My first insight into the feeling of being internally old occurred during adolescence.
I felt unusually different from the kids around me, somehow older, but ‘mature’ wasn’t exactly the right word. The best way I could describe it back then was as though I had lived hundreds of years of life which had been condensed into 16 years of time.
As the years went by, I encountered a few Old Souls who I shared my experiences with. I would talk about my insights and introduce them to the concept of Old Souls. One of these people was Luna. She was so excited about it that she eventually wrote the well-received article 9 Signs You’re An Old Soul as well as a subsequent Old Soul Book.
In my years of mentoring Old Souls and helping them through their spiritual development, I’ve witnessed a number of issues. I want to mention that it’s important to remember that having an Old Soul doesn’t necessarily equate to being ‘all-knowing’ or perfect. Rather, it’s an indication of the age of the energy known as your soul. With that being said, these are some of the biggest problems I’ve seen, and personally experienced:
1# You’re a Social Outcast
As with anyone who perceives the world differently from others, Old Souls can experience a great (and unending) sense of isolation. Because they fail to fit into the standards that society admires and values (careers, materialism, status and so forth), they’re commonly seen as strange, offbeat and unconventional.
2# You’re the “Black Sheep”
While Old Souls can build many strong relationships with people, their penetrating ability to connect with the depths of the people in their lives can create many enemies. Seeing deeply into the core issues of the people around them, Old Souls feel an innate desire to be truthful, even if this means revealing uncomfortable truths such as the fact that many problems are caused by immaturity, or a failure to take responsibility.
Those who are willing to change will listen and like you, while the rest will feel great disdain towards you. This is why Old Souls often become the “devils advocates” or “black sheep” of their friends or family.
3# You Often Get Mislabeled
If there’s something we all love and are good at, it’s labeling people. We fool ourselves into thinking we can “know” someone by attributing a label to them. However, humans are far too complex to be boxed into a specific and unchanging group of people. In this case, Old Souls will often be given different labels, from “beatniks” to “hippies”, “anarchists” to “new age freaks”.
While you can’t fight labels, you can try to use them in a positive way. Labels can be used as signposts, as directions towards awareness of some quality many of us share. These qualities will be different in intensity and strength in each of us, but at least they will help us understand ourselves (and the people around us) a bit better.
This is partly why I called the Old Soul Group “I’m an Old Soul” – not so people can gain egotistical pride with such a label, but to create a sense of self-awareness, to allow people to better understand themselves.
4# You Speak an Entirely Different Language
Words are symbols we each load with our own unique definitions according to our own unique life experiences that are associated with each word. What I associate with love might be entirely different from what you associate with love. For example: When someone thinks about love, they might remember their old failed relationship and feel a terrible sense of vulnerability when the word arises, while others might associate love with loyalty and friendship.
Old Souls realize this limitation, and therefore greatly struggle to express entirely what they want to say, knowing that it’s as though they are speaking an entirely different language from others.
5# You Are Prone to Intense Existential Crises
I have sometimes witnessed cases where Old energy is born into the body of a person who does not have the matching mental maturity to embrace it. This can result in depressions, substance abuse and existential crisis’s.
When a person realizes that everything is transitional and passing, life can become pointless. This person sees that our bodies are temporary vessels that don’t really matter, and without the ability to cultivate self-love, self-destructive habits can result.
In this case, it’s necessary to undergo intense spiritual-growth, to cultivate existential meaning and inner-understanding through inner work in order to learn how to embrace your soul.
6# You Easily Become Emotionally Drained
With the wisdom and patience that comes with being an Old Soul, there also comes others people’s desire to use you as a dumping ground for their emotions. I’ve experienced this a lot in my own life, often experiencing emotionally-charged conversations that last for hours at a time. Some Old Souls also double as Empaths, which can also take a great toll on your energy.
7# You’re Prone to Becoming Mentally Drained
In the search for truth, deeper understanding and inner exploration of yourself and the world around you, it is common for the Old Soul to experience a lot of mental fatigue. Double this with acting as a mediator between people and their problems, and you’ll end up exhausted at the end of the day.
