My Single Mom Life

I have a huge stack of emails and comments to get through, and I promise, I will get to them.
Skeet, I will get around to that thing you sent me, I just am in a bit of an epiphany.

I read something today that hit my very core, and since I read it this morning, I've been doing a lot of thinking about it.
I sometimes talk about the people in my life and how those interactions go.
Most recently, I discussed very privately a situation that is bothering me terribly.

But upon reading this thing this morning, I realized that I have allowed this behavior.
!!
I allowed it through a series of guilt, and feeling obliged, not wanting to hurt anyone's feelings.
In the process of that, I allowed myself to be hurt, to be guilted, to feel bad about things.
And now that I have come to this grand realization, I have no idea how to proceed.
I know that I can't allow it to continue because it is truly making me crazy, and at the same time, making me feel bad.
There's that damn guilt again!

But how do you go about laying down your rules, your wants, your needs, and not upset others?
We should come first, not in the selfish way of everything for me, me me, but in a way that shows we take pride in ourselves, in a way that says my needs are important to me above all else, and I need to make sure that those needs get met.
And I truly must do something soon, because the situation is escalating to a point that I have become uncomfortable.
I don't like being uncomfortable.
I don't like insecurity and excessive need.

So maybe on my walk to the corner store, I'll figure out just how to proceed with this, I know it must end, just not sure how.