Hello again!
This is a continuation of my last post.
Today, I’d like to explore energy vampires from the perspective of Qi (energy).
In the previous post, we looked at common ways people suggest dealing with energy vampires:
Creating distance
Not listening too much
Setting boundaries
In other words, stepping away or pulling back from the person.
Now, if the other person is just an acquaintance or casual friend, that approach might work just fine.
But what if the person is a close friend? Or even family?
In those cases, it’s not always so easy to simply put distance between you.
But here’s the good news:
From the perspective of internal alchemy Qigong, which I practice, the situation can often be seen very differently.
It may just be that your energy is being overpowered by the momentum of the other person’s energy.
That’s all.
In nature, energy—Qi—naturally flows from a stronger source to a weaker one.
That’s simply how it works.
So what is this energy we’re supposedly being “drained” of?
We are living beings who absorb life force energy (Prana) from nature.
We take in Prana through breathing, eating, and through the first chakra (root chakra).
In my understanding, Prana and Qi are not the same.
Here’s how I view it:
Prana enters the body and is transformed into Qi via the second chakra. This Qi then circulates through the entire body.
This Qi doesn’t just flow inside the body—it also circulates outside of us, and then re-enters the body again through the first chakra, pulling in more natural energy from the environment as it moves.
There are said to be 27,000 Qi channels (meridians) in the body.
But Qi doesn’t just travel through these energy channels—it also flows through the bloodstream, alongside blood.
So if you count the entire circulatory system, it’s way more than just 27,000 lines!
And while there are general patterns or “main highways” of Qi flow, the full picture of Qi movement is… well, incredibly complex.
Imagine that scene from Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, the Ghibli film, where the Ohmu’s golden tentacles stretch out in every direction—up, down, diagonally, wrapping around in ways you can’t quite track.
That’s what Qi flow is like. It moves within and outside the body in all directions, beyond easy definition.
(Okay—I tend to go off on a Qi tangent when I get excited. 😅)
Anyway—Qi supports our physical body and our mind.
We use it to keep our body functioning, to think, and to act.
And whenever we interact with others, there’s a mutual energy exchange happening—even if we don’t realize it.
We often say someone has “strong energy” or “weak energy.”
But from an energetic perspective, that difference is usually more about personality than the actual strength of Qi.
In fact, what affects Qi flow more than anything is whether our energy channels are open and circulating smoothly.
And remember:
Qi naturally flows from strong to weak.
So it’s not really that your energy is being “sucked away.”
More accurately, the other person’s energy is flowing into you.
And without realizing it, you’re allowing their energy to enter your system.
So…
Do energy vampires actually exist?
That’s the question I’ll explore next time!
