What comes to mind when you think about the word boundary?
Usually we talk about the word boundary as a way to draw a line,
Creating space between here and there,
Me and you.
Boundaries show up constantly in healthcare.
Where are the boundaries between work and home,
Attending and resident,
Patient and provider,
Personal and professional?
We also create boundaries when we're uncomfortable,
Maybe using a notebook or a laptop to create a separation between ourselves and a patient.
We're using time as a boundary to create more space for ourselves or to limit contact with patients that are challenging.
Sometimes boundaries are a way to protect ourselves from those we cannot help.
We can amplify the clinical logical mind as a way to numb and disconnect from the trauma we see and the wounds we can't heal.
It doesn't take too long before it can feel like there's a chasm between ourselves and those we're trying to help.
To begin this exercise,
I'll ask that you find a comfortable seat,
Comfortable but also alert.
If you find that it's easy for you to drift off during meditation practice,
It might be helpful to keep yourself seated upright.
And as always,
You are welcome to close your eyes or keep them open,
Whatever feels like it's most supportive.
I invite you to first explore the boundaries in your physical body.
Where does contact with the surface you're sitting on begin and end?
Can you explore the edges between the pressure of a surface and the air around it?
What about the boundaries between different parts of your body,
Such as your feet and ankles?
Or maybe your wrists and hand?
When does your foot end and your ankle begin?
Where does your wrist end and your hand begin?
It may be challenging to tell.
Which isn't too unlike more abstract boundaries,
Like the ones that occur in relationship with others?
In calling to mind those more abstract boundaries,
Are there areas in your life in which the boundaries feel too firm or too permissive?
When you consider the idea of a boundary that is a challenge for you,
What sensations do you notice that arise in your body?
Maybe a knot in your chest or a twist of your stomach or a feeling of heaviness or even emptiness.
Just noticing how your body responds when you consider the challenge of navigating boundaries.
Now,
I'd like to invite you to call to mind a person or situation where boundaries have been a challenge.
This could be in work life or home life.
It may be that there's someone else that's pulling you to let down your boundaries.
It may be that you're pulling them to let down theirs.
It may also be that more division is necessary to create safety for yourself.
Just call to mind as clearly as you can this person or situation that has made it hard to know the edges between you and they.
Imagine all the ways in which you share similarities with this person or situation.
Is it possible that you share common goals or values?
This may be challenging and you might wind up just simply both being human.
What is it like to consider the shared humanity with someone where division has been difficult?
Notice any resistance,
A sense of withdrawal or pulling away.
Notice any urge to step closer to try to bridge the gap.
And there is no right or wrong,
Just noticing.
Can you be kind to yourself as you notice this challenge in whatever's coming up?
Noticing any tendency to criticize yourself or the other person,
To start engaging in a story about what's happening.
And just allowing your body to tell you what you need to know.
And that may not be clear.
It's okay not to know.
What may it be like for boundaries to be in harmony with this person or situation?
That's not always possible.
And that's okay.
What do you need to feel more in harmony with these boundaries?
And in winding down this practice,
Just shifting attention from the situation or person that you're imagining,
Just reconnecting if it felt like you got disconnected from your body.
Just back to that sensation of noticing the boundaries between your body parts and your furniture.
And the space around you.
Whenever you're ready to end the meditation,
You are welcome to open your eyes if they're closed.
And go about the rest of your day with this knowledge that you've gained.
Thank you.
