Fantastic point Barb,
There’s not a need to ‘over protect’ yourself. I don’t have up any big walls/barriers or anything and we don’t really need to do that. I think if I put up to big of barriers I would not be able to do what I do. There can also be a HUGE difference between an emotional barrier and an energetic barrier. Intention is everything. Protection is a very strong word and protection doesn’t mean we need barriers.

You can have protection from the negative energy (and thoughts) of others’ and still be able to project love out towards them AND keep your own energy flowing through your own body. It is a matter of not taking on (or wearing), their negative energy. Protection is kind of like wearing safety equipment. I put my seatbelt on in the car, and wear a helmet when I get on a horse. I keep a ‘high energy’ light around myself and my home in case I come into contact with a denser energy. (Neither will cause negativity, it’s just a “safety”.)

I compare energy clearing to a shower, and protection to rubber boots. I pick up energies sometimes as I go through the day so I clear them out, I shower each day because…. If I go out in the mud I wear rubber boots to protect the bottom of my pants and so its easier to clean my jeans and my feet. I can still play in the mud, interact with the mud, my toes can still move and have energy flowing through them, they just won’t get wet and muddy because they are protected.

Do what feels right for you. If you feel unaffected by the energies around you and are able to keep a high vibration even if you are around crowds or negative people, then that might be all the protection you need.

Hope I have explained this okay. I’m not into “protectionism” or blocking ourselves off from people at all, but I do see and feel the need to stay in our own energy and not let the energy of other people get into our space too much.