Learning how to set healthy boundaries with the people you care for

As a Doctor, have you ever had difficulties around setting healthy boundaries with the people you cared for?

Having the ability to hold space for other people’s emotion is the skill that is required as part of “smooth boundary setting”.  It’s like a Tai Chi move.  Hold space for the feelings of others.  Then set clear boundaries with compassion or at least neutrality.  Then hold space for the feelings of others again. 

It’s easy to hold space for the “nice” feelings of others.

It’s much harder to hold space for the strong emotions of others especially if it is of the “uncomfortable types”.

It’s a double whammy if subconsciously we measure our self worth from the likability or the approval/acceptance of others.

These skills are not able to be gained in a short period of time. It’s better framed as a “growth journey” perhaps.

Learning to hold space for that too will assist.