Accepting That Not Everyone Will Understand Your Boundaries

Did You Know You Can Be Compassionate and Kind Even When Someone Pushes Back on Your Boundaries? Let Me Show You How

Exploring how to set boundaries as someone who didn’t learn to do it growing up can feel like navigating uncharted waters. Deciding to stop prioritizing others and finally learning to take your needs, feelings, wants, and opinions into consideration takes immense courage. As you set out to start your boundary-setting journey, you will soon be confronted with the fact that not everyone is on board with this new, more assertive version of yourself that’s ok taking up a bit more space. This can be quite a tough thing to navigate. Not only because you’re most likely still terrified of confrontation and upsetting others but mostly because of the internal doubt and distress this causes. When we encounter backlash or resistance to our boundaries or even anger and punishment, it’s easy to stop all boundary-setting efforts and revert back to people-pleasing. Today, I want to talk to you about how you can learn to accept that not everyone will understand or like your boundaries so you can move forward with your boundary-setting rather than putting your head in the sand and reverting back to people-pleasing.

Here’s a little moment of joy from a recent beach day with my dog, Teddy. Watching him play in the sand reminded me of the simple pleasures in life—how important it is to take a break, set aside the stress, and just enjoy the present moment. Boundary-setting can feel heavy at times, but it’s moments like these that remind me why it’s worth it—to create more space for peace, joy, and the things that truly matter.