Having healthy and strong boundaries in relationships is essential to make any kind of relationship work. You have to draw the line somewhere and define things that are beyond compromise.
No matter how much you love your partner, there are some things you should never compromise on.
Those things are called your personal boundaries, and honestly, they are a very important part of every healthy relationship.
The most important thing is that both sides have to respect each other’s boundaries.
That’s how you’ll break down the walls between you and feel comfortable in your relationship, strengthening the bond between you two.
Being in a romantic relationship isn’t always sunshine and daisies. And setting clear boundaries in an intimate relationship can be a very challenging and difficult part of it.
Still, it’s also an inevitable part if you really want to make that relationship work long-term.
Unfortunately, most people are afraid to set boundaries because they think it may create more problems than benefits in their relationship.
On the contrary, poor boundaries or a complete lack of boundaries will damage and slowly ruin your relationship, even if you think that the bond between your partner and you is strong and unbreakable.
The importance of setting healthy boundaries in relationships
Why are boundaries in relationships important? Can a relationship last without setting clear boundaries?
Can a lack of boundaries ruin your relationship completely? What if you’re afraid to talk to your partner about it?
First of all, I have to say that if you knew the importance and benefits of boundaries for a relationship, you would immediately start working on it.
Healthy personal boundaries are important, and you should set them for your well-being. It’s how you show others how you would like to be treated.
You have to define your limits, the things you don’t want to tolerate from anyone. People will respect you more that way, and you’ll never allow anyone to treat you worse than you deserve.
So, before you start working on setting strong and clear boundaries in a relationship, you must think about boundaries in your own life.
You should set some rules in your own life, how you want to be treated by others, and then adapt them into your relationship.
Having boundaries in a relationship means you’re listening, respecting, and caring for your partner. They define your identity, who you are in the relationship.
Establishing healthy and strong boundaries will stop you from losing yourself when in a relationship and make you stronger and more secure in case your partner tries to control you or your life.
Sometimes the love we feel for our partner blinds us completely, and we give ourselves entirely to that other person.
It’s so wrong, and it leads to that toxic, codependent behavior and losing your identity in a relationship. Establishing boundaries is key to ensuring that both partners feel respected, loved, and supported.
On the other hand, the lack of boundaries opens the door to disagreements, mistreatment, and codependent behavior in a relationship.
8 types of boundaries in relationships
So, if you want to have a healthy relationship, setting boundaries is an inevitable part. Trust me, it’s not so difficult, and it definitely won’t damage your relationship.
A lack of boundaries in a relationship affects both partners. It damages their mental health, and it also has a negative impact on their self-esteem.
Also, a lack of clear boundaries can make your relationship codependent. That’s unhealthy, and it’ll harm your relationship to the point you won’t even be able to fix it anymore.
We’re all different human beings, which makes the relationships we form with other people different too.
We all have different limits and things we don’t want to compromise on, which means we also have different kinds of boundaries when we’re in a relationship.
However, there are a few types of boundaries that are crucial for every healthy and strong relationship.
Emotional boundaries
We’ll start with the most important boundaries for all romantic relationships, emotional boundaries, of course.
When establishing emotional boundaries, it’s important to pay attention to your own feelings, not just your partner’s.
Talk about your feelings and ask your partner about theirs. Don’t go guessing how they feel because that’s exactly where most couples make mistakes.
Check in with your partner regularly. Facing issues and problems isn’t the only time you should communicate openly with them.
You must share your feelings daily to always be in touch with your partner’s and your own feelings.
If you feel that something is wrong in your relationship, talk to your partner about it. Also, if you feel like your partner isn’t hearing you or doesn’t understand you, you should communicate it.
Don’t keep your feelings bottled up just because you think some of those negative emotions may harm your relationship.
That will only create a bigger problem because those bottled emotions will blow up one day, for sure.
There is nothing wrong with letting people in, especially those who you love. And setting emotional boundaries in your relationship will definitely prevent them from betraying your trust and hurting you.
Physical boundaries
No matter how much you love your partner and enjoy spending time with them, you also need to have your personal space, and you’re allowed to enjoy time on your own sometimes.
That’s why physical boundaries are also important in a relationship.
