Episode 172: Teach Me How To Quit People-Pleasing And Create Honest Relationships, with Psychotherapist Kristina Virro
As born-and-raised (but recovering!) people pleasers, we have experienced first-hand how this habit can contribute to burnout, resentment, getting taken advantage of, and appeasing people who don’t respect our boundaries. But it’s time to break the cycle, because the key to happiness and success isn’t trying to please everyone… that’s actually the key to failure.
So we called in the expert, Kristina Virro. Kristina is a Registered Psychotherapist and Holistic Nutritionist, who is dedicated to reducing stigma around mental health and helping people learn effective strategies to feel less stuck and more empowered. She provides psychotherapy and nutritional counselling at her wellness clinic, Fresh Insight, and she has shared her expertise with major outlets like CP24, Canadian Living, and Global News Live. You might have seen her on social media, where she’s amassed over 100,000 followers on TikTok for her no-bullshit real talk about therapy and mental health.
Tune in as we chat about:
The psychological root of people-pleasing
The red flags to look out for if you have people-pleasing tendencies
The danger of prioritizing being liked over everything
How it affects communication — especially at work
How these behaviours impact your relationships
Understanding the fight, flight, freeze and fawn responses
Getting comfortable with letting people down
Establishing honest boundaries (without being an asshole)
PS: If you’ve been toying with the idea of launching a podcast but aren’t sure where to start or how to grow, check our consulting services at teachmehowtoadult.ca/howtopodcast!