Cognitive and/or affective empathy-poll

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It is a common misconception that people on the autistic spectrum lack empathy, many, but not all, are unable to put themselves in another person's shoes and see things from their perspective (cognitive empathy) yet quite a few on the spectrum have affective empathy, the ability to feel what others are feeling.
I feel as if I never developed the ability to put myself in another person's shoes and see things from their perspective and that I lost to some extent the ability to feel what others are feeling, as I developed self centeredness.
I struggle socially.
I did a poll to see what the situation regarding the different types of empathy regarding others on here.
Importantly, I would like to know two things.
1)If you can put yourself in another person's shoes and see things from their perspective, and what helped you do this.
2)If you can function socially and what helped you to do this.
Thanks

I voted the first one. I always score high on empathy tests and I'm often told by NTs that I am an understanding, caring person. I don't think I struggle in this area.

I have always been rather caring and understanding even as a child, but when I was a child I don't think I expressed it well. But I was very hypersensitive to other people's moods and actions. I didn't understand why at the time, but looking back I know it was due to being an empath but was obviously too young to know (after all, empathy displays differently in children).

I voted the third one.

I've tried to put myself in other people's shoes. It's basically impossible for me to do it, especially if I've looked up ANYTHING on the issue they're discussing beforehand. Trying to recognize others' perspectives as legitimate just doesn't click.

When it comes to feeling what others are feeling? I have enough trouble with my OWN emotions - I either have none or I overcorrect big time to the point where it hurts. Trying to feel others' emotions is just too much extra work for me to handle.

This is why pretty much every social situation I'm in that goes even remotely well tends to involve special interests. Get me out of that wheelhouse and I suffer GREATLY.

Putting myself in other's shoes and knowing what to do with it does not help me.
I sought other social skills instead.

It's more to do with 'I don't do that XYZ (be it selfish or selfless act)'.
It's something I've been fighting against, probably my whole life.

And I'm only recently trying to get terms with whatever related to these.



I don't know.
As far as I can tell, empathy isn't my ideal guide in navigating social interactions.

Because empathy doesn't make me empathic. It doesn't help that I chose not to be.

Cognitive empathy gives me ideas; both good and bad. While it makes a good behavioral manager and opportunity looker, it makes me be a predator of sorts.

Affective empathy gave me more trouble than it worth. While it allows resonance both selfish and unselfish, it just annoys me more to be 'affected'.

And don't get me started with other forms that may or may not exists.

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I can feel what other people are feeling and am pretty good at viewing things from different perspectives, but the problem is that I often don’t know what to do with that information, and because of that it can appear that I lack empathy. For example, I might feel that someone is sad, and I might even understand exactly why, but I won’t have any idea how to try to make them feel better and will often do nothing for fear of only making it worse.

I've voted for #1 because it describes me the best. I think I have a heightened sense of empathy.