I’m a superhero.

Like most superheroes, I’ve learned to keep my powers hidden and quiet. Only those closest to me know. And like most superheroes, I grew up thinking I was fundamentally flawed because of my powers. Of course, before I realized the whole superhero thing, I didn’t consider them “powers” nor did I see them as positive. I considered them weird quirks that isolated me from everyone else and I saw them as a curse.

Having found my way through the darkness of the proverbial innermost cave of the hero’s journey, I now know better. I’ve returned with the elixir and, as Joseph Campbell’s myth would have it, things are not the same. Now I know there are others like me, many of whom are still hiding their powers—even from themselves—and still thinking they’re flawed.

To the sensitive souls, who are still struggling, quivering alone outside the cave wondering if they’re worthy enough to go in, here are seven ways your cursed quirks are more like blessed superpowers.

May these give you the courage to explore your own innermost cave and see for yourself not only how powerful you truly are, but also the impact you can have on others, once you learn to use your superpowers for good.

1. You have emotional X-ray vision.

Like Superman, with his ability to see through walls, you can see through someone’s Crest-white-strip-smile, underneath their bubbly facade, seeing their sadness and longing. Thoreau’s quote: “Most men lead lives of quiet desperation” is inaccurate for you. There’s nothing quiet about other people’s desperation. You see it loud and clear. Because of this, you can cut through pretenses and show kindness and empathy toward those desperately needing it.

2. You are an emotional absorber.

Along with seeing someone’s hidden sadness, you often feel it as if it were your own. You walk down a crowded street and as people pass by, their energy passes through you and you suddenly feel their joy, sadness, anger, loneliness or anything else they may be feeling. Because of this, you can take in their pain, transmute it and return it to them purified with love and strength. You can learn how to do this without being negatively affected by it and use it to empower yourself and others.

3. You are a human lie detector.

You have a built-in bullsh*t meter and you can tell when someone’s lying. You might not be able to explain it and often can’t prove it, but you know it. Something just feels off. Like Spiderman, with his “Spidey sense” when danger approaches, you can sense a bullsh*t artist before he even opens his mouth. Because of this, you can avoid certain people and situations before they become major problems for you.

4. You can see into the future.

You may or may not be a full on psychic, but you often have a sense of what’s about to happen before it happens. You think of someone and in that instant, the phone rings and it’s them. Or you wake up with a tight knot in your stomach and then something bad happens to you or someone you love that day. Or you have a dream that comes true months later. Because of this, you can bend time, soften outcomes and prepare for things in advance.

5. You have holographic perspective.

Unlike a photograph, which can only be viewed from one side, a hologram can be seen from all angles. You not only see circumstances and situations from multiple angles, you have the ability to see other people’s perspectives—even if you don’t agree—and keep your mind open to any possibilities. Because of this, you are able to perceive other’s points of view and understand why they do what they do, bringing a sense of calm, compassion and mediation to conflict.

6. You have heightened energy sensors.

You can walk into a room and feel the denseness of an argument that happened there moments before. Or you meet someone for the first time and have the urge to run away from them. You feel the energy of places, people, objects and nature so strongly that sometimes it shocks you that others don’t feel it. Because of this, you can put yourself in situations and locations that best serve you or remove yourself from those that don’t. You can mold your environment to suit your needs by harnessing energies that make you stronger, rather than mold yourself to suit the environment and diminishing your energy.

7. You are multi-dimensionally conscious.

You are aware of dimensions beyond the physical time/space continuum and while you may walk, talk and carry on your daily life going through the motions of a physical being, a big part of your lives in an untouchable, unexplainable realm that you inherently know is more real than the reality beyond the five senses. Because of this, you are able to create inspired works of art—through music, words, architecture, paintings or any creative medium—that reach deep inside people and touch parts of them longing to awaken. You have wisdom that exceeds your years of experience on Earth and, when tragic things happen, that drop others to their knees, you have an inner strength and knowing that keeps you standing. Even when you fall—and you often do—you get back up. And then you carry on and help others up.

Because that’s what superheroes do.

And that’s what we are.

We’re superheroes. And these are our superpowers.

This article originally published on elephantjournal.com