The Danger of Compulsive Caregiving
The pattern of compulsive caregiving occurs when you emphasize the importance of giving care in relationships rather than receiving the attention you need and deserve at this stage in your life. In some ways, you become the parent to someone who is supposed to be nurturing you. But it's only when you take the situation to an extreme level that it becomes a problem. It can lead to unhealthy attachments and dysfunctional relationships later in life, because you lose your ability to ask for care or help, yet you may foster a pervasive desire for exactly that. Widening the gap between what you need and what you get (or are able to ask for) creates animosity and unhappiness.
As detailed in a scientific paper by West and Keller from the University of Toronto, compulsive caregiving leads to a dangerous pattern, leaving you unable to accept care and love in healthy, reciprocal relationships. Instead, you focus on giving all of yourself - at your own expense. So make sure you learn to ask for what you need, and allow yourself to be taken care of once in a while, too.
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