We've all been the drainer and the drainee (whether you realize it or not). You know what I'm talking about...the dynamic of constant contact, stories, & questions and the constant attention, listening, & fixing.
But if you're the drainer...is it really your fault? Or are you a teacher for the drainee to set better boundaries?
If you're the drainee, think about how you're not standing in your full power...the power to speak up, the power to not feel responsible, the power to let go of that false sense of control in being a "fixer", & even the deep desire to be needed.
Allow yourself to get to a point of just being, letting go, and flowing with the universe. Everyone is going to be okay. And if you think you're not, or that someone won't be okay without you, how are you enabling & preventing yourself from stepping into your own power AND that individual from stepping into their own power to learn lessons?
When you release the burden of "taking care" or "fixing" or "healing" everyone around you, it doesn't make you a jerk. Instead, you're able to come from a much more loving place. You begin to reserve so much more of your energy, which gives yourself & others permission to be free to step into their power.
And THAT is love.