Setting Boundaries Worksheet: Navigating Personal Limits

Download this free worksheet PDF to help clients develop healthy personal relationships

Understanding and asserting boundaries is crucial to emotional wellbeing and relationship health. Ruminating about crossed boundaries can exacerbate depression and damage self esteem. And learning to set boundaries without undue guilt or anxiety can help clients become happier and more effective in relationships.However, some clients struggle with learning to set and communicate clear boundaries with the people in their lives. This may be due to low self esteem, trying too hard to please the people around them, thinking and behaviours learned in their childhood, or any number of reasons. The Setting Boundaries Worksheet is designed to offer a structured pathway for therapists and clients to explore and establish personal boundaries together.The worksheet guides you on this deep dive into core values and boundary setting through:

• Core values and priorities: Questions like, “What do you feel are your personal core values and priorities?” encourage clients to really think about and articulate what matters most to them, setting the foundation for understanding why certain boundaries are essential.
• Frustrations and forgiveness: Through questions about past instances of forgiveness and its consequences, such as “Are you very forgiving, perhaps to a fault?”, clients are guided to recognize situations where boundaries have been crossed or where forgiveness may have enabled negative behaviours to persist.
• Self-reflection and actionable steps: Clients are guided to not only reflect on past instances where boundaries may have been compromised, but also to actively practise articulating their boundaries through practical examples and scripts. The importance of clear, calm, and respectful communication is emphasized.

These questions and more enable you to tailor your approach to each boundary-setting client’s needs by:

• Facilitating in-depth, open dialogue: Designed to make the conversation around boundary setting feel like a shared exploration rather than a clinical exercise, the worksheet fosters a safe environment for clients to express their thoughts and feelings.
• Empowering clients: Recognizing the importance of personal boundaries in maintaining healthy relationships and honouring personal values and needs, the worksheet empowers clients to take control of their interactions by clearly articulating what is and isn’t acceptable to them.
• Strengthening client-therapist collaboration: Encouraging active participation in the boundary-setting process, the worksheet fosters a collaborative dynamic between therapist and client, making the journey of therapy a partnership in growth and self-discovery.

Designed with therapeutic settings in mind, this worksheet is to be used as a resource to spark enriching dialogues, deepen the understanding of personal boundaries, and support clients in the active process of setting and maintaining boundaries that honour their values and needs.Through meaningful engagement with the Setting Boundaries Worksheet, therapists and clients can work together to navigate the complexities of boundary setting, paving the way for healthier relationships and a stronger sense of self.