Don’t be afraid to tell your partner if you need some time alone or when you aren’t comfortable with some of their actions.
Being silent about your personal needs will cause unnecessary problems in your relationship. Talking about it and introducing your partner to your needs is for the best.
For example, if you aren’t okay with holding hands in public or any other public display of affection, your partner needs to know.
By setting clear physical relationship boundaries, both of you will feel more comfortable in the relationship, and it’ll also strengthen the trust between you.
Relation boundaries with family members, friends, and co-workers
You also should set clear boundaries when it comes to other relationships you have in your lives.
There should be healthy boundaries regarding your relationship with your family members, friendships, and relationships with your co-workers.
Your families take up significant parts of your lives, and in a way, they’re also a part of your relationship too. Still, that doesn’t give them the right to interfere in your relationship.
Don’t allow your partner to talk ill of the people you care deeply for in your life or vice versa. Just like you should respect your partner’s family and friends, they should also respect yours.
That’s an important part of every healthy relationship.
And, if you aren’t okay with your partner hanging out too much with your family, co-workers, or friends, you should be direct and tell them.
Time boundaries
Another important type of boundary to set in a relationship is how you spend your time together.
Remember this: even when you are most busy, with the most hectic schedule, you should always try to make time for your partner if they need you.
You should spend quality time together whenever you can. It’s not important whether it’s a little getaway from the city and all of its noise or to simply watch a movie together, snuggled up in front of the fireplace.
Even if you’re apart for some reason, you should at least make a phone call at the end of the day and check in with your partner to see how their day was and how they are feeling.
Do something new together. Travel together. Find a hobby you’ll both like and do that together. Learn something new together, a language or a craft maybe.
I’m not saying that you should spend every second of your free time together, but it’s important to spend quality time together to stay connected with each other.
Setting strong boundaries regarding your time is also very important if you notice that your partner is becoming overly needy. Their clinginess will definitely damage and eventually ruin your relationship.
Boundaries of intimacy
This type of boundary in relationships includes physical intimacy, things you are comfortable or not comfortable with regarding your intimate love life.
Healthy boundaries of intimacy mean being able to talk to your partner about everything that’s happening behind your closed bedroom door.
It means that you feel able to open up to them about everything regarding intimacy. It means that you’re trying to understand their needs and desires and want them to do the same for you.
It will improve the emotional connection between you and improve your love life greatly.
If you have a fear of intimacy, you shouldn’t be afraid to speak about it with your partner. Explain it to them and ask them to wait and to help you overcome it. I’m sure they will understand and help you fight it.
Intellectual boundaries
Don’t think that just because you’re dating someone, you should accept their opinions and have the same opinion and perspective on life. No, that’s not right.
You’re allowed to have a different way of thinking and perspective on life because you’re different people. The important thing is how you deal with it.
You should embrace your differences and see them as an opportunity to learn something new from each other.
Setting intellectual boundaries will allow you both to have different opinions about certain things. Trust me. Those differences can bring you closer if you learn to handle them the right way.
Having clear intellectual boundaries will help both partners grow in a relationship. It’s also a sign that you respect and support each other‘s different ideas, views, and ways of thinking.
If you don’t feel free to share your opinions with your partner, you’re likely dealing with intellectual boundary violations.
It’s probably because your partner has made you think that you’re wrong or that your way of thinking is completely wrong. It can also lead you to have low self-esteem.
Boundaries regarding your past lives
If it seems to you like your partner will never forget your past and stop asking questions about it, it’s high time to set some strong boundaries on that topic.
Your ex, your past relationships, your mistakes from the past… That’s all in the past now, and you shouldn’t suffer because of it in your new relationship.
Don’t allow your partner to punish you for the past mistakes you’ve repented for and haven’t repeated ever again.
You probably needed a lot of time to forget some of your painful past experiences and won’t allow anyone to pick at your old wounds.
Set boundaries there, and don’t let your partner rummage through your past too much.
Social media boundaries
In the modern dating world, these types of boundaries in relationships have become very important to maintain a healthy relationship.
As much as social media is good for us, since it allows us to see and hear our loved ones whenever we want to, it also has some not so great sides.
