Welcome to the 3rd issue of the MethodMuse Newsletter! 

Learn how to set boundaries to protect your health and safety.

How to Set Boundaries

Setting limits is vital to any healthy relationship, romantic or otherwise. Learn what boundaries are, how they protect you, and how to set them.

1: What Are Boundaries?

Boundaries are limits you set for yourself to determine how others are allowed to treat you. They protect you mentally and physically.

They’re not a way to control other people's actions or beliefs. Clear boundaries in your relationships keep you and everyone safe.

Examples of Healthy Boundaries

Clearly define your limits in social interactions and commitments. Communicate to people what behavior you will and won’t tolerate. 

This helps you avoid attracting unhealthy individuals. People without strong boundaries are open to manipulation and bullying.

Physical Safety

• Choosing healthcare and medicine 

• Having security and your needs met

• Deciding who touches you and when

• Protection from dangerous situations

• Keeping others from hurting your body

Mental Safety 

• Having separate ideas and beliefs

• Control of the decisions you make

• Ability to feel emotionally regulated

• Control over your career and finances

• Control of your time and commitments

Personal Space and Property 

• Privacy in personal communication

• Deciding who’s in your personal space

• Control of who uses your possessions

• Protecting items from theft or damage

• Limits on physical interactions like hugs

2: Prioritizing Your Energy

Evaluate your core values for what really matters to you. Align your goals with your genuine desires. If something isn’t authentic, don’t do it. That’s a boundary for you.

How to Make Authentic Choices

Connecting with your authentic self can sometimes be challenging. Journaling, meditation, and mindfulness help you develop self-awareness. Then it’s easier to recognize your values and stick to them.

Body Check

You can often feel it physically when the answer is no. How does your body feel in response to a request or an idea? If you feel cringey, the answer is no. 

Learn to Say No

Don’t be afraid to hurt people’s feelings by asserting your boundaries. The boundary is for your safety. They should respect that and deal with their feelings of disappointment.

Honor Your Limits

Put your needs first when making commitments. You can’t help anyone if you’re stressed, anxious, and exhausted. You perform best when you prioritize your energy.

Assertiveness Training

Being assertive is a skill that’s necessary for healthy relationships. You need to be able to communicate what you do and don’t want. You can find this training in groups or therapy.

Boundary Visualization

Imagine a bubble surrounds you, separating you from others. It reminds you other people’s thoughts and feelings are from them.

3: Autonomy and Relationships

Respect others’ boundaries. You can give, but you can't force them to receive. Share your ideas, but don’t try to force your beliefs or feelings on people.

Welcome debates are different from pressured arguments. You may say, "But, I know this is right!" The more you insist you're right, the more wrong you become. 

You don't get to decide what they want, need, or how they feel. They're not hurting you by thinking for themselves. Respect their views or don't interact with them.

Enmeshment

Enmeshment occurs when the lines blur between the identities of people or groups. This is most extremely expressed in mob mentality when people riot. It also occurs in unhealthy family dynamics.

It’s where you think, feel, and believe the projections of the other person’s mind. They may be about you, them, the world, or anything. It hijacks your identity.

Hallmark of Abuse

It’s a psychological response to abuse or misuse. You’re afraid to express yourself, so you give mental control to someone else.

Lack of Individuality

People claim to like, dislike, or support the same things as the other person. They may dissociate and tell themselves it’s their idea.

Dependency and Control

Enmeshment is caused a dominant figure abusing, misusing, controlling, or manipulating a submissive one. It’s bad for everyone.

Conclusion

Build self-awareness and identify your core values to establish healthy boundaries. Maintain choice, authenticity, and individuality to protect your health and safety. Avoid people who violate your boundaries.

______________________________

Growing 🌹 Glowing 🌟 Flowing 🕊️

MethodMuse.com

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