Good health goes beyond just nutrition and exercise. It comes
from achieving balance in every area in our lives. That includes emotional and
social parts of our lives too. If there is someone in your life that is
draining your energy or causing you stress, you could be dealing with a toxic
relationship.
What is a toxic relationship?
Toxic relationships can take many forms, including draining
energy, causing drama or even violating boundaries of other people in order to
get the emotional benefits. Toxic people don’t realize the destruction they
cause. Interactions with these types of people can lower our self-esteem and
captivate our energy in a negative way. Many people see a toxic person and feel
the need to take care of them, often leading to the depletion of their own
wellness. This is just as destructive as the pain of confronting or withdrawing
from the behavior of a toxic person.
So, how do you navigate a relationship with a toxic person?
Ideally, we would cut off contact with anyone who does not benefit our emotional well-being. We would simply never talk to the people who drag us down. However, there are some people that we just cannot avoid, such as parents, siblings, and bosses.
Thankfully, there are middle grounds between engaging with destructive people and completely cutting them off. You can learn and practice different communication techniques, such as non-violent communication or conscious communication. If you must interact with a person on a personal level, you can look up support groups in your area for support from other people, Lots of online support options also exist. Take care of yourself first. This may be difficult at first, but overtime, it becomes easier.
For some people, this is the hardest lesson they ever have to
learn. In order to serve others and be of service, you have to take care of
yourself first; otherwise you won’t have the resources to share of your time
and energy with friends and family.
If avoiding a toxic person entirely is what’s necessary for you to take care of yourself, do what you need to do for your own stress levels. Stress wears upon your body, from your sleep all the way to your blood pressure.
How have you managed to deal with toxic people in your life? What
relationships stress you out the most in your life?
If you need further assistance with this, please contact me for
life coaching. It will be the most
important thing you can do for your own self-care. Be well.
Lisa Hoffman-Lamanna, RLCSW
ROOTS HEALTH AND WELLNESS
Planting Foundations for Life
www.rootshealthandwellness.net
(631) 806-2080
Lisa Hoffman-Lamanna, RLCSW
ROOTS HEALTH AND WELLNESS
Planting Foundations for Life
www.rootshealthandwellness.net
(631) 806-2080
