Do you back down from your boundaries and allow others to mistreat you? Do you ignore your needs so you can satisfy someone else’s needs? Do you ignore or minimize your feelings? Do you skip self-care because you’re busy taking care of everyone else and think you can do without? In other words, do […]
Some children don’t get much of a childhood. When children have to act like adults – taking responsibility for their siblings, parents, and running a household– there are lasting effects. What is a parentified child? A parentified child is one that has taken on some or all of their parent’s responsibilities. Out of […]
Healing from an unhealthy or toxic relationship involves learning to trust yourself again. Unhealthy relationships erode your ability to trust yourself Unhealthy or toxic relationships can destroy your trust in others. For example, if your partner cheated on you or called you derogatory names, it makes sense that you may have trouble trusting […]
Seeking Self-Forgiveness: How to Forgive Yourself and Put an End to Self-Criticism Using Self-Compassion. As perfectionists and codependents, we tend to be overly self-critical. Sometimes we make significant mistakes, we hurt others, we screw things up in a big way, and need to apologize and make amends. However, often we’re harsh with ourselves for […]
Trying to please everyone is tiring. It’s also a waste of time! When you try to be all things to all people, no one is happy. You suffer because you give and give but don’t receive in return. Your health and well being are depleted and you eventually grow tired and resentful. And despite […]
Has anyone told you that it’s mean or wrong to set boundaries? Well, one of the big reasons we avoid setting boundaries is that we mistakenly think they’re mean, harsh, and controlling. Often, we have these beliefs because others have reacted poorly to our boundaries in the past. If this has been your experience, let […]
Do you over-apologize? Over-apologizing refers to saying “I’m sorry” when you don’t need to. This could be when you haven’t done anything wrong or you’re taking responsibility for someone else’s mistake or a problem that you didn’t cause or control. Here are a few examples of over-apologizing. The waiter brings you the wrong order […]
Self-care is Always Important Self-care includes all the things we do to maintain or improve our wellbeing. We all know how important basic self-care activities such as adequate sleep, exercise, healthy eating, hobbies, and spending time with friends are. And we know that when we don’t prioritize self-care, we feel lousy. Our health suffers. We […]
Would you like to increase your self-esteem in 2020? Do you want to reduce codependency and perfectionism and treat yourself with more compassion? Even though nothing magically changes on January 1st, most of us like the idea of a fresh start. And the start of a new year is a natural time to look […]
It feels good to be praised, to have your feelings affirmed, to be told you did a good job, and to be appreciated. It’s normal to want validation from others – your parents, spouse, boss, friends — but some of us seek external validation to an unhealthy level. We rely on others to make […]