Toxic friends are never going to have an upside and should not be a part of your life. They bring you down, carry negativity everywhere they go and don't have any reason to stick around. The best thing to know about toxic friends is when to break off the friendship.
1. Their commitment to the friendship is inconsistent.
One day they could be acting as if everything is normal and the next they could ignore you all day. You can't count on them to always be there no matter what.
2. They lack empathy.
Instead of helping you get through the low points in your life, they listen and move on to their own problems as if it's no big deal.
3. They leave you out.
They create excuses for why you weren't there/invited or lie to you about where they are. They explain that they wished you were there or thought you wouldn't want to come.
4. They are stubborn and ignore your advice.
They brush any advice you have off their shoulders as if it doesn't matter. They will not even consider changing their minds, even if they've asked for the advice.
5. You compete with them over everything.
Doesn't matter the significance, you find yourself jealous or trying to "be better" than them in every area in your life, whether it be school, sports, or friendships.
6. They judge you.
You feel self-conscious or worried about what they will think whenever you do something. You find yourself more stressed around them and feel like changing your character.
7. They are untrustworthy or talk behind your back.
We all have friends who tell us everything people say behind our backs, and a lot of that negativity comes from the same person all the time.
8. You only talk about the negative with them.
Rather than confiding in you and asking for your advice, they are simply telling you their problems just for the sake of telling you. You feel as if you are more pessimistic around them than your normal self.
In all, if any of these reasons made someone pop into your mind, they are probably not a good friend and need to be made aware of that or cut out of your life. Eliminating toxicity is the best thing you can do for yourself.
