Q&A: I cannot refuse a request even when I am already tired

The inability to refuse is not kindness. It is a trade: time and energy spent to buy a feeling of safety. You fear being disliked, so you hand over a boundary in exchange for a place in the group. A relationship built on pleasing is a thin one.

Practise sitting with the small anxiety of saying no. The world does not usually collapse. What returns is energy that can finally stay with you.