Stop Giving It Away: How to Stop Self-Sacrificing and Start Claiming Your Space, Power, and Happiness

CHAPTER 1

WHAT IS A GIVEAWAY GIRL?

WHAT IS GIVING IT AWAY?

Most of the shadows of this life are caused by standing in one’s own sunshine.

—RALPH WALDO EMERSON

I know it when I see it. And I see it too often as a therapist and friend—a whole world out there full of Giveaway Girls …

Like Allison, a seventeen-year-old girl who won a full scholarship to NYU by studying hard and earning straight A’s but abandoned her dream of going to college when she got pregnant.

Or Carla, who changed from an I HAVE to go out with my homies on Friday night—BFF’s are so important to me girl into an I’m busy with my boyfriend chick who can’t find time for her besties anymore. Her new boyfriend, John, takes up all her time and energy. She has disappeared from her girlfriends.

Or Drew, a secretary who, when her boss called her at eight o’clock one night and asked for a report she needed, took two buses in the middle of a snowstorm to get it to her—even though she didn’t get paid overtime. In fact, her boss treats her like crap and she keeps trying and trying to get it right.

These examples may sound extreme, but the truth is, most of us have done some variation of what Allison, Carla, and Drew did. Millions of smart, together women unwittingly participate in their own self-destruction every day by engaging in this sort of behavior.

As a Chicago-based psychotherapist and social worker, I have dealt with a wide variety of mental health issues and life challenges. I’ve worked with battered women and sexual assault victims, have worked in psychiatric hospitals and in outpatient settings. I have also provided mental health counseling and substance abuse treatment to people within corporate settings and have offered workshops, training seminars, and crisis management services to a variety of for-profit and nonprofit institutions. For the past ten years, I have provided psychotherapy and counseling to individuals and couples in my private practice.

Through my work, I’ve learned that many of the anxieties and complexities within people’s lives relate to their making decisions based on a codependent way of thinking I call detrimental caretaking (DC for short). This behavior leads people to feel anxious, depressed, and unhappy—both about themselves and about their relationships—and to experience job difficulties and an endless list of dissatisfactions. And this dynamic doesn’t limit itself to the clinical setting.

For years I’ve been watching and paying attention to my life and the lives of those around me, and I have to say, I don’t like what I see—DC in myriad forms. I see a world of women giving it away and a world in which women are coerced and cajoled into living in a destructive, harmful way. I see a world in which, little by little, women surrender their power and fundamental emotional rights as human beings. If you sometimes feel as if you are drowning in the needs of others, there’s a good reason for it: you probably are.

Too many of us are Giveaway Girls. It’s time we did something about it. Let’s get started.

WHAT IS A GIVEAWAY GIRL?

A Giveaway Girl is a woman who betrays who she really is or what she really wants in life for the sake of someone or something else. She’s someone who doesn’t take good care of herself in relationships or her career—or in other parts of her life. A Giveaway Girl doesn’t set good boundaries. She might even be the first to stick her neck out for someone else. She is that kind of person.

Giveaway Girls are usually great, caring, compassionate women—kind, nice, loving people—who unknowingly sacrifice important parts of themselves, usually for the benefit of others and to their own detriment. Sometimes a Giveaway Girl’s give-away behavior is glaringly obvious. Sometimes it is less so. Regardless, by giving it away, Giveaway Girls cause a lot of damage to themselves and to those connected to them.

Knowing why we give it away is pivotal to disengaging with this behavior. We can’t shake the power social constructs have over us until we know they’re influencing us.

To understand the Giveaway Girl world, picture a wide, open field that you are required to walk through. You can’t run through it freely, stopping to pick the wildflowers—you are stuck on a path, bound in by thorny bushes and thick vegetation on either side. The catch is, you don’t even see the branches hemming you in; you can only feel them—and therefore, you will quite naturally stay right where you are supposed to. You can’t see that this path is only one among other options that this open field has for you, because you don’t realize that invisible forces are restricting you.

