Friendship like any relationship is complex and dynamic. If you want support especially in stressful situations, if you want someone to spend good times with or if you need to just stretch those days a bit longer, you need to have reliable circle of friends. An active friend circle ensures you have better control over your lives and is never short on self-esteem.
People grow and relationships evolve. Much as we wanted for friendship to last a lifetime, at some point we have to cut ties to achieve balance especially if the relationship has gone toxic. A healthy relationship is a balanced relationship where the needs of both friends are symbiotically met.
If you feel bad instead of good after spending time with your friends, when he or she is overly critical of you be it in a subtle way or explicitly; if your friends drain you emotionally, financially, or mentally, then they are not very good for you.
Bad friends don’t wave red flags and warn you of the eminent dangers in getting them on your radar. But their bad behaviors should be enough to warn you that something is not right somehow.
What are the signs of a toxic friendship? Destructive or negative friends are hard to spot. Some friends may be born betrayers others may turn into betrayers. Take a pause and think about the type of friends you now have. These three red flags should be enough to tell you it’s time to get rid of your toxic friends.
- Constant need for assistance. Be it advice, money or company, this type of friend calls on you constantly when they need something and when things go well with them, you don’t hear from them at tall. This type of friend always takes from the relationship and never gives back.
- Inability to maintain healthy relationship with others. Constantly fighting with someone, these friends are usually critical of others. They find fault in every person they meet and always have something to complain about certain people. They stick with you because you are the only friend who stays. And when you turn your back, they tell others about your flaws, too.
- Disrespectful and criticizes you often. While real friends don’t care if your house is in disarray or if your hair is messy, overly critical friends disrespect your relationships, try to put you down and yes, complain about your looks and constantly make you feel bad about yourself. They don’t care about your privacy or your boundaries for they are more concerned of what they need from you and they expect to get it.
Friendships are important everywhere and they have positive things to contribute to all areas of your life but when they start be toxic in any of these areas, spare yourself from heartaches and call it quits.