#8 You Struggle to Find a Kindred Spirit
If making friends who connect with you is difficult, finding a Soul Mate, or life partner, can be even more of a challenge. It took me living in 6 different countries to find Luna.
But it’s not always as hard as that. Having the wisdom to discern the true depths of your connection with a person will be your greatest asset in the area of love.
#9 You’re Crippled By Possibilities
As we grow in maturity our perception of possibilities and explanations expands: we see life from limitless angles. This means that we see more than one way of doing things which makes us unfailingly indecisive as we see the full expanse of possibilities, and the lack of absolutes. Although making decisions and judgments can be a crippling experience, this can double as a virtue, allowing us to understand that we can’t simply judge people by face value, and that they are the result of millions of internal and external influences.
Old Souls: Mystics and Sages eBook:
Are you solitary, thoughtful, and intuitive? Have you always felt like an outsider on this planet? If so, you may be an Old Soul – and you're not alone. Discover more about your rare gifts!
#10 You Yearn For a Place to Belong
For some Old Souls, the world feels alien. They find it hard to understand people, why such chaos and misery exists and how it is allowed, and sometimes encouraged, to continue. They long to find a place where they feel like they belong, a space filled with freedom and liberation. This often results in the feeling that this world is not their true home.
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Regardless of which of the above problems you may come across, these struggles will affect your life a lot less when you grow in inner understanding and acceptance.
The stronger your ability to channel and use the Old energy that is latent within you, the greater your capacity will be to aid in the continuation and evolution of your soul.
Please feel free to share your experiences below.
There was something almost mysterious about this woman. Her face had lots of wrinkles. These were the first things to catch your eye, but they didn’t make her look old. Instead, they emphasized a certain youthfulness in her that transcended age. The wrinkles belonged where they were, as if they had been part of her face since birth. When she smiled, the wrinkles smiled with her; when she frowned, the wrinkles frowned, too. And when she was neither smiling nor frowning, the wrinkles lay scattered over her face in a strangely warm, ironic way. ~ Haruki Murakami (Norwegian Wood)
when you don’t write about being an old soul…you just may be
you do not need to post on social media……..
Being an old soul is mostly a pain in the ass. I would not wish this on anyone. But I cannot avoid it, and if you are an old soul neither can you. I devoutly hope that after this life I never have to be reincarnated again.
If you’re unhappy being an old soul then you WILL reincarnate over and over again until you realize what your mission is on this planet. HINT: it is NOT to try and fit in with society and be a complainer! Enjoy!
I was always told I was an old soul. And have always felt it. My interests are childlike, because that is the only pure joy in this world, I feel. Painting, coloring, games ect. Feeling like I dobt belong. Seeing the people of this world and asking “how?” And “why?”. Just wishing everyone could just see just below the surface and realize why their problems are not something to be so intensely crippled by. That it’s okay. That you dont need to force belonging. It finds you. Or you find it, but without force of any kind.
Everytime I try to explain this, when someone comes to me with a problem, it falls on deft ears. And I in return get a strange look like “ha, okay buddha”… no I’m not buddha, I’m not your mom, or idol, or hero. I’m a fellow human sharing kindness. That is all. All I wish is for you to digest that kindness and hopefully pass it on…. I dont know. Life is weird. And hard. I’m just trying to be my best self. And that means perfectly balancing selfishness and selflessness. But it is so hard sometimes when people just think I’m an idiot or the quiet one. Or the weird one. And dont think I’m worth listening to.
Sorry for spelling errors. I word vomited all that out and didnt want to ruin it by editing
Isabella, I feel your pain! and frustration. I have a similar experience, people seem to gravitate to me seeking answers, then when I explain what seems to be obvious to me they don’t understand . .. there is nothing for us to do, we have the give & the curse of being Old Souls, and most of the younger souls just cannot understand, they may have many lifetimes to live yet before they do, so don’t beat up on yourself, Do what you can, then let it go. Don’t try too hard to be your best self, just let it be, you don’t need to try to strike a perfect balance between selfishness and selflessness or anything else, perfect balances are impossible!