In life, women often follow a path like this one. It leads only to trouble, but so many other women are walking on it, we don’t always realize that there’s a big problem with the direction in which it leads us. That is part of the power of the social constructs with which so many of us cooperate.

It’s not easy to stop participating in this system. After all, there are a lot of thorny bushes out there. To clear your own path, you need tools and a plan. This book will provide the tools; once you have them, it will be up to you to develop a plan that meets your needs and wants. You can do this. Believe me.

CAN A MAN BE A GIVEAWAY GUY?

Absolutely. In fact, as you look at the Detrimental Caretaking Lifeline ahead, it is important to note that it isn’t always women who are detrimental caretakers. Some men out there are caring, compassionate, loyal, and awesome Giveaway Guys, who unknowingly behave codependently. They struggle too.

For example, some Giveaway Guys form relationships with women who don’t consider their needs, or they connect with women who are dominating or unhealthy. These men may overfunction (usually through working too much). They don’t set healthy boundaries or take good care of themselves.

Moreover, our ever-evolving society sends males conflicting messages about what it takes to be a good man in our society. It is difficult to be a woman in a man’s world, but it isn’t much easier to be a man in a man’s world either.

I am fascinated with how our environment and societal expectations influence our decisions and behaviors. I believe that both men and women struggle with these codependent dynamics and that both genders, of course, deserve to get support and insight. However, we are socialized differently. Maybe the next book will be for the guys …

ARE YOU A GIVEAWAY GIRL?

Yes, you probably are, but it’s not your fault. If you’re a woman, you have been conditioned since birth to sacrifice your own needs for the benefit of others. This tendency is probably so much a part of who you believe yourself to be that you don’t recognize when you are doing it and don’t understand how bad it is for you. Because of this conditioning, it is virtually impossible not to be giving it away in some area of your life—often without even realizing it’s happening.

Women—quite naturally, and most times without even noticing it—frequently give up their wants, desires, energy, power, ideas, time, and dreams, mistaking doing so for being caring and compassionate. This process of giving it away is often subtle but very damaging nonetheless. Such behavior is always to your detriment.

IS EVERY WOMAN A GIVEAWAY GIRL?

Most women are. However, there are some exceptions. Women out there who aren’t Giveaway Girls tend to fall into one of two categories: either they’re healthy, balanced women who are conscious and aware of the tendency to give it away and have done a ton of work on themselves to combat it, or they’re incredibly selfish and narcissistic.

Narcissistic women are the extreme opposite of Giveaway Girls. They’re completely self-focused. They lack empathy for the needs of others. Thinking about others’ needs and putting those first is very difficult for a narcissist. It’s worth noting that narcissism is rarer in women than in men because women are usually socialized to think about others and steer clear of such selfish behavior.[1] Most Giveaway Girls fear becoming or being perceived as selfish and uncaring. Unlike the narcissist, the Giveaway Girl is more of a pleaser and thinks more about others than about herself.

The good news is that no matter how hard a Giveaway Girl tries, she will never become like the narcissist. Balance can be taught to a Giveaway Girl. Most narcissists, however, are disinterested in reversing their self-interested behavior.

Now, let’s look at the second category of women. This category is underrepresented (right now, anyway). Women in this category live and work in a healthy, balanced world. I call them Got It Girls. They are conscious and aware of the Giveaway Girl dynamic.

Got It Girls are absolutely aware of the social constructs and pressures that try to shape their behavior in detrimental ways. However, they have done significant psychological work on their issues, and they strive every day to create balance for themselves. A Got It Girl makes conscious choices to be connected to her soul and her life, knows what she wants, and knows how to get it while still maintaining the relationships she cares about. She is able to healthfully detach when others strain against her boundaries and needs. She does self-sacrifice, but she does so with awareness and for the right reasons.

Most of us are still in the beginning phases of understanding how all our tendencies affect our day-to-day lives. So if you’re a Giveaway Girl, don’t waste time feeling bad or sorry about it—it’s not your fault. A big part of what you are engaging in has been produced by the power of the social constructs that have been at work in the world for years and years (and years). It has been your legacy.

