you're around more sensitive people who may also be impacted and aware of this experience so you don't feel like you’re alone with it all. It’s good to remember that developing your intuitive intelligence is a muscle like any other and with practice we can become more discerning about the messages we receive or what is arising to help us navigate our experiences.

Further Reading

Six reasons your intuition is your most valuable life tool

Six reasons you're struggling to make intuitive life decisions

Enjoyed this blog? Leave me your thoughts below as I'd love to hear them or share the blog with a friend. To read more join my e-letter to receive my blog and personal reflections to your inbox.