Boundaries are a key to our own emotional maturity and our ability to relate to others in more healthy ways. Most of us understand property boundaries, but often we don’t understand personal boundaries. As a result, we end up with a long list of relationships that are less than we hoped for and with less success in life than we imagined.
Boundaries:
- Define us—what is me and what is not me. Boundaries are about what is mine and therefore my responsibility and what is not mine and not my responsibility.
- Keep us from taking responsibility for how another person feels or expecting another person to take responsibility for how we feel.
- Allow us to be emotionally attached to others, yet without giving up a sense of self and our freedom to be separate.
- Keep us from feeling used or taken advantage of. They protect us.
