Boundaries: Where You End and I Begin (Fireside/Parkside Recovery Book)

Are Your Boundaries Being Violated?

Boundaries separate us from others physically and emotionally. In fact, they are essential for our mental and physical health as well as for developing healthy relationships. Yet every day, people's boundaries are violated by friends, family, or coworkers. Despite the importance of personal boundaries many people are unaware of how or when these very important lines are crossed.

Which of the following are boundary violations?

Esther tells Betty a secret Mary told her.

Your therapist invites you to go for coffee.

Your boss wants to know the details of your personal life.

Your boss asks you if you'd like a hug.

Mom tells little Debbie about her troubles with Dad.

Your new neighbor pats you on the bottom as he turns away.

Your mother makes a comment about your being overweight.

All but one of the above incidents violate boundaries (your boss asks you if you'd like a hug). In Boundaries: Where You End and I Begin, Anne Katherine explains what healthy boundaries are, how to recognize if your personal boundaries are being violated, and what you can do to protect yourself.

For anyone who has walked away from a conversation, a meeting, or a visit with others feeling violated and not understanding why, this is a book that can help.

A revised and updated edition of the classic guide that explains how setting clear boundaries can bring order to a chaotic life, strengthen relationships, and enhance both mental and physical health.

A book for anyone who's been violated, victimized, or belittled by friends, parents, partners, bosses, or colleagues. The author maintains that the first step to true autonomy is setting personal boundaries--physical, mental, and emotional separations that define an individual's independence--and she reveals how to protect these boundaries as well.

Anne Katherine, M.A., C.M.H.C., C.E.D.T., is a lecturer, counselor, and therapist, and the author of Anatomy of a Food Addiction. Her practice with Associated Recovery Therapists is in Seattle, Washington, where she leads food-addiction recover groups and therapy for recovering individuals. She lives in Snohomish, Washington.

CONTENTS

1 THE WALL BETWEEN

2 VISIBLE AND INVISIBLE BOUNDARIES

3 CONTEXT

4 YOUR PHYSICAL BOUNDARIES

5 YOUR EMOTIONAL BOUNDARIES

6 ASSORTED BOUNDARIES

7 BOUNDARY VIOLATIONS

8 TWO LETTERS TO SOME SPECIAL PEOPLE

9 INTIMACY

10 MENDING WALL

11 GOOD FENCES