Emotional and physical boundaries are pretty important in one’s life. Almost everybody knows about the concept of boundaries and if you don’t then you should learn about it. Boundaries are imaginary lines that separate things. Like, it segregates your needs, feelings, physical space, and responsibilities from others. Your boundaries define how people can treat you. They suggest what is acceptable to you and what isn’t. Without physical boundaries examples, you can be vulnerable to being used however people want. There are many types of boundaries in the realm and physical boundary is one of them. Let’s read physical boundaries examples and many more in this article.
1. What are the Types of Boundaries?
In your personal life, you need to have a set of boundaries to prevent others from taking advantage of you. There are 7 different types of boundaries one can have in their personal life. They are as follows:
- Physical Boundaries: These are the boundaries one creates to protect their body as well as space. It’s the right to have privacy, to meet physical needs like eating or resting, and to not be touched. In physical boundaries examples, you define what kind of touch(if any) is ok to you, how close others can be with you, and how people can behave in your personal space. For example, if you don’t like someone sitting close to you, you tell them to move or you move away.
- Emotional or Mental Boundaries: These boundaries are meant to safeguard your thoughts and feeling. It saves your feelings from being invalidated or criticized. It segregates your feelings from others. It makes you accountable for your feelings but not for how others feel. It allows you to respect each other’s feelings and refrain from oversharing personal information that can be inappropriate for the level or nature of your relationship. For example, if it’s mentally draining for you to answer a question you can say that you don’t feel comfortable discussing this.
- Sexual Boundaries: These boundaries define your sexual rights and consent. Like, as what you like sexually, what kind of intimacy or sexual touch you want, how often you want intimacy, when, where, and with whom you want intimacy, and honesty about your partner’s sexual history. It conveys all aspects of your sex life. For example, if you hate rough sex, you can say I don’t like being handled roughly.
- Financial and Material Boundaries: You safeguard your financial possessions and resources through these boundaries. It defines your right to spend your money as you want, your right to be paid by an employer as promised, and your right to not give your possessions or money if you don’t want it. For example, please don’t use my car without my consent.
- Time Boundaries: These boundaries are meant to protect your time and how you spend it. It saves you from agreeing to engagements you don’t want to participate in. It also refrains people from wasting their time and saves you from being overworked. For example, Sundays are reserved for my family time, and I will reply to the work emails on the next working day.
- Non-Negotiable Boundaries: These boundaries define the things you absolutely must have to feel safe. These boundaries are deal-breakers and thus are concerned with life-threatening health issues, physical violence, drug or alcohol abuse, fidelity, and emotional abuse. For example, the day you cheat on me, the marriage is over.
2. What are 3 Examples of Boundaries?
After learning about the types of boundaries let’s further solidify the concept of boundaries with these three examples:
- If someone goes through your phone or wallet without your knowledge it is a violation of your physical boundaries.
- You don’t want certain people to hug you.
- If you don’t like anything about intimacy with your partner, you can say no.
3. What are Emotional and Physical Boundaries?
Drawing lines and having boundaries in one’s life is very essential. Especially, one should set firm emotional and physical boundaries. The physical boundaries are easier for you to define as well as for people to see. It segregates between what is yours and what is others. Like, your car, your office, your space, your locked car, your password-protected phone, the money in your bank account, and your body. These physical boundaries examples are external and hence are easier to see.
Along with firm physical boundaries, you need to create firmer emotional boundaries. Emotional boundaries come under internal boundaries and hence are harder to define. Thus, others often cross your emotional boundaries. These boundaries are meant to protect your thoughts and feelings. They safeguard your feelings from being invalidated or criticized. They differentiate your feelings from others, making you accountable for your feelings but not being responsible for how others feel. This provides you with emotional safety. (See What is Esteem Needs?)
4. How do You Create Physical Boundaries?
After learning about emotional and physical boundaries, let’s take a look at the steps to create physical boundaries.
- Name Your Limits: Since boundaries can be confusing and abstract it’s very important to first visualize your limits and then name them to cause makes the boundaries concrete. With this, you can get a clear idea of when and where you want to draw the line. It segregates you from other people. Ask yourself what is causing you the stress or discomfort. For example, your friends using your clothes.
- Communicate Your Boundaries Openly: People often just create boundaries in their minds and don’t communicate them to people. If you don’t tell someone what action pisses you off how will they know? The idea of openly communicating your boundaries is scary but once you are done with it you will feel relieved for sure. For example, if you hate people touching using your cosmetics then tell them you don’t like people using your cosmetics.
- Uphold Your Boundaries: You also need to train yourself to adhere to your boundaries. It takes time, patience, and repetition for people to understand your boundaries. If someone initially oversteps your boundary kindly remind them and be consistent with the boundary you have set.
- Saying No is a Yes: Never be afraid to say No, it’s a very powerful word. If you are always saying yes to everything, you will be overwhelmed with responsibilities and duties which will distort your self-care. The word No draws a line perfectly which is essential for healthy boundaries. For example, if someone asks for your notes just before the exams and you don’t want to give them the notes as this will disrupt your studies, then say No.
5. What are Physical Boundaries Examples?
Now that you have learned about physical boundaries, let’s further look at physical boundaries examples:
- When you feel uncomfortable with somebody’s touch you move or tell them to move away.
- If don’t like people smoking and drinking in your house tell them so.
- If you don’t like people going through your phone without your consent then vocalize this physical boundary.
6. What are Examples of Physical Boundaries in a Relationship?
After knowing about physical boundaries examples, let us learn about physical boundaries in a relationship. Physical boundaries define your personal space, touch, and physical needs. Some physical boundaries examples in a relationship are as follows:
- I don’t like hugging people but a handshake is ok.
- I don’t like being touched that way.
- Don’t check my phone without my permission.
- I am allergic to dogs, you can’t bring one to my house.
7. What Boundaries should a Woman have?
After learning about physical boundaries in a relationship, let’s learn about the boundaries a woman should have. Boundaries are important in any person’s life and all women should especially have these boundaries:
- Physical Boundaries
- Identity Boundaries
- Belief system Boundaries
- Emotional and Mental Boundaries
- Sexual Boundaries
- Time Boundaries
- Financial and Material Boundaries
8. What are Healthy Dating Boundaries?
For healthy dating, you need to define your physical, emotional, mental, sexual, financial, material, time, and non-negotiable boundaries clearly with your partner. For example, you have ownership over your financial assets in a relationship. (See What is a Healthy Relationship Timeline?)
9. What are the 4 Personal Boundaries?
There are a lot of personal boundaries but the four very important personal boundaries are emotional, physical, sexual, and time boundaries. Physical boundaries examples define physical contact, verbal interaction, and personal space. Emotional boundaries provide you with emotional safety. Sexual boundaries define your sexual rights and consent. Time boundaries are meant to protect your time and how you spend it. (See What are 10 Examples of Wants?)
