A big part of feeling safe and free is having healthy boundaries. This includes having the freedom to manage our own time, meaning having the freedom to decide how much time you spend with someone or doing something.
Having healthy mental boundaries means having the freedom to have your own thoughts, values and opinions, and backing yourself.
Feeling safe and free to many young people also means healthy ideas and attitudes about gender and gender roles. This means having the freedom to have express yourself, your emotions, your fashion styles and being comfortable with yourself.
It also means challenging gender stereotypes that restrict and limit who you can be as a unique human being!
Many young people tell us that it can often be hard to feel comfortable being themselves in the world and amongst their peers.
Feeling safe and free to be ourselves can start with having self-compassion, knowing your worth and valuing your own unique sets of strengths, ability and self-expressions.
"I AM ENOUGH" is a simple but powerful message to remind ourselves everyday.
Having healthy mental boundaries is important to keeping our minds healthy and strong. It means having the freedom to have your own thoughts, opinions and values and respecting others'. Sometimes we have to protect our mental boundaries by speaking up and having our own backs. Healthy mental boundaries are important to building healthy friendships and relationships with others. The more we practise, the easier it becomes.
So what happens when we don't have healthy boundaries? It means that other people can ignore and disregard our values, needs and limits. One common experience is when someone ignores our schedule. For example, you are meeting your friend for lunch and she shows up an hour late and ignores the fact that you have another appointment after lunch.
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