One morning walking out of the courthouse in Sacramento the Spirits gave me an epiphany, that 99% of the law is just variations on the theme of the Golden Rule, treat others as you wish to be treated, do not do to another what you do not want done to yourself, be fair, be honest, the law tries to encourage us to do that and punish us if we don’t; and it’s not just the law of the State of California, its the essence of the Karmic law. Everything good flows form that one simple idea.
We can’t fix them, maybe sometimes we can help them a bit, but not too much, their struggles are struggles only they can live and learn from, you and I have probably lived many lives before this one, they’re much younger, perhaps many lifetimes younger, nothing we can do about that. I’ve learned (the hard way!) not to let myself get too tangled up helping other people out of their messes unless they’re 100% ready to help themselves too. Most of the time they’re not.
If you’ve never done a past life regression with a hypnotist, I recommend it, it gives you a whole bigger perspective when you see bits and pieces of lives you’ve lived perhaps hundreds or thousands of years ago, it’s not easy; it can be a very emotionally traumatic experience, most of our past lives were hard lives, were probably weren’t living in fairy tale castle. But it gives you a whole different kind of perspective when you feel, you know, I’ve been here many times before, I’ll probably be here again, and again, until I’m ready to end the cycle of reincarnation and flow back into the Great Spirit from whence we came.
Being alone is a very good thing
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Hi there! I want to ask if there, by any chance, is any chat for people like us. I am 31 y.o. woman from Slovakia and I felt lonely and deeply depressed almost every single day of these 31 years (my first memories are of me as a 3-year-old child who feels sad, lonely and too old). Not even one of my partners could get close to me mentally or emotionally. I’m not closing myself, not at all. I am artist and thank to my job I meet hundreds and hundreds of new people every year but I have never met anyone like me. Actually nobody knows how much I suffer inside. People think I am perfectly fine and content with my life. How could I even complain if there’s nothing “visibly” wrong with me. Please, help! I am sooo tired of this life…. I can’t take it anymore…
Hi, Susan, I’m a teenager and I totally understand what you are going through. I remember being 6 years old and continuously asking myself existential questions, being 9 years old and feeling dead and depressed inside, etc. Now I am happy: I find a lot of joy being alone in nature, praying, helping people, writing poems and just living in the moment. I’m grateful for everything and I often wonder why I’m feeling so awesome. I totally know how it is to have “everything” in life but still find it unbearable because something is missing within you: I was like that at 9 years old. Sooner or later it gets better. Anyways, I’m sure there are lots of people like you, only that they aren’t revealing the depths of who they are. I also thought I was the only one until I met a few people who understood me and whom I could connect with. I hope you’ll as well be blessed with such people in your life. Love from Canada. :)
Susan, you are an Old Soul Artist, my condolences! You speak other languages that very few people can even begin to understand, it’s our curse. I’m a musician, singer, songwriter, poet, I know maybe half a dozen people in the world who “get it” and they’re all very good songwriters and most of them 10, 20 years older than my and dying off, it’s a gift, and every gift is also a curse. But as an artist you have been given a gift of beauty to give to the world, this is your destiny in this life, your fate, your mission.
My mother was growing old, Christmas was coming, I was thinking, What can I give here? She doesn’t need anything. So I put together a booklet of twelve of my poems I thought she’d like, and I try to write very plainly, they’re mostly stories, so anyone (I think) will understand, and gave it to her for Christmas. She took it from me, went to the dining table, flipped through it, pushed it to the center of the table, came back and never mentioned it; after she died and we cleaned out the house I never found it, I think she threw it away, not out of malice, she just didn’t understand.
WOW! ” She took it from me, went to the dining table, flipped through it, pushed it to the center of the table, came back and never mentioned it; ”
It sounds like she was the Typical Narcissist.
Don’t blame yourself, and dont regret the way God create you its a Gift you have to accept it. All you have to do is to know yourself better which will help you understand how to live better. Please if you fill lonely iIam your partner just come to me.