The idea here isn’t to judge yourself; it’s to cultivate a healthy, balanced life of your own. So before you go mentally identifying the women you know and putting them into the healthy and balanced Got It Girl category, keep in mind that you’re probably being too quick to cast some girls into the she’s got it together role. It is easy to see another woman and think she has her sh*t together, when in fact you are seeing only what she is presenting to the world. Chances are, she’s giving it away somewhere.

People’s lives always look different from the outside than they do on the inside—and, sadly, more women are giving it away than you might think.

CHECKLIST:

HOW TO SPOT THE GIVEAWAY GIRL IN YOU

If you think you might be a Giveaway Girl but are not sure, below are fifty questions to ask yourself. Circle the number next to any of the following that applies to you:

1.   Are you a people pleaser?

2.   Are you not a people pleaser in general, but you tend to be like that in intimate relationships (i.e., you don’t want to rock the boat, make people uncomfortable, etc.)?

3.   Do you tend to put others’ needs before your own?

4.   In general, do you treat people well and expect you will receive the same kindness and consideration from others in return?

5.   Do you give other people the benefit of the doubt?

6.   Does giving people the benefit of the doubt ever backfire on you?

7.   Do you doubt yourself easily?

8.   Can others easily make you question your own judgment?

9.   Do you ever feel as if you have been overemotional or selfish when you finally get around to setting some limits?

10. Do you feel guilty when you try to set limits or boundaries that other people don’t like?

11. Do you ever feel guilty when you indulge yourself in some way, especially if people are put out by it?

12. Do you feel guilty or bad when someone is mad or doesn’t like what you have to say?

13. Do you keep your real opinions to yourself most of the time?

14. Do you avoid setting limits with certain people and tend to avoid conflict?

15. Do you have difficulty saying no, especially if you might come off as being mean or if there is any conflict that will arise from it?

16. Do you think that prioritizing your needs and wants, if doing so hurts the feelings of others, is selfish and unacceptable?

17. Do you frequently feel overwhelmed?

18. Do you have the hurry sickness, or feel as if you have so much to do?

19. Do you have difficulty delegating to coworkers or family members?

20. Are you a procrastinator?

21. Do you ever feel used or taken advantage of in work, family, or relationships?

22. Do you ever feel as if the effort you put into relationships is unappreciated or unreciprocated?

23. Do you have the tendency to do too much or tire yourself out?

24. Do you find yourself doing more than just your share at work or at home?

25. Do you feel resentful about other people’s lives?

26. Are you ever scapegoated in family, job, or work situations? (To be scapegoated means to be blamed unfairly.)

27. Do you suffer from depression or anxiety?

28. Do you ever feel victimized?

29. Do you feel as if you give more in your intimate relationships than you receive?

30. Do you frequently find yourself responsible for responsibilities, tasks, and other people?

31. Do you tend to feel overly responsible for other people’s feelings?

32. Did you grow up in a family with addiction issues?

33. Are you susceptible to being manipulated by others?

34. Do you tend to obsess about slights that other people commit or that you perceive to have been committed against you?

35. Are you self-conscious about being liked, or do you feel a need to fit in?

36. Do you tend to be overly passive about asking for your needs to be met in relationships?

37. If someone disagrees with you, is it easy for you to think you might be wrong?

38. Do you feel anxiety when others are mad at you?

39. Do you sometimes not know what you are feeling?

40. Can you swing from being overly passive to overly aggressive?

41. Do you tend not to be direct, clear, and up front about your needs, wants, and desires?

42. Do you sometimes not know when your boundaries are being violated or not know when you are in need of something?

43. Do you have a tendency to feel very hurt or resentful if your unspoken needs, wants, or desires are not fulfilled?

44. Do you feel good about self-sacrificing and giving to those you care about but feel very hurt and frustrated when the same respect isn’t given to you?

45. Do you have a tendency to self-sabotage? (In other words, do you end up blocking yourself somehow from reaching your goals?)

