i am completely able to turn my empathy on and off. when i killed or tortured animals as a child, i would switch my empathy on after the deed was done and feel what the animal felt, the terror, pain etc. this would send me into a crying hysteria that caused me to hate myself even more. when i grew wiser of what was happening, that pattern ended. in my adulthood i would occasionally put myself in someones shoes to see what they felt like in order to figure out why i shouldn't do certain things. i do that sparingly because i don't like negative feelings. on a day to day basis i use cold empathy. i have refined this skill to such an extent that people cannot hide from me. i always know how everyone is feeling and i can't have it any other way. predictability is number one.