Not everyone reciprocates the gesture.

并不是每個人都會回應你的付出。

This is a hard truth but it’s true.

這是個殘酷的事實，但現實的確如此。

If other people poured the same amount of effort into me as I pour into them, things would probably be different, but things aren’t always equal in friendships and relationships.

如果別人對我的付出，跟我對別人的付出一樣多，現實可能會有所不同。然而，友情和愛情中的付出總是不對等。

I honestly think that we should help other people and take care of them because it’s a good thing to do, not because we want something back.

老實說，我覺得我們應該幫助和關心別人，僅僅因為這是一種善舉，而不是想要有所回報。

But by the same token, if we’re not getting anything back to sustain us when we need it, we shouldn’t help people to the point where we drain our own resources.

可是，由此類推，當我們需要幫助，卻什么都得不到的時候，我們就不應該耗盡所有精力去幫助別人了。

I’m not being selfish.

我并不是自私。

Putting yourself first feels so wrong when you first start doing it.

剛開始去把自己放在第一位的時候，你會覺得很不好意思。

If you’re used to erasing your own needs to look after others, it seems too self-indulgent.

如果你習慣壓抑自己的需求去幫助別人，以自己為優先的話，就會顯得很任性。

But actually,the only way to consistently and effectively help other people in the long-termis to make sure you’re in a good place yourself.

但是實際上，持續且高效地幫助別人的唯一方法，就是先讓自己保持良好的狀態。