Oh my goodness! an incredible article dude. Thanks Nonetheless I am experiencing subject with ur rss . Don’t know why Unable to subscribe to it. Is there anyone getting similar rss drawback? Anybody who is aware of kindly respond. Thnkx
Thank you Dinah. Regarding the RSS, we don’t have it enabled as it’s not used by most people anymore. You might want to subscribe instead to our newsletters.
Hello
My name is Niamh ,
I have very much identified with this information , I have been reading and looking into a lot of this kind of thing as I always felt very different from a very young age.
I am always searching and learning.
I very much enjoy being alone however sometimes I want to be out with people but when I come home I feel better,
I have a partner and a daughter who are also very much this way.
sometimes it is hard as we experience different things at different times and its hard for us to understand.
I have great gratitude but sometimes I have the opposite , its like a rollercoaster .
I always feel like no one understands so I don’t say anything anymore I just try to deal with it myself ,
thankyou for reading
I am an old soul who is having a very hard time in this world
With 5 6 8 and 10
But still some how I know I’ll make it I’m 29 and I just don’t wish to be here any longer but I have to to take care of my 7year old boy… n watch my friends who truly are my family… a mate i fear I’ll never find… this world is full of children to me… me ex wife was so cruel to this old soul guy then I thought I found this beautiful 50year old woman but shes more busy in life than me…so idk I’m living one day at a time right now…
Good stuff. Except one minor point: you don’t HAVE a soul or soul energy. That’s you.
Whew! The river of tears has finally dried up so I can share my thoughts with you. I have visited the idea that I am an old soul. But, now as I revisit the notion, it is with complete certainty. I am an “Old Soul”. The 10 Universal Reasons I May Be An Old Soul could not resemble my experience any more exactly. I must say the relief is overwhelming. Not because of the type of soul, but because I know!
I am so tired right now. So…I will be back to buy your book, the whole reason I came back to Loner Wolf (aha now I get it ). The Loner Wolf website. Thank you so much Sol & Lana. I think you will be seeing a lot more of me. (You guys and Deep)
~kristy
I don’t know. I want to say sorry and apologize for everybody who might offend. Something deep within me just rebel against this massive categorozation. I think that even if a soul is young or old it can possess it’s own categoristics. For example a young soul doesn’t have to be active or relationship based or an old soul doesn’t have to be a loner or a socially black sheep person. I can also say that I’m an old soul but that would be just an assumption not an exact truth about my (soul’s) current state. I also see that once you realize everything changes around you, you will be more and more detached from the actual reality which we percieve. But with this detachment you also forgot to live that life of yours. Also if only those few souls could reach their full potential as awakened eldee souls like ghandi and confucius, etc. then it must be only a few awakened souls in the spiritual plane right now. I think since every soul is different there are many paths too and they don’t have to posess the same aging process. For example let’s assume my inner motivation to stay the rebel I’m right now will stay strong enough then that will be able to shape my soul even after my death and I won’t experience this tiredness because I will stay to be energetic as I always wanted to be. Change is important to but to maintain or merge a personality perk is also important for soul development. I believe in the me I’m and it will stay the same if my will is strong enough. Also if something remains within our soul’s transcendant ego then they are the connections and people (souls) we met during our lives. That we are not alone. This is why I’m just doubting that an old soul must be a detached person. Life is about experience and we are here to experience it, along with experiencing each other too. How can a wise and experienced soul can be tired by all of this? I think we just try to make similarities with the human aging process but our souls are not working the same way. Inner work is also important and everyone should be mostly independent but there are biological,physical,mental,emotional and spiritual reasons why we need each other. But common it’s fun to be a complete individual and to be a better you but what’s the point of that if you are alone? It’s never just about ourselves if something can always remain in our souls’ lives then they are the other souls. Without each other our existence would carry no meaning or motivation. Wholeness can be achieved together and can be maintained together and there is no shame in depending on somebody. Sacrafice your energy and dare to trust in others and in life. We get shady because we let ourselves get shady. Although I accept a lot about the concepts which this page is claiming I’m still following my inner intuitions. Spirituality exists so does the souls but I doubt we know precisely that how it’s working and it’s always a grave mistake to be over-confident in our viewpoint.
Thank you for your writting dear Luna and Sol!
