There is a point after graduation where you choose whether to move away or stay. You can find yourself drifting away from those you were once close with. In my life, I have managed to keep the good friends close even if we go a few months without talking. Now it seems that if you go two days without talking the relationship gets tense and everyone has hurt feelings.
How did we go from being able to go home from school and not talk to people for weeks on end during summer vacation to not being able to even last the weekend?
I have come to the realization that not all friendships are good friendships. There are plenty of easy ways for toxic relationships to weasel into our lives. Without even noticing it one day you can end up in a really bad mood with no one by your side.
Being in friendships with those who don't support your dreams or actions is a good example of a toxic friendship. Recently after becoming more conscientious of who I surrounded myself with I discovered how often my 'friends' would belittle my appearance, ideas, actions, comments, and decisions. Their opinions would come from places of insecurity and self-doubt that they would then project on to me. As a strong person, their comments didn't have much effect. Usually, I would let it slide since I am not one for petty arguments that I know will go nowhere. Insults and rude comments are not ways to communicate with friends. The people you surround yourself with deserve to know that they are loved, appreciated, and supported with all of their crazy dreams no matter how crazy they are. Most of the time the crazy dreams are the ones that work out.
There is no easy way to discover that you are being mistreated in friendships, but you just have to come to the conclusion that not all friendships are meant to last forever.
When growing out of friendships that aren't necessarily toxic the strain can be hard to avoid. One person might latch on and feel the distance stronger which would cause them to fight to keep the friendship going.
As we get older our interests change. Our personalities develop into something more whole and advanced. If we were meant to stay the same throughout our lives everything would be a little more drab. If you are trying to walk away from a friendship and you can't bring yourself to do it, try making slow progress. Simply not hanging out as much or even talking will eventually create the space between you two to grow apart and have the friendship sizzle out. Not all friendships must end in combustion. You can still talk, but just be aware of how much you let someone you didn't want in your life influence you.
When you begin to grow out of old friendships, don't be bitter. Notice the good times that you have and make sure that you are both aware of the appreciation you have for one another. But in order to develop into the person you want to be, sometimes friendships have to end.
