Therapy for People-Pleasing
Virtual support for anxiety, people-pleasing, and burnout in Boston, Providence, Portland, and throughout MA, RI, and OR
You care deeply about others and while your ability to shapeshift and be flexible can be an advantage, saying “yes” before you’ve even thought it through has gotten old. You may avoid conflict at all costs and find yourself struggling with over apologizing.
You find that your self-worth is tied to the approval of others.
Does this sound like you?
You over function to avoid conflict or criticism.
You’re an expert at being a “chameleon” or “shape shifter” — adjusting your needs and personality to those around you.
You feel pressure to be low-maintenance or easygoing.
You feel responsible for “fixing” others’ problems.
You feel out of touch with yourself and what you want.
You struggle with the “martyr myth”: that good parenting equals exhaustion and sacrificing health, identity, and needs.
Caring about others is a beautiful thing. I often find that my clients have sometimes “overdeveloped” the skill of people-pleasing as result of needing to stay safe and/or connected when they were younger.
If your kindness comes at the expense of your well-being, therapy might be able to help.