CRC Boundaries & Healthy Relationships Flashcards

Codependency in a relationship is best characterized by:

Answer: An excessive emotional reliance on a partner, often involving enabling unhealthy behaviors

Codependency involves losing one's own sense of self in caretaking for a partner, often enabling dysfunctional behavior while neglecting personal needs.

Healthy interdependence in a relationship is distinguished from codependency primarily by:

Answer: The preservation of individual identity and autonomy within the connection

Healthy interdependence involves mutual reliance while maintaining individual identities, autonomy, and personal goals.

A CRC client describes feeling responsible for managing their partner's emotions at all times. This pattern is best described as:

Answer: Emotional caretaking and over-responsibility

Emotional caretaking and over-responsibility involve taking on the burden of regulating a partner's emotions, often at the cost of one's own wellbeing.

The concept of 'enmeshment' in family systems theory describes:

Answer: Boundaries that are too blurred, limiting individual autonomy and identity

Enmeshment describes a system where boundaries between individuals are so diffuse that members lose a clear sense of their individual identity.

When a partner crosses a stated boundary and the other partner takes no action, this is called:

Answer: Boundary collapse or failure to enforce

A boundary that is repeatedly stated but never enforced loses meaning — enforcement (through stated consequences) is what makes a boundary real.

Which of the following is an example of an INTERNAL boundary?

Answer: Choosing not to take responsibility for a partner's emotional reactions

Internal boundaries involve separating your own emotional state and sense of self from another's — recognizing you are not responsible for their feelings.