Why is Lithuania so afraid of the East and the West?

Lithuania has always been sandwiched between Polish, German, and Russian empires and is extremely terrified of their neighbours to the West (Teutonic Order) and East (Tatars and Mongols). Lithuania is between the Tatars and Slavs in the East and the Teutonic Knights in the Western regions. Lithuania has always been a buffer zone between Polish-Mongol, Russian-Teutonic, Mongol-Polish, and other empires. This is why Lithuania has always been unstable and weak.