Episode 52 - Mental Health Check-In: Sameness is Not Closeness

Each month, Still Becoming brings you a Check-In episode. These episodes are focused on mental health, emotional health, or personal growth, and involve a short teaching and a few take aways in around 15 to 20 minutes. The idea is to take a therapeutic topic or technique and expand it to help us in our everyday lives. This month we are talking about the false belief that you need to be the same to be close in any kind of relationship. In a contentious election season, I thought it might be important to address this topic from a therapeutic perspective. Maybe you have encountered this belief about closeness in your family of origin, your marriage, a friendship or friend group, or a faith practice. The reality is that closeness - healthy attachment - is not based on being the same. And any relationship that requires you to compromise yourself is one in which we might want to reevaluate our boundaries. Owning your own opinions, decisions, values, and vote are an important part of adulthood, and should be welcomed in any healthy relationship. This is a short breakdown and how-to. To find Still Becoming on Instagram, follow Monica at @monicadicristina.