I agree with what you are saying! However, an even specific point your your reference is all about personal experiences. I am an old soul and I do feel tired of the newness that happens to take people by storm; patience works well with me. I am not a loner, quite the opposite, but I do feel like I have to try and begin or else I would feel stuck waiting for someone to catch up. Tired is not a negative thing, it is being open and honest with what does and doesn’t challenge your spirit.
I think the challenge for many old souls is that you are either going to reincarnate as an old soul, or ascend. Especially when you have been around for awhile, it’s like waiting in the doctor’s office for your name to be called up.
Peace ✌
I have always felt somehow different than people my age, I never fit in to any of the cliques in school, I had friends but only a few my own age. As I grew older I began to wonder why I was different, I learned about the zodiac and being a Virgo I studied about my signs characteristics. For a long time I thought that was why I lived in my head, and I believe that is a part of it, but I came to the realization that there was something else going on. I remember my aunt , a very spiritual lady, telling my mom when I was younger that I had an old soul of course being quite young at the time I had no clue what she was talking about and she passed away before it even dawned on me to ask her what she meant. When she passed away is when I remembered what she had said, so being the way I am I started reading everything that I could find on the subject, that’s when I discovered that I am an empath , and things about myself that I didn’t understand began to make sense. Like why I tended to be a loner, why no matter what face someone was wearing to hide thier feelings I always knew thier true feelings, why I always seemed to know about things that a kid my age had no business knowing, and why people my parents age were always asking my opinion,and or advice about things, and following that advice and respecting my opinion enough to tell it to others. The only thing I can about being an old soul is sometimes, most times, being an old soul isn’t easy but never stop learning and growing, our path in this physical plane is almost at it’s end and I take comfort in the fact that my soul is that much closer to moving on to the next level. Remember that eventually our souls will not have to return to a physical body, we are getting close to graduation.
What about suicidal tendencies or rather, the fatigue of life. Exhaustion from the mundane humdrum of this unsatisfying life. I often feel just so worn down and tired that I just want to be done. I don’t want to deal, again with all this BS. I have often thought that maybe if I knew why I live, knew why I am, why I was created, etc. that maybe I would “get over” the suicide… but I just, I am freaking tired, I am done. I have been suicidal since 6 years of age, I don’t even know where I knew of it but I knew exactly how to do it. I know I am an old soul, or at least I have been around awhile… but is the suicide/fatigue and frustration of “once more”/”here I am?”
I’m sorry to hear you’re going through such difficulty Amanda. For Old Souls, the ‘calling’ as it’s often referred to is of most importance. Finding a meaningful and purposeful life to live is the only way to cope with seeing so deeply into the human struggle because it’ll also show us the human joy, the deep connect toward everyone and everything is not only a curse but a blessing. I would follow your gut of discovering your ‘why am I here?’. If the most sensitive people among us aren’t willing to listen to their calling because they’re they ones that can feel the most of what needs to be fixed, what hope will it give the rest of the community?
I am in my 40s dating a man in his early 20s. This is not the first time this has happened! The 2nd time around however, feels much deeper. We talked on the phone for about 2 weeks before meeting and it was incredibly intense and electric. When we met? OMG! There was an almost explainable tie to one another, and we can just look into each others eyes for hours! When we’re apart it feels as if something is incomplete. It reminds of the time I spent months in Spain and when I left to return to the States I felt as if I had left something behind.
Any insight Mateo? Thank you.
Lol. You’re just pathetic and horny. But you’re definitely not an old soul. No old soul in their forties would even think of dating or getting excited by some young dick. Stop being an old whore. Get of that fantasy train and grow the fuck up slut. You’re old and wrinkled and dried up. Yet you’re acting like a teenager. That proves you ain’t old but just a horny cunt. Get a fucking life and repent from dick sucking.
Bob how can you know she is not an old soul just from a little text? you dont know her. why dont you just let her be who she is and say what she wants to say. being a dickhead, judging and being mean/aggressive towards some random person on the internet like are you serious? go look for some fights on youtube comments or something your ego would love that
That was way uncalled for and honestly incredibly abusive. I’m not sure what brought you to this page, but it seems like your motive is to be looking for something here that is not intended purpose of this page. I really hope that you can release all of your internal hurt and hate one day in a healthy way and grow to be a truly happy individual. I truly wish for love in your life for you.
