An emotionally abusive or toxic relationship can make you feel trapped, small, and deficient. It can feel like an anchor weighing you down, suffocating you. People who grew up in dysfunctional, chaotic, or unsafe families, develop a set of coping skills that helped them deal with the chaos and dysfunction in their families. Although these …
Codependency is a complex set of traits and interpersonal dynamics. Recovery can feel overwhelming—especially in the beginning. To help you get started, I’ll describe three pillars of the framework I developed for codependency recovery and offer some reflective questions to aid you in changing your codependent thoughts and behaviors. The three pillars of codependency recovery …
If you struggle with codependency, wonder if you’re codependent, or just have questions about codependency, this post will give you an overview of codependency: What is codependency? What causes codependency? How to start recovering from codependency. What is codependency? Codependency is a focus on other people’s problems, feelings, needs, and wants while minimizing or ignoring your …
Are your boundaries too weak or too rigid? Either can cause problems. In this article, you’ll learn the difference between weak, rigid, and healthy boundaries–and how to set better boundaries. What is a healthy boundary? Most of us are familiar with the concept of boundaries. Boundaries serve as limits, telling others how we want to …
4 Signs You Have Weak Boundaries or Rigid Boundaries Read More »
Setting an intention to change your codependent thoughts and behaviors can help you recover from codependency. Can setting intentions help you recover from codependency? Are you trying to recover from codependency or heal from an unhealthy or toxic relationship? Perhaps you’ve noticed that you have some codependent traits, such as enabling, letting people take advantage …
Are you helping or enabling? Have you ever wondered what the difference is? In this article, you’ll learn to stop enabling, end codependent patterns, and calm your anxiety and worry about your loved one. What is enabling? Enabling is doing something for someone that they can reasonably do for themselves. Originally, enabling referred specifically to …
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 necessity, the …
Parentified Child: When a Child has to Act Like an Adult Read More »
Detaching with love helps codependents and enablers. When we detach with love, we stop worrying and interfering and let others take responsibility for themselves. What is detaching with love? Detaching (or detaching with love) is a core component of codependency recovery. If you’re often worried about a loved one, disappointed or upset by their choices, …
Why is it so hard to end codependent relationships? In this article, we’ll explore why it’s so difficult to leave a codependent relationship (even when you know it’s in your own best interest) and you can start to change codependent patterns and create healthier relationships. Codependency is a hard pattern to break. Even when you’re …
7 Reasons It’s Hard to End Codependent Relationships Read More »
Affirmations are a simple way to increase your self-esteem. Self-esteem is how you feel about yourself. Ideally, we feel good about ourselves most of the time and recognize that we have value despite our imperfections. People with high self-esteem recognize their strengths and good qualities—and also their weaknesses or areas in need of improvement. They …
