What is Me, An Empath?

A joke catchphrase and TikTok format used to mock self-described empaths. Posts open with "me, an empath:" and follow with an absurdly obvious observation presented as a mystical insight.

Where did Me, An Empath come from?

@TheRealTeagle posted the earliest known tweet using the phrase on December 18, 2016, though it only gained two likes at the time. The format caught on more broadly on TikTok in December 2021.

What does Me, An Empath mean?

The line parodies people who claim unusual empathic abilities by pairing the self-serious label with trivial or glaringly obvious observations.

How do you use Me, An Empath?

Users typically open a post with "me, an empath:" and follow with a pointless observation, often set to the cinematic TikTok sound "The Time is Coming" by Aery Yormany.

Is Me, An Empath still popular?

The format peaked across TikTok and Twitter in late December 2021 and early January 2022, with @fxckbaker's upload reaching 4.3 million plays in a week and @meowmeowmia's tweet gaining 67,500 likes in under a day.

Me, An Empath

2016catchphrasesemi-active

Published November 10, 2026

"Me, An Empath" is a joke catchphrase used to mock people who claim unusual emotional sensitivity, with each post opening "me, an empath:" followed by an absurdly obvious observation. @TheRealTeagle posted the earliest known tweet using the phrase in December 2016, but the format went viral on TikTok in December 2021 after users began making ironic duets of a self-serious video about the struggles of being an empath.

catchphrase memes snowclone memes sarcasm memes delayed virality memes tiktok sound trends

Overview

Posts in this format open with the words "me, an empath," then describe something the speaker supposedly senses spiritually, with the humor coming from how glaringly obvious the observation actually is2. The target is the online subculture of self-identified empaths, mocking emotional sensitivity when it is performed as a personality trait rather than described plainly3.

TikTok

On TikTok, the audio version uses a cinematic sound called "The Time is Coming" by Aery Yormany to add fake gravity to a mundane realization6. Text versions on Twitter pair the catchphrase with reaction images or scenarios, like @meowmeowmia's January 2022 post that attached the line to a photo of cyclist Francis Bourgeois10.

Gallery

Origin & Background

Platform

Twitter (origin) / TikTok (viral spread)

Creator

@TheRealTeagle

Date

2016

@TheRealTeagle posted the earliest known use of the phrase "me, an empath" on Twitter on December 18, 20161. The tweet gathered only two likes over roughly five years and did not spark imitation at the time3.

Variants trickled out across Twitter over the next few years. On September 5, 2017, @OfficiallyVex_ posted what is cited as the first known variant, a tweet that reached 61 likes over about four years2. @caitlynrae, a verified user, posted another version on February 4, 2019, gaining 481 likes3.

How It Spread

The ironic version caught on more widely in 2021. On May 20, 2021, @davis_lunch posted an empath joke that collected around 111,700 likes over seven months2. In December, TikToker @kiara.larkin uploaded the earliest known video using the phrase on December 14, 2021, with roughly 7,600 plays and 1,600 likes4.

A week later, TikToker @lillunah posted a sincere video about the struggles of being an empath, set to "The Time is Coming" by Aery Yormany6. She later deleted it, but other users had already begun dueting the clip to parody its earnest tone3. @youknow.julia posted the first known duet on December 23, 2021, gaining 257,800 plays and 40,200 likes in a week and a half5.

Other ironic uploads with the same audio followed. @fr1endlyfriend0's December 25, 2021 video reached 719,500 plays and 165,800 likes in a week7, and @fxckbaker's December 27 upload hit 4.3 million plays and 814,400 likes in the same window8. Twitter picked the trend back up on January 2, 2022, when @meowmeowmia paired the catchphrase with a Francis Bourgeois photo for 67,500 likes in under a day10.

Timeline

2016-12-18

@TheRealTeagle posts the earliest known tweet using the phrase "me, an empath," which gathers only two likes.

2017-09-05

@OfficiallyVex_ posts the first known variant of the catchphrase on Twitter.

2019-02-04

Verified user @caitlynrae tweets a version that reaches 481 likes.

2022-01-02

@meowmeowmia pairs the catchphrase with a Francis Bourgeois photo on Twitter for 67,500 likes.

How to Use This Meme

A typical post opens with "me, an empath:" and follows with a pointless or glaringly obvious insight presented as a mystical sixth sense. On TikTok, creators often lip-sync or stare off camera to Aery Yormany's "The Time is Coming" audio while captions deliver the deadpan observation6.