Boundaries are an act of self-love and are part of healthy self-care. As we grow older, it is natural that we need different boundaries with our family to those that were suitable as a child. This means that even in …
Tag: Cycle breaker
Tips for Setting and Maintaining Boundaries
Boundaries are part of self-care. They are an expression of love and protection from ourselves, to ourselves. I find that the boundaries I struggle to maintain are the ones that for different reasons, other people don’t like. I find the …
The Importance of Discussing Family Issues
“In your dreams!” I hear many of you thinking as you read this tile, and for many of you, that is true. Having family discussions about important issues can be a disaster for everyone involved depending on the emotional maturity …
Family Discussion Barriers
At the first sign of disagreement, uncomfortable issues or emotions, does your family ‘shut down’? Shutting down is often done to protect the individuals and the family system and is often done because the members simply don’t have the skills …
How to Approach Family Discussions about Cycle Breaking
A lot of cycle breaking that takes place in families happens without much open discussion. Often families don’t have the language or willingness to discuss things that might be unhealthy for one or more members. Things that might prevent a …
Journaling Prompts for Family Insights
Taking time to understand your family is part of the healing process. As we get to know our parents, for most of us, there are parts that we love and respect and parts that drive us crazy. If you have …
Self-Care as a Cycle Breaker
A cycle breaker in a family is someone who consciously chooses to develop different ways of communicating, interacting, living and thinking to their family of origin. This can start at a very young age, knowing early that you just think …
Do you have a Calling as a Cycle Breaker?
To be a cycle breaker there has to be a certain kind of waking up to the dysfunctional family patterns. This usually happens over a period of time, but it can also happen overnight, leaving you feeling completely disoriented and …
Suggestions for Cycle Breakers Who Feel Shamed
As a cycle breaker, it is important to understand that most of the resistance to you being different and wanting to break away from the family is based in FEAR. The underlying habit for many family systems is to shame …
Feeling Shamed as a Family Cycle Breaker
There are often comments which, when boiled down, ask “why can’t you just be more like us?” When cycle breakers emerge, the resistance is usually overt AND covert. Overt in the things that are said to you, and covert in …