46. Do you ever try to overmanage aspects of your relationships?

47. Do you have a tendency to manage, fix, force solutions to, or overcontrol many aspects of your life?

48. Do people tend to lean on you or ask for your help a lot?

49. Do you often feel sorry for other people?

50. Do you have a great capacity for empathy with others but sometimes have difficulty empathizing well with yourself?

If you answered yes to at least five of these questions, you could be a Giveaway Girl—or maybe you know someone who qualifies. If so, you’ve come to the right book!

WHAT IS THE IT IN GIVING IT AWAY?

It is different for everyone. As I mentioned before, it could mean your time, your energy, your power, your dreams, or your desires. It could mean the freedom to do things you enjoy, honoring and exploring your true talents, or feeling comfortable being uniquely you. Sometimes it means your voice or your self-respect. Sometimes it refers to sex (that’s what you thought of first, right?), but really, sex falls into giving-it-away territory only when you lose your self-esteem or self-respect in the process.

REAL-LIFE GIVEAWAY GIRLS

Giving it away is a little bit different for every woman. After all, we humans are so complex. As a therapist, and in my personal life, I’ve seen countless women give it away.

Allison, whom I mentioned at the beginning of this chapter, was seventeen years old when she dropped out of high school. She had earned a full scholarship to NYU, but when she got pregnant, she gave up on school and got a job. After living as an uneducated, working, single mother for a few years, she tried again to get a college degree. Another guy came around (who treated her poorly), and she dropped everything to be with him for a while. It turned out he was an alcoholic.

How about Brook? She was twenty years old when her boyfriend talked her into getting new breasts because hers were too tiny. Before dating him, she didn’t think there was anything wrong with her breast size—and she later regretted having gotten the surgery.

Then there’s Yvonne, a working mom who felt overwhelmed by everything she had to do to manage both her career and her children’s lives. Her husband played golf all the time and did nothing to help around the house—and she didn’t ask him to, even though she desperately needed the help.

Nastia, a Russian woman who immigrated to the United States in 1990, proudly showed me a picture of her twenty-year-old son the first time we met. She used to commute three hours a day just to drive him to nearby towns for his dance lessons, often sleeping in the backseat of her Chevy in freezing temperatures while waiting for him to finish. She and her husband both worked two jobs each just to support his dancing. His dancing is my life, she told me. Six weeks later, I asked how her son’s dancing was going. He quit, she said. He found a girlfriend and quit. I don’t want to talk about it.

Mothers who focus so much on and give up so much for their children are Giveaway Girls, and there are a lot of them out there, too.

I’ve seen this compulsion to give it away in many great women—women with smarts and all the potential to have great lives. Part of this occurs because it’s how they were taught to be. That’s what makes it so hard to shake loose from this dynamic.

I have a copious amount of Giveaway Girl examples, and I will share many of them in this book. I challenge you to open your eyes a little and see how this dynamic might be playing out for you; you may even recognize parts of yourself in some of the women I describe. We will work through this together, and I am certain you will come out on the other side better armed and better able to manage your tendency to give it away. You can do it. You are much stronger and much more capable than you might think.

WHY IS GIVING IT AWAY BAD FOR YOU?

As I wrote this book, most of the people I told about it gave me overwhelmingly positive responses. However, some women—especially women who felt that, from a religious and/or spiritual perspective, sacrifice is part of living life well—challenged my Giveaway Girl theory.

Aren’t you promoting selfishness? they asked me. This is a valid question—but the short answer is no, certainly not. Selfish people are just that. Giveaway Girls, in contrast, care wholeheartedly about others—so much so that they live too much for other people and neglect themselves needlessly. This imbalance inevitably leads to their hurting themselves and the people they care about.

Giving to others is not a problem in and of itself. The joy we receive from healthy giving can, in fact, provide deep and lasting happiness and peace. As a clinical social worker, I have dedicated my own life and work to helping others. In the process, however, I have discovered that caring and doing for others is not enough on its own; we also have to care and do for ourselves. When