The Disease to Please Harriet Braiker
Publisher: McGraw-Hill Companies, The

The “disease to please” pattern is deeply held and all encompassing in the very matrix of the connection. There are many of us, women especially, who feel the need to please and make everyone around us happy. Do you over-commit and then run around like a chicken with your head cut-off? I try my hardest not to force my children to act a certain (acceptable to others) way. Do you believe that you won't be a good mom, coach, artist, web-designer, accountant, lawyer, if you don't. You fear what others think about you, and you fear being a failure and not living up to the perfection model. I am not sure if this is a largely talked about thing, but I came across a leaflet that my wife had been given about women in leadership and the 7 deadly sins! Do you have a hard time saying no? When you have the disease to please, you live in fear, anxiety, and overwhelm. If your answer is yes to all of the above, then chances are you could be suffering from a disease to please. Is is more important to teach your children to be nice or to speak their truth? Last week I wrote a post about the collective experience of menopause - the one outside our own sweaty bodies and muddled minds.