I took this excerpt from an article that is concerned with how to establish healthy boundaries, in order that we may take better care of ourselves. I feel that learning how to care for and nurture ourselves is something that most women really need to learn how to do. Too often we look to other people to do this for us, not realizing that we ourselves need to take responsibility for our own well-being and happiness. The complete article is well worth a look; there is a link to it following the excerpt.

"I have the right to be self-nurturing in relationships. I deserve to love myself unconditionally. I deserve to take care of my own intellectual, emotional and physical needs with no need to become dependent on my relationship partners to meet these needs for me. I deserve to accept myself as a unique person who is different and separate from my partners in my relationships. I deserve and need to be open and honest with myself so that I am constantly in touch with my feelings and emotions so that I do not slip into fantasy or delusion about what is happening in my relationships. I have the need to be open to my inner voice which is the source of my instincts and intuitions so that I can hear the Alarm Bell if my relationships are becoming unhealthy for me. ”   http://www.coping.org/relations/boundar/childb.htm