Guilt and Boundaries
Therapy in NYC
For First-generation Latinas who struggle to say “no”
Does this sound familiar?
You’re home, settling in after a long work day.
Your mom calls — your cousin needs help completing a form.
You’ve been filling out forms since you were in junior high school.
You’re so tired of this.
This request adds to the pile of responsibilities you’re already managing. This is a different kind of work that follows you when you least expect it.
You feel torn.
You don’t want you cousin to think you don’t want to help. You worry about how she’ll complete a form, knowing she doesn’t speak English. You don’t want your mother to think you’re coldhearted.
You grit your teeth and respond in a monotone:
“Ok. Tell her to meet me on Saturday.”
You feel like you’ve just abandoned yourself to keep the peace — and your reputation.
You love your family, but sometimes you feel like a resource.
The guilt you feel makes it so hard to say “no.”
You wonder: “Why does saying ‘no’ make me feel like a bad daughter?”
This is a common experience among first-generation Latinas in New York City.
Guilt and Boundaries Therapy can help
I’m Monica, a bilingual therapist in New York City who works with Latinas who struggle with guilt and setting boundaries.
Many of my clients were raised to be loyal, self-sacrificing and agreeable.
If you’re like them, you learned early on that being “good” meant always being available.
You became the family problem solver, but no one taught you how to prioritize yourself.
Now, saying “no” feels like a betrayal.
In our work together, we go deep.
We explore how and why guilt shows up in your life. I help you unlearn messages you absorbed so that you can turn down the volume on your guilt.
You’ll learn to take care of yourself without losing your connection to your loved ones.
Therapy for guilt and boundaries can help you take loving care of yourself
This work isn’t about being mean. It’s about loving others without sacrificing yourself.
Therapy will help you:
Understand why your guilt feels so powerful, even when you haven’t done anything wrong.
Discover how you learned to feel guilty.
Set boundaries that are aligned with your values.
Stop second-guessing yourself.
Tolerate the discomfort of saying “no.”
Separate love from obligation so you can show up as you really are, without the mask.
Why work with me
I don’t just address your guilt.
I help you understand it so that you can make clearer decisions about what’s right for you.
This work isn’t just about saying “no” — it’s about freeing you from years of conditioning and unspoken expectations.
My approach is deeply cultural. It’s shaped by my clinical training and experience as a Latina.
I understand how deeply rooted guilt can be, especially for first-generation Latinas. I also respect your culture — it’s shaped you in important ways.
Clients often say that:
They finally feel understood
They feel relieved to talk about things they’ve kept hidden
They feel less alone
I won’t push you to set boundaries that don’t feel right. We’ll move at a rhythm that respects your growth and your reality.
Imagine this:
Saying “no” and not spending the whole day second-guessing yourself.
Making decisions based on what you need, not what others expect.
No longer feeling responsible for other people’s moods.
Showing up in your relationships more authentically.
Caring deeply about your family and friends, without abandoning yourself to please them.
Feeling more clear, confident and steady in who you are.
Contact me - Weekends available
Here’s what we’ll do together
Therapy with me is collaborative, practical and focused on lasting change.
We work on:
Understanding your patterns
We identify where you feel guilt the most — family, work, relationships — and what triggers it.
Identifying the messages you learned
We explore how your upbringing, culture and experience shaped how you feel about responsibility and boundaries.
Building a new relationship to boundaries
We practice how to communicate boundaries, tolerate discomfort and apply your new skills to real life situations.
Reflect
As you make these changes, we’ll talk about what comes up for you so that you feel supported.
You might not call it guilt,
but it still affects you.
You might not think you have a problem with guilt.
Instead, you might say:
I don’t want to let people down.
I feel bad saying “no.”
I don’t want them to get mad at me.
Underneath these statements is often an over-responsibility for other people at your own expense.
If this sounds familiar, you’re not alone.
You don’t have to keep struggling with this on your own.
Guilt and Boundaries Therapy in NYC can help you break the cycle of guilt and build a new approach that feels more balanced, authentic and sustainable.
FAQs
Frequently asked questions
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Meeting weekly provides the best results.
It allows me to build trust, better understand your perspective and identify your patterns.
We’ll spend less time catching up on what happened after our last session and more time troubleshooting your setbacks and working on your goals.
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You’ll treat yourself with curiosity and grace and strengthen your self-trust.
You’ll explore the cultural messages that resonate and the ones that don’t.
You’ll understand why you feel guilty and that changing the way you think can improve your relationship with boundaries.
Find your voice.
Start thriving.
Find your voice. Start thriving.