People Are Draining

There is a specific pattern that shows up in people who care deeply. The relationships that cost the most are often the relationships they feel least able to leave or limit. Family members whose emotional state feels like your responsibility. Friends whose struggles feel like your problem to solve. Partners whose pain activates your caretaking before your own needs register. The cost of these relationships is high partly because you are giving more than you have and partly because the guilt of not giving more is its own additional cost. Recognising this pattern is not permission to abandon people who need you. It is the beginning of understanding the difference between care that comes from genuine love and care that comes from fear of what happens if you stop. #selfimprovement

its really draining