Creating boundaries in adulthood has been hard for me because I've never been good at it, and it's still a work in progress. For me and many other women, connection is usually tied to care: showing up, giving, understanding, and being available.

So, stepping into a new chapter of emotional maturity, one that requires boundaries, can feel like doing something wrong for choosing peace over people-pleasing.

Yet I've learned that boundaries aren't walls to keep others out - they're doors that teach us how to let the right things in. Still, that doesn't make it easy, particularly when it's with people we deeply love.

When you start learning to express "this is what I can and can't handle" or "this doesn't align with where I am right now,"it can shake relationships that were built on older versions of you, the "you" who said yes out of guilt, or fear of letting someone down, or fear of being misunderstood.

Unfortunately, when those relationships shift, it can sting. But that doesn't mea...