Today’s word for Linda’s Just Jot it January is ‘compelled.’ Hmmm!  I am a person who, throughout their life, has never been good at saying no. If anyone asked me to do anything for them, I would always oblige as I liked to please and make people happy. The problem with this, though, is after a while, it becomes too much.

Sometimes I might not want to babysit, or go to the shops, or give someone a lift somewhere, or work overtime as I had my own things to do, but because I had always done it for so long, saying no didn’t seem right. I felt compelled to carry on as I had done, not wanting to disappoint anyone.

After a while, though, resentment sets in. I started feeling like a doormat, which really was of my own making. It was me that was putting the pressure on myself to do things. I would feel so guilty if I felt I had let someone down by not being able to do the favour that they asked me. I would do it then rant and rave about it to my husband, who would tell me not to do it then.

So, eventually, I did start saying no occasionally. I am still a bit of a pushover at times, but certainly nowhere near as much as I used to be!