Psychology
fromPsychology Today
1 week ago5 Reasons Why People-Pleasing Hurts More Than It Helps
People-pleasing can undermine authentic connections and harm mental health, leading to resentment and exploitation in relationships.
There's a concept in relational psychology called the "false self," originally described by Donald Winnicott in the 1960s. He argued that children who learn early on that their authentic emotions are unwelcome develop a compliant, socially palatable exterior - a self designed not for expression, but for survival. The false self smiles when it doesn't want to. It says yes when it means no.