6 Signs That It’s Time to Let Go of a Best Friend
Are you lucky enough to have a best friend,
or at least have known a deep, trusting friendship?
Finding a true and loving friendship,
the one that makes you feel happy, safe,
and secure, is so rare and special that when we do,
we can’t help but wish that it would last forever.
However, trying to salvage a friendship that isn’t meant
to last does more harm than good.
Loving someone means doing what’s best for them,
even when it hurts you.
Here are six signs that can help you realize that it’s time to let go of your best friend.
1. You Are Second-Guessing Your Friendship
Though you don’t want to admit it,
you might be second-guessing the relationship
and questioning the point of the friendship.
- Growing Apart: You have both changed so much that it’s almost as if you’re completely different people now. You no longer have anything in common and don’t know what to talk about.
- Forced Interaction: Conversations that were once easy-going and fun now feel constantly awkward and forced. Everything you used to love doing with them, you seem to have stopped enjoying altogether.
2. You Don’t Communicate Anymore
Another common reason why friendships end
is that people tend to grow apart over time.
- Pretending: You still see them as your best friend even if you haven’t kept in touch or talked to them in ages.
- Empty Excuses: You barely see each other anymore, and neither of you makes any effort to get together. While you might pretend this is normal due to busy schedules or distance, eventually, these justifications start sounding like empty excuses.
3. You Want Different Things
We all have plans and goals that we want to achieve in our lives,
and sometimes pursuing them can mean letting certain people go.
- Conflict of Interest: It is hard when you and your best friend want very different things for yourselves.
- Resentment: Staying in the friendship might mean sacrificing one another’s hopes and dreams. Asking someone to give that up for you will only make them resent you in the end.
4. You’ve Found Other Friends
You may not realize that you and your best friend
are already drifting apart until you make new close friends.
- Compatibility: When being with other people feels more compatible and comfortable than being with your “bestie,” it is a clear sign that it’s time to let go—or at least accept that the “best friend” status has dropped.
- Belonging: This doesn’t mean your new friends treat you better; it simply means you belong more with them than with your old friend. You owe it to yourself and to them to be honest about it.
5. They’ve Broken Your Trust
This is a particularly sad reason for ending a friendship,
but it happens.
- The Foundation: Trust is the foundation of any healthy relationship. Without it, things can never move forward or get better.
- Irreparable Damage: Whether it was one fight too many or words said that can’t be taken back, sometimes there is too much hurt to save the friendship. The best thing to do is start over and find peace with someone else.
6. You Are the Only One Holding On
If you feel that the effort to keep the friendship alive
is virtually one-sided, with you being the sole load-bearer,
it might be time to end things.
- Accepting Rejection: As much as it hurts to be rejected by someone you considered your closest friend, trying to force them to change their mind is wrong.
- Self-Preservation: If they don’t want you in their life anymore, spare yourself the indignity and leave. It is not good for your self-esteem or mental health to stay with someone who clearly doesn’t want you.
Summary
Letting go of someone you love is one of the most difficult
and painful decisions you will ever make.
You may experience a cycle of grieving with stages
of anger, denial, and sadness before accepting it.
However, deep down,
you will understand that it is the right thing to do.
People are meant to change and mature;
moving forward in life means learning and growing from your past,
not being held back by it.
