"Why can’t I just say no?” If you’ve asked yourself this, you’re not alone. Saying no can feel heavy, sticky—even impossible. It doesn’t mean you’re weak. It means at some point, your nervous system learned that saying yes was safer.

You were never meant to carry the emotional temperature of every room you walk into. You know how to keep the peace. How to say the right thing. How to soothe someone else’s discomfort—even at the cost of your own. You’re tuned in. Responsive. Empathic. And exhausted. If this feels familiar, you’re not alone. And you’re not doing anything wrong. You may have just learned, somewhere along the way, that other people’s feelings were your responsibility. But that comes at a c