We create this content from the unceded territories of the Musqueam, Tsleil-Waututh, and Squamish Nations. As settlers providing therapy services in so-called Vancouver, we’re committed to moving beyond acknowledgment into active accountability.
In This Guide:
- Beyond “Boundaries 101”: A Justice Lens
- Cultural Dimensions of No
- Navigating Boundaries in Close Relationships
- Collective Boundaries in Practice
- Professional Boundaries as Liberation
- Digital Boundaries and Anti-Carceral Practice
- Boundary Setting as Ancestral Wisdom
- Next Steps
Beyond “Boundaries 101”: A Justice Lens
Through Vancouver BIPOC therapy, we examine how boundaries intersect with power and liberation, we must examine how the very concept of boundaries intersects with power, privilege, and liberation. The ability to say “no” has historically been denied to many communities, making boundary setting not just a personal practice but a political one.
Consider who gets to set boundaries without consequences:
- Who can decline extra work without risking their job?
- Whose “no” is respected without question?
- Who faces violence for setting boundaries?
- Whose boundaries are seen as “cultural differences” versus “being difficult”?
Cultural Dimensions of No
As providers of culturally responsive counselling in Vancouver, we understand the unique complexities that boundary setting in SDQTBIPOC+ communities carries unique complexities. Colonial racial capitalism deliberately disrupts our natural ways of being in community, forcing impossible choices between survival and connection.
Many SDQTBIPOC+ communities hold deep values of collective care and interdependence. Yet capitalism demands individualization, creating painful tensions:
- The pressure to choose between community needs and economic survival
- Navigating cultural expectations while protecting capacity
- Maintaining collective care practices despite systemic barriers
- Finding ways to honor relationships while setting necessary limits
- Resisting isolation while protecting energy
Navigating Boundaries in Close Relationships
Through our anti-oppressive therapy approach, we understand that setting boundaries with family and loved ones involves complex layers of cultural context, intergenerational patterns, and systemic pressures. Through anti-oppressive therapy in Vancouver, we see how colonial racial capitalism creates specific challenges in maintaining healthy relationships while honoring both individual and collective needs.
For SDQTBIPOC+ communities, boundary setting in close relationships often means:
- Navigating intergenerational trauma responses
- Balancing cultural values with personal needs
- Managing limited time and energy under capitalism
- Protecting relationships from systemic stress
- Maintaining connection while setting limits
Common challenges we explore in therapy include:
- When financial precarity affects family dynamics
- How systemic stress impacts relationship patterns
- Navigating different cultural expectations around care
- Managing guilt around setting boundaries
- Protecting relationships from burnout
Through somatic therapy and relationship counselling, we can:
- Honor both individual and collective needs
- Develop sustainable care practices
- Create agreements that respect cultural values
- Build protective boundaries around relationships
- Maintain connection while respecting limits
It’s important to recognize that under colonial racial capitalism, many SDQTBIPOC+ families and relationships face additional pressures:
- Limited time together due to work demands
- Financial stress affecting family dynamics
- Systemic barriers to maintaining cultural practices
- Pressure to assimilate to Western relationship models
- Reduced access to community support systems
Anti-oppressive approaches to boundary setting in relationships might include:
- Creating family agreements that honor cultural values
- Developing collective care practices that work within systemic constraints
- Finding ways to protect relationship time from capitalist demands
- Building support networks that understand cultural context
- Maintaining connection while respecting individual capacity
Collective Boundaries in Practice
In social justice oriented therapy, we explore how boundaries can serve collective liberation rather than just individual protection. This means creating agreements that honor both personal needs and community wellbeing.
Practical examples include:
- Creating shared resource distribution systems
- Establishing community care agreements
- Developing collective responses to boundary violations
- Building mutual aid networks that respect capacity
- Setting sustainable activism practices
Professional Boundaries Under Colonial Racial Capitalism
Through anti-oppressive therapy approaches, we acknowledge how colonial racial capitalism creates unique boundary challenges for SDQTBIPOC+ workers. The system often demands more labor while offering less support and protection.
Common experiences include:
- Facing higher expectations and scrutiny
- Managing excessive emotional labor demands
- Navigating microaggressions while maintaining professionalism
- Risking job security when setting basic boundaries
- Carrying additional representation burden
Resistance strategies might include:
- Building collective protection networks
- Documenting boundary violations
- Creating shared advocacy strategies
- Supporting each other’s limit-setting
- Developing community care practices
Digital Boundaries and Anti-Carceral Practice
In decolonizing mental health care, we must examine how digital activism can sometimes reproduce carceral logic through self-punishment and constant exposure to trauma. An anti-carceral framework helps us approach information and engagement differently.
This means:
- Rejecting the idea that we must consume all information
- Building a community to grieve difficult information, contexts, and news with
- Creating boundaries around trauma exposure
- Building sustainable activism practices
- Supporting collective care in digital spaces
- Resisting surveillance culture together
Boundary Setting as Ancestral Wisdom
Many of our communities have traditional practices of protection and limit-setting that predate colonial concepts of boundaries. Through culturally responsive counselling, we reconnect with these wisdom traditions.
This includes:
- Traditional protection practices
- Cultural teachings about community care
- Ancestral ways of managing energy
- Collective practices of saying no
- Indigenous perspectives on boundaries
Next Steps in Your Healing Journey
Ready to explore how anti-oppressive therapy can support your boundary practice? Here are some ways to connect:
- Book a free consultation to discuss how therapy might support your boundary journey.
- Take our 3-minute questionnaire to receive personalized therapist recommendations.
- Explore our free resource database for more information about anti-oppressive approaches to boundaries and healing.
Have questions? Reach out to us at connect@venturouscounselling.com or text 778.775.7504.
Your boundaries are part of collective liberation. In anti-oppressive therapy, we honor both personal and community needs in the journey toward healing.
