I am a victim. I am one of those nice girls who get taken for granted.

People tell me I'm too nice. I do what I'm supposed to do. Shit happens, and I deal with it. I live my life, I go to work, I get done what I'm supposed to get done, and I call it a day.

When I don't even know it, I get taken advantage of. It flies over my head without me noticing. I am a daily victim.

I've always been nice to others ever since I was a kid. I cared more about everybody else before I cared about myself. I let things go without consequence if I was ever let down. I went out of my way to please others. I made sure others were happy first.

But I need to be happy, too.

I always forget about myself, my feelings, my life. They never mattered before everything else. That's how it works. Pleasing everyone first so I can feel satisfied was the right thing to do.

It's really not the right thing to do.

When people take advantage of you, and you feed into it, they are going to continue those behaviors. It's almost like you're enabling something without any control, and you give permission. Access denied... permission no more.

It's not going to happen as often anymore. I'm now realizing that it hurts. I mean, why would it feel if it ever happened to them?

I'm tired of people taking advantage of me. I'm tired of being too nice. It's actually getting really old, people getting away with it all just from me smiling, giving the OK.

There's a difference between being nice and being TOO nice. Of course, you can be nice, but not too nice. Don't take it the wrong way. You can smile, but you're also allowed to be assertive. You can laugh and get along, but you're also allowed to say "no".

Let someone else do it for a change, leave it up to them. It's hard because worrying is normal. Instead of running away and doing it yourself, face it and fight back.

Care about yourself for a change; you are in control of your own life.