People pleasing

More Than Just "Being Nice": When People-Pleasing Is a Trauma Response

For most of my life, I thought being agreeable was just who I was.

I said "yes" to everything. Took on more than I could handle. Smiled even when I felt hurt. I avoided conflict like the plague and spent countless hours worrying about whether someone was upset with me. Friends praised me for being generous, thoughtful, easygoing. But deep down, it didn’t feel like kindness it felt like pressure. Exhaustion. A quiet fear of disappointing anyone.

Sound familiar?

We often mistake chronic people-pleasing for a personality trait something that just makes us “nice” or “helpful.” But in reality, for many of us, it’s a trauma response rooted in early survival strategies.

Why People-Pleasing Isn’t Just Politeness

When you grow up in an environment where love, attention, or safety feel conditional, you adapt. You become highly attuned to the moods of others. You learn that being good, quiet, or helpful keeps the peace. Over time, you might lose touch with your own wants, needs, or opinions because tuning them out became the only way to stay safe.

People-pleasing is often a form of fawning, one of the nervous system’s responses to threat (along with fight, flight, and freeze). Instead of confronting or avoiding danger, you try to neutralize it by being extra accommodating. You manage others' emotions so they won’t erupt. You over-function so no one gets angry. You anticipate needs before they’re spoken.

It can look like:

Constantly apologizing, even when you’ve done nothing wrong
Saying “yes” when you want to say “no”
Avoiding conflict at all costs
Feeling anxious or guilty when someone is upset
Basing your self-worth on others’ approval

Where Does People-Pleasing Come From?

People-pleasing often starts in childhood especially in homes with emotional unpredictability, neglect, or high expectations. You may have learned that being “good” or helpful earned approval or minimized conflict.

Over time, your nervous system associates compliance with safety.

“If I keep everyone happy, I won’t be hurt or abandoned.”

This unconscious belief can shape adult relationships, careers, and self-worth.

The People-Pleasing Brain: Hypervigilance & Survival

People-pleasers are often highly empathic, intuitive, and emotionally intelligent- not by coincidence, but because they’ve been trained by survival. You may scan faces, anticipate needs, or sense shifts in tone before others do. It’s not just kindness- it’s vigilance. This chronic scanning is exhausting. Your brain is working overtime to prevent harm, even when you’re no longer in danger.

The Cost of Always Trying to Be Liked

What starts as care becomes self-abandonment. You say “yes” at the expense of your own time, health, or values. You feel resentful but guilty. You may even become anxious when someone praises you, because part of you fears rejection or backlash. Over time, this emotional imbalance takes its toll.

Over time, chronic people-pleasing takes a toll. You might feel:

Emotionally drained
Unseen or unappreciated
Resentful but unsure why
Disconnected from your own identity

You may notice that your relationships feel one-sided, or that people expect more from you than you’re able to give. And because you’re always "the strong one," others may not even realize you’re struggling.

The truth is: this pattern isn’t sustainable. It leads to burnout, emotional disconnection, and even physical symptoms like anxiety, fatigue, or illness.

Choosing Yourself Without Guilt

For people who’ve spent years pleasing others, even asking, “What do I want?” can feel foreign. When your safety depended on tuning in to everyone else’s needs, you may have lost connection with your own inner voice.

Begin by gently asking yourself:

What am I actually feeling right now?
If I could speak freely, what would I say?
What am I afraid will happen if I speak honestly?

You don’t need to have all the answers at once. Start by noticing when you override your own thoughts or dismiss your discomfort. Your feelings matter. Your needs are real. And your voice deserves to be heard even if it shakes at first.

Every time you say “no” to something that drains you, you say “yes” to yourself. It might feel terrifying at first like you’re being mean or selfish but saying “no” is how you learn that love doesn’t have to be earned through overgiving.

Try small experiments:

Say “Let me think about it” instead of committing immediately.
Notice what your body feels when you want to say “no.”
Practice declining without overexplaining.

Allowing Others to Struggle

Caretakers are often experts at softening life for others: solving, soothing, stepping in. But real love doesn’t mean shielding people from every consequence or feeling. In fact, rescuing someone from discomfort can rob them of their own growth. It might feel harsh at first to let someone be frustrated, confused, or upset. But trust: allowing others to sit with their own struggles is not cruelty it’s respect.

It says, “I believe you can handle this.”

Letting go doesn’t mean you don’t care. It means you’re stepping out of a controlling role and into a more balanced one where your wellbeing matters too.

You Are Worthy Without Performing

At the heart of people-pleasing is the belief: I must earn love by being useful. But love that depends on self-erasure isn’t love it’s performance.

Your worth isn’t based on what you give, fix, or manage. You are lovable simply because you exist.

Please note: this section on people-pleasing is written based on insights from The Disease to Please by Harriet Braiker, The Gifts of Imperfection by Brené Brown, and Complex PTSD: From Surviving to Thriving by Pete Walker.

Ready to Begin Your Healing Journey?
If any of this resonates with you and you’re feeling the weight of people-pleasing, caretaking, or emotional overwhelm you don’t have to face it alone. I offer compassionate, trauma-informed therapy sessions to help you reconnect with yourself, set healthier boundaries, and build a life rooted in your own needs and values.

✨ Sessions are available online or in person in Eindhoven and Veldhoven.

You’re welcome just as you are.
Schedule a session or reach out with any questions I’d be honored to support you.