It can damage the trust between couples and make them doubt each other’s fidelity.
I’m not saying you should set unhealthy boundaries, such as giving your partner the passwords to all of your social media accounts.
On the contrary, that would only show that you don’t trust each other at all.
However, your partner should have the right to see your phone whenever they want, assuming you don’t have anything to hide from them.
Another good boundary you should set in your relationship regarding social media is to always respect your partner’s privacy.
Also, agree on posting your photos, especially if one of you isn’t a fan of showing off your love that way.
See also: Healthy Marriage Boundaries With Friends: 7 Best Examples
How do you set boundaries in relationships?
Setting clear boundaries in a relationship is a process, and if you want to do it the right way, you should do it gradually, step by step. However, it’s really not a big deal.
Also, to maintain your boundaries, it’s important to trust each other, communicate regularly, and most importantly, understand each other’s needs.
First, define your personal boundaries
Even if you aren’t in a relationship, you should set your own boundaries, how you want to be treated by others.
Let’s start with self-awareness. It’s important to know your worth to set strong and healthy personal boundaries.
It’s important to know your limits, things you can tolerate and forgive, and those you can’t under no circumstances.
Setting these kinds of boundaries means that you respect yourself, have a healthy relationship with yourself, and don’t allow others to mistreat you.
That will also protect you from being manipulated, controlled, used, or hurt by other people. Also, it’ll positively affect your self-esteem.
These are little promises you make to yourself. For example, don’t ever allow others to insult, humiliate, or criticize you.
Don’t allow other people to invade your personal space. And don’t ever allow anyone to take their negative emotions out on you.
These are just a few things you should draw the line on to have a healthy and successful relationship with yourself and others.
Self-love is important too
To have a healthy and successful relationship with another person, you should have one with yourself first.
Self-love and self-relationship set the tone for all other relationships in your life. So, if you don’t have healthy personal boundaries, it will be difficult for you to set them in your relationship.
You must work on your self-awareness and self-esteem. You must know your worth, and what you deserve, so you never allow anyone to treat you any less than that.
Be good to yourself. Treat yourself with respect. Love yourself first. Don’t sacrifice your well-being; don’t neglect your own boundaries and limits just to please someone else.
It’ll only make you unhappy and unsatisfied with yourself. Then, you won’t be satisfied and happy in your relationship, which will only lead to you and your partner growing apart.
Don’t be afraid to speak your mind
Now, we’ll talk about setting healthy boundaries in a relationship. If you love your partner and you feel they love you back, you should be able to open up to them and talk about everything.
If you aren’t okay with some of their actions, their behavior, or how they treat you, you shouldn’t be afraid to talk to them about it.
Both of you should learn to communicate in a healthy way. There is no problem, no obstacle that you can’t overcome by practicing healthy communication.
If something is bothering you about your partner or your relationship and you are afraid to talk about it with them, then that’s a real problem.
It only means that you don’t trust them or that you don’t believe in the strength of your relationship and its power to overcome all issues and obstacles.
Communicate honestly
If something is bothering you, or if you aren’t pleased with how your partner treats you, the best advice I can give you is to talk to them honestly about it.
Pour your heart out to your partner. Be direct and be honest. If you bottle up your emotions, it will only distance you from your partner.
Even when it comes to those dark, negative emotions we all sometimes feel, you should be honest about them too.
Don’t think about it harming your relationship or how it could make your partner angry and make them break up with you.
No, if they really love you, they’ll be understanding, and they’ll immediately start working on ways to deal with it and overcome those issues.
Listen to your partner’s needs too
Just as you have needs and boundaries, your partner has them too. And if you want them to respect yours, you should accept and respect theirs also.
When your partner talks about things that are bothering them, listen but listen actively. They need to see that you’re hearing them.
Your own needs are important, but theirs should be equally important too.
Because it’s what a relationship, a partnership is all about; being equal and equally respecting each other’s needs and limits.
Always show that you understand your partner’s needs, and it’ll make their feelings for you even stronger.
Ask them to talk about their feelings directly and honestly, so you don’t have to guess what’s wrong every time they start behaving differently.
Name your boundaries
You know what your limits are, right? Do you know what things you would never tolerate or forgive your loved one are?
