Why do I have this annoying feeling?

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If I eat any cookies that have a face, I feel extreme empathy like I'm eating a real life creature alive. I know that the cookie isn't alive, I try to tell myself that it is just flour, sugar and whatever else with a drawing of a happy face in frosting, hence no feelings or any form of life. But I still can't stop having small panic attacks whenever I'm eating one. Ugh! It's going to make me mentally ill.

Sometimes I feel like I have SO MUCH empathy that I'm going to drive myself crazy with it. I hate empathy, I wish my empathy levels were NORMAL.
I like to watch those YouTube ASMR-type videos of objects being crushed underneath a car, and if any of the objects have a face, I immediately want to cry. I've just got to keep reminding myself that at least it is not any living animals or people that are being crushed.

Anyone else feel overwhelming empathy with anything that has a face? Whether it's a living being or not?

I had some trouble throwing away a cute whale lunch-box I had. It eyes on the front, zipper was the mouth and even some little flipper fins but one of those ice pack things to keep the food cold exploded in it and didn't think I could clean it out of all the crevices and such. But yeah I know it wasn't alive and certainly not a real whale, but I still felt bad about it. I could easily find another like it if I wanted probably, just have to browse childrens lunch boxes.

IDK for me though it's worse with plants, but still I can't seem to stop trying to grow them. I have had some success but its sad when you mess up and the plant dies.

Sometimes -- thus not all the time.
And just not limited with anything resembling a face.



In which I retaliate against the feeling of guilt with further violence and cruelty, attempting to overwrite it with something else. Seriously.

Because running away from it or mentally rationalizing against it does not work.



The ideal route of reaction I could take is to acknowledge and accept the feeling wholly and express or apologize to it and forgive myself.

But not all the time -- it had to be equally emotionally done to work out, not just rationally.
And this is tricky; it's a really misunderstood part of emotional intelligence.



I do not know why it happens... Unless one believes in pseudo-sciences.

I've heard weirder accounts and almost nothing about the attempts of explaining it.
But it's more about finding out that feeling exists or happens.

It may be a trait for anyone with certain (sympathetic like) sensitivities -- it's the only commonality I've noticed.
Not necessarily AS/ND, nor exclusive to anyone with social/emotional issues.

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I canNOT throw a sickly/dying plant into the trash; I feel I’m hurting/killing a living thing.
I am ALWAYS ‘rescuing’ plants in the trash, or picking up broken-off branches or leaves of succulents.
Same feeling.
When (if) they grow, I feel really good.

Actually, I can feel bad for things that don't have a face as well. Like I have lots of pairs of old socks with holes in that I cannot wear (can't stand wearing socks with holes) but they're taking up all the room in my sock drawer because I'm too afraid of throwing them away. I feel that the only thing you should throw away is food packaging and wrappers and that sort of stuff. Newspapers I recycle which I don't find hard. But putting cloth things into the trash like socks is so hard for me. I really do need a clear out though, otherwise I'm going to become a serious hoarder.