Shaun Alladin Shaun Alladin

Core Values and Why They Matter: Understanding What Truly Guides You

1. Values create clarity when life feels overwhelming

When life feels chaotic or you feel stuck, your values provide grounding. They help you sort through outside pressures, expectations, and noise that may not actually belong to you.

For example, if you value rest and well-being but were raised in an environment that prioritizes constant productivity, understanding your values can help you choose care over burnout without guilt.

2. Values support aligned decision-making

Decisions that conflict with your values often feel wrong in your body, even if they look successful or impressive to others.

Setting boundaries, leaving a job, entering or ending a relationship, or prioritizing mental health becomes more manageable when those choices align with who you are and what you stand for.

3. Values support identity development, especially for multicultural and LGBTQ+ individuals

If you are bicultural, BIPOC, or part of the LGBTQ+ community, you may have internalized values that conflict with your lived experience or sense of self.

You might find that you value:

  • Chosen family over traditional family expectations

  • Self-expression over conformity

  • Authenticity over survival-based masking

  • Emotional openness over the pressure to always be strong

Exploring core values allows you to separate what truly belongs to you from what was inherited, imposed, or necessary for survival at an earlier stage of life.

4. Values reduce shame and increase self-compassion

When your actions align with your values, you tend to feel more grounded and steady. When they do not, shame can show up quickly.

Therapy helps you understand why misalignment happens and how to reconnect with what matters, rather than judging yourself for struggling.

5. Values guide healing and long-term change

Therapy is not only about reducing symptoms. It is about building a life that reflects who you are.

Core values give healing direction. They help ensure that growth is not just about coping better, but about living more fully and intentionally.

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