So, there’s no point in tiptoeing around. Be direct and tell your partner loud and clear. Define your boundaries to them and make them understand how important they are for you.
Stick to your limitations. If they keep overstepping your boundaries – don’t forgive them. It will only show them that you don’t respect them or yourself.
Trust me. They will violate your boundaries again and again. If you draw the line somewhere, you should hold onto that line and not allow anyone to overstep it.
Leave your feelings out of this
When you start working on setting boundaries in a relationship, both partners should leave their feelings out of it. Your feelings can only make things worse or make you forget about your boundaries.
As we’ve already said, our feelings can blind us sometimes and make us forget all about our limitations and things we swore we’d never tolerate in relationships.
I know it’s difficult to talk about things that may damage or ruin your relationship with your loved one, but to prevent it, you must talk about it and, once again, set clear boundaries.
Set your limits and follow through
It’s not just important to set your limits in a relationship. It’s important to follow through with them too.
It’s how you’ll show your partner how important your boundaries are to you, and they’ll try not to overstep them and respect them for the sake of your love and your relationship.
If they make a mistake and somehow overstep them, it’s okay because we all make mistakes sometimes, and you should forgive them.
However, it’s not a mistake if it happens more than once; it’s a sign they don’t respect your boundaries.
In that case, you should warn them about the damage it causes to your relationship.
But also, you must know when it’s time to move on.
If you see that someone is neglecting your boundaries and doesn’t respect them, or if they don’t want to make an effort to respect them, no matter how much you love that person, you should let them go and move on.
Someone who’ll gladly respect you and your limits is waiting.
Respect your partner’s boundaries
Just as much as you want your partner to respect your limits and boundaries, you have to be ready to respect their own.
Maybe you don’t agree with all of their boundaries, or you think some of them are completely insane or unnecessary; you should still try to accept and respect them if you honestly care for that person.
We are all different people, and we care about different things. Some things that are important to you might not be important to your partner and vice versa.
However, if you want to have a strong and successful relationship with someone, it’s essential to understand and respect their boundaries in your relationship.
Seek help or support
If setting boundaries create issues and problems in your relationship, you should consider seeking help from outside.
Consider taking couples therapy or counseling where you’ll be able to learn from professionals how to set and maintain strong boundaries in relationships.
You can also talk with your friends or a person you both trust if you’re having a hard time accepting each other’s boundaries.
They care for you and your relationship, and I’m sure they’ll be glad to help you or give you good advice.
Setting healthy boundaries is a process, so take it one step at a time
Setting boundaries in relationships can be very difficult and challenging for some couples. However, you must understand that it’s a process; it can’t be done overnight.
You should do it slowly, taking it one step at a time.
With honest and healthy communication, you can deal with anything, and you can overcome every obstacle that comes your way.
With just a little bit of effort from both sides, you can deal with setting strong boundaries in your relationship, maintaining and respecting them.
Don’t hurry this process because you’ll probably make some hasty decisions.
If you aren’t sure you can accept some of your partner’s boundaries, talk to them about it, and try to find a solution together that will be good for both of you.
Don’t give up on your relationship just because you feel like you won’t be able to respect all of your partner’s boundaries.
You will learn to deal with it in time because you have the most powerful motivation, your love.
Conclusion
As you can see, having boundaries in relationships is a MUST to improve and maintain your relationship.
It’ll improve the trust between partners, their emotional health, their intimacy, and it’ll also strengthen the bond between them.
Setting clear boundaries in a relationship will make both partners feel comfortable to be more free and open towards each other.
Trust me. You can’t have a strong relationship with someone without setting strong and clear boundaries. And there is no need to be afraid of setting healthy boundaries in a relationship.
It’s important for the sake of the relationship and the well-being of both partners.
Setting and respecting each other’s boundaries will strengthen your relationship and create such a powerful and unbreakable bond between you.
However, before you start working on setting boundaries in your romantic relationship, you should pay attention to your own boundaries.
Setting clear boundaries in your own life is the first step to setting boundaries in a relationship.
Keep in mind that setting strong boundaries has many benefits for your relationship. Respect your partner’s boundaries but also don’t allow them to overstep your own.