No.

Is a complete sentence.

Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash

For most of my life, I have been a people-pleaser. I took on too much to satisfy others and felt resentful when I became overwhelmed and stressed out with no time for myself.

And then I read:

“No” is a complete sentence.

It changed my life. Thanks to the beautiful book, The Empath’s Survival Guide by Dr. Judith Orloff, I learned that saying “No” is a necessary self-care practice.

I knew that I had to learn to say No and set proper boundaries for myself so I’d have time to do the creative things I wanted to pursue (like writing here, for example), time to daydream, to watch the sky, or have time to do absolutely nothing if that’s what I felt like.

Research supports this concept:

…downtime can dramatically improve mental and physical health and our personal relationships, Harvard Business Review

Having time for creative pursuits is important, yet we struggle to prioritize time for ourselves because of all our obligations. Then, we feel guilty saying No to a friend, colleague, neighbor, or family member even after a long day of dealing with our personal obligations.

Clinical psychologist Dr. Jon Belford says:

“There are a number of factors that can…