My entire life, I have always been a person who cares too much. I carea lot about other people's feelings. I want to please other people. If the people around me are unhappy, I get a pit in my stomach, and I start to think. I continue to over-think until the solution is resolved. I cannot mentally be okay, if the people around me are not. Because of this, people, consciously or not, expect something out of me. People expect me to always be there. People expect me to always listen and help them. Because I care so much, people expect me to please them.

But what happens if I just cant please someone? There are some days, some situations, where I just need to look out for myself. I have taught myself that this is wrong. It is selfish. Only selfish people look out for themselves, you must put others first. When this kind of situation arises, after a series of back and forth in my head over whether I should please myself or go along with what the other person wants to please them, I make a choice. If I choose me, I let people down. If I choose them, I let myself down. When I choose me, it is out of the blue. It is not the norm, and people can sometimes see that as me being selfish because it is so unusual.

I'm starting to learn that looking out for yourself is not such a bad thing. It is not selfish to choose you. It is important to do things that make you happy sometimes because at the end of the day, you have to live with you. You must be the priority of your life. If you are one of those people that care too much about making other people happy, try to stop and think about you sometimes. You may feel like you are letting down the other person in the moment, and they may feel let down as well, but if they care about you, they will get over it.

You before anyone else.