10 Ways Your Relationships Change When You Establish Boundaries

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Establishing boundaries with the people we care about is hard work. However, the rewards and peace of mind that comes with teaching people how to treat you is well worth the effort. When you begin to put firm parameters in place, you notice a dramatic change in your relationships over time. From establishing more meaningful connections to feeling less overwhelmed, here are ten ways your relationships change when you begin enforcing boundaries.

You will definitely lose some people

People are naturally resistant to change so when you decide to establish and enforce boundaries in your relationships, don’t be surprised if you lose a few people. Don’t be too sad, though. Good friends will be happy that you’re making a change for the better — even if it means you’ll be doing less for them moving forward.

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The relationships that remain will be more meaningful

While enforcing boundaries is one of the fastest ways to lose friends, it’s also a great way to cultivate and nurture meaningful relationships. People who truly care for you will always respect your boundaries. When it comes to your inner circle, quality is more important than quantity.

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People will begin to treat you how you want to be treated

It’s been said that we teach people how to treat us, so as you continue to establish and enforce boundaries within your relationships, you’ll notice that as time goes on, people will begin to treat you how you want to be treated without you having to tell them.

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Loved ones will be mindful about how they approach you

Once you begin to teach people how to treat you, they’re more mindful of how they approach you in certain regards. They realize that there are certain things that you’re not going for anymore and as a result, they will think twice about how they approach you.

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Less people in your business

Overbearing loved ones are often intrusive, but boundaries help to get them right together. Though their intentions may be pure and their hearts in the right place, these line-steppers eventually learn to back off

Your needy loved ones learn to find another way

When you have a needy friend or relative, it’s easy to fall into the cycle of “I have to do x,y,z because they don’t have anyone else.” While it’s noble to be there for a loved one in need, it can be a drain when they treat you as their only lifeline. But once you set limitations on what you can and can’t do, you realize how quickly they learn to find another way when they can’t use you as a crutch.

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Your relationships are more honest

Oftentimes, establishing boundaries means having uncomfortable conversations. However, it is through discussing these topics that we would typically shy away from that eventually make us better at communicating more freely with the people we love.

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You’re less overwhelmed

Part of setting boundaries is recognizing your limits and guarding yourself against exceeding those limits in your interactions with others. As this occurs, you’ll begin to notice that you’re less overwhelmed in your relationships because you’ve stopped taking on more than you can handle by learning the power of no.

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You treat your loved ones better

Usually, going through the boundary-setting process makes you more self-aware of your interactions with others. Because you’ve come to recognize the importance of guarding your own boundaries, you also become more aware of boundaries that are important to other people in your life and you’re more likely to respect them.