>Second, you can only absorb what you allow, according to your own >emotional/intellectual strength. If you're considering the fear of absorbing >"additional problems", then maybe there's a weakness inside of you that would allow >for such a thing to happen.
I feel I must say this:
Not everyone grows appropriate emotional barriers or learns how to from their upbringing. It does not mean he/she is strong or weak -- it is an absence of an ability. Learning how to manage boundaries is something that many of us learn as adults, and many adults have yet to learn how. Again, that does not mean they are weak - it means they have lacked awareness, focus and instruction in how to separate self from others.