Women and Divorce: Guilt

Several of the calls I had today prove to me that understanding and enforcing boundaries are of utmost importance to all women but especially divorcing women.

So many times as mothers, we put our husband’s and our children’s needs before our own. That’s just what we do. While that is admirable to a degree, it is also dangerous to our well being if we don’t limit our selflessness.

If you are anything like I was as a young mother, you take pride in how much you do and give up for your family. I do believe that’s a good thing but only to a point.

In my opinion, issues arise when mothers don’t understand that their needs are just as important as those of the people in their families. Women should and must love themselves in order to love others. Some of you might be saying, “Duh Claudia!”

The problem is that so many moms actually feel guilty if they say, “no” to anything or anyone.There is nothing wrong with saying, “no” appropriately. Just because divorce comes into play doesn’t mean that “no” becomes inappropriate.

If you want to figure out where you are at this stage of your life, try saying “no” without feeling guilty.

Can you?

Photo: roland