Personal boundaries help us state what is and isn’t acceptable to us. Setting boundaries has various benefits for promoting overall mental health and well-being.

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Boundaries can help you assert what you’re OK and not OK with. Personal boundaries in relationships are necessary because you may feel resentful and exhausted without them.

Many have found that setting boundaries improves your mental health and mood. Without limits, it’s hard to be self-aware and independent. If you go along with what everyone else says and does and don’t ever speak up for what you want to do, you’re sacrificing your desires for other people.

Boundaries are essential for maintaining your interpersonal relationships. When you set boundaries, you may find your life much more fulfilling.

A boundary is a rule or limit you set with another person to express what you deem acceptable and unacceptable. When you build good boundaries with others, you state your needs and wants in an assertive but not aggressive way. You also may discuss things you don’t like or feel comfortable with.

Boundaries are important because you can feel taken advantage of or resentful without them. There are various other reasons why limits may be necessary.

Here’s a deeper dive into types of boundaries.

So you don’t get walked over

Boundaries require assertiveness to be effective. If you have trouble expressing and speaking up for what you need, you may find yourself in spaces you don’t want to be in.

Research from 2017 defines interpersonal assertiveness as being able to stand up for your interests even if they don’t match up with others’ desires.

When you’re assertive with others, you take care of yourself and your needs. Assertiveness doesn’t mean that you can’t ever compromise, but compromising to the point that you aren’t enjoying yourself or your life signals that you need to implement some boundaries.

So you avoid burnout

You may have heard people say they’re burnt out. Burnout is a type of mental and physical exhaustion caused by chronic stress. It may leave you feeling blue and having difficulty focusing or accomplishing tasks.

The level of exhaustion you feel can come from many forms of not setting boundaries.

For example, if you start taking work home with you and sacrifice your personal time to complete tasks for your job, this can be overwhelming because you aren’t keeping good boundaries between your work and professional life.

Research suggests a significant correlation between burnout and mental health challenges such as depression and anxiety. So, if you’re experiencing burnout, it may be time to consider setting more limits.

So you can form and maintain healthy relationships

Your relationships with others can greatly benefit from healthy boundaries. When you set healthy boundaries in your relationships, you probably aren’t resentful of others often because you are stating what you are and aren’t OK with.

Boundaries are a necessity in relationships so you can have a healthy balance of independence and interdependence on each other.

Boundaries are limits that we place on many areas of our lives. Whether this is with work or your relationships, boundaries are necessary to keep you — and your relationships healthy.

When you don’t have solid boundaries, the lines between your needs and desires and those of another person can get blurred. They’re also necessary for preventing emotional exhaustion and keeping you from becoming a doormat.

For more on healthy boundaries, consider checking out these books:

Remember, boundaries get easier with practice. Setting limits can be one of the highest forms of your self-care.