It's a Tuesday night, in Ponsonby, Auckland. I - Ben O'Connor, Newshub video producer - am standing in a room, with eight strangers, all of us breathing deeply.
A 'soul revealer' paces the room, softly murmuring instructions.
"Open up your energy field like a bubble and let information from the people in front of you come to you."
My energy field is open, my eyes are closed.
"Try to feel them, what they want to express but also what they're hiding."
I'm here to unleash my hidden superpower.
You've probably experienced empathy. It's how we feel for other people. Through body language, vocal tone and other social cues, we recognise emotions we've felt ourselves, in others.
But according to a subset of people, known to themselves as 'Empaths', those feelings aren't always our own.
Empaths believe emotions can - and do - cross the boundaries of physical space, entering the minds of 'receivers' like an emotional ram-raid.
When used correctly, some Empaths believe their ability can be harnessed into a superpower.
I liked the sound of that, so I decided to attend a workshop run by empath and 'soul revealer' Audrey Bongat.
Hopefully she could teach me how to unleash my inner empath.
Watch the video.