Sometimes I feel tired & frustrated & think “I just want to go home”.
me too. It’s too much to ask of the old souls to keep trying to persuade people to do the right thing. They’re never going to.
Ever since i was a child i knew i wasnt like everybody Else .. I always struggled to find friends , i knew I was different , I could feel and sence things other people couldn’t , but I managed to get through childhood , despite the many challenges!!! In my teens my abilities and my helpers got me rounded up with people who struggled like me, maybe not in the same way as me, but we all had our fights to overcome !! I didn’t feel as much as a teen as I did when I was a child – I knew I was different , and people also told me for sure ! But I was a tough one , and I’m sure I also got help back then from my spirit guides, but I didn’t realize that at all ! I struggled with addiction in my early teens , combined with being the black sheep, misunderstood and “off” it took years to come out of – but I did , but only for 3,5 years , then I started smoking weed again … I couldn’t be in my own head and all the feelings and thoughts were so overbearing – and still is to this day ! About 3-4 years a had a spiritual awakening, and it was like the most beautiful experience I have ever had !! It somehow , it all got lost when I found what I though was my twin soul – but again , I felt every little thing that was off and he basically said that I was insecure, had compulsive thoughts, and suffered from a mental disorder . And the worst part was I ended believing him , i became so unsure that he literally drained me from who I knew I was .. and Instruggled and still do , to find the Real me again . I’m on my way but it’s hard !! BUT, When I finally left him, it became so clear to me , that I was not mentally ill and all the things I have felt was actually real , kind of scary though that I knew things before they took place, and could sence his lying so easily through our relationship. But i really loved him , unfortunately more then I loved my self , cause I just swept all the signs in the background whenever I confronted him.. but yeah when I left him it was like my subconscious mind new what to do, like it had a checklist or something for me I can feel deep inside , I instantly knew that know I should always listen to my intuition- i did before – cause I have always had it – throughout other failed relationships, but I always have second guessed it and said to myself it’s all in you head .. but now I’m never gonna second guess it again .. I don’t know quite why I am writing all of this , maybe to seek an answer , a change, an advice … cause I seem to fall back to old thought habits and I can’t seem to find that beautiful feeling I had when I experienced my awakening . I know I’m and old soul, and empath and a indigo child . I now where I’m headed in life speaking of career . But I seem to be missing something . Something I can’t find, and something I don’t know what is .. I meditate, I’m grounding, I use mindfulness and trying to understand my gifts more and more . But my head is SO full , i feel like my head is always and constantly, really constantly full of thoughts and feelings in no matter how hard i try, I’m never fully at peace . Oh and Just for record, I also stopped smoking weed again after I left him. 2 months know and I haven’t even got a single
Problem with quitting nor do I feel the need or lust to it . Someone must be helping me !! ( I’ve smoked weed since I was 12 , with that pause I mentioned earlier that was almost 3,5 years, and I’m 28 today) not wanting pitying or a congrats, I just believe that someone is really helping me …
Last i really want to thank you so much for this INCREDIBLE fantastic page .. I could Really read for hours and hours !! ( wich I already did just today) . I hope you read this and maybe, just maybe can help me along the way .
Much love you way , and Namaste
So it’s a curse
Thanks for this article. I also feel like it’s a curse.. and it has been incredibly lonely at times, but i feel happier the more i get to know myself and learn to live better. I am grateful that I get to experience life the way I do.. but it is a constant struggle to try to fit in well with others, which I think is essential if I want to do the work I want to do. I believe it will get easier with time and age. It also feels unreal, like it is not supposed to be this way.. but true friendships make it all better… best luck to all
The article has really resonated with me especially the part about speaking a whole different language. That’s a big problem I have. It’s very hard for me to get my point across to other people. They just don’t seem to get what I’m trying to say most of the time.
Number 9 surprised me and I can soon relate.
Soooo relate