Interpersonal boundaries, when properly expressed, allow individuals in a relationship to feel safe and secure. These feelings of safety and security support the sharing of the self and facilitate intimacy. The healthiest individuals approach intimate relationships with healthy boundaries already in place, thus minimizing the need to overtly state and reinforce these boundaries. People with a weak capacity to understand boundaries accept boundaries from others that they cannot create on their own. Unhealthy individuals, who either are poor at perceiving boundaries, or who intentionally violate them, most notably those suffering from symptoms of personality disorder, are offended by boundaries and resist or test the boundaries of others.

Setting boundaries with others requires confrontation. You must state to another person that there are some behaviors, or absence of behaviors, that are unacceptable. Many people are uncomfortable with confrontation because they see it as an aggressive act. Many people express boundaries harshly........

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