Teen Friendships: Losing my two closest friends
A teen feels sad after he loses his closest friends.
QUESTION
Hello,
I am 15 years old and until recently, had a decent amount of friends. I knew the closest of my friends for many years. But all of a sudden my friends never talk to me. I lost my two closest friends to each other as they are constantly leaving me out.
Everyone else just stopped talking to me. I don’t know what to do. Can you help me?
Signed, Brian
ANSWER
Hi Brian,
I’m so sorry you’re having trouble with your friends. When a person encounters a sudden change like this, the logical question is, “What happened?” You might not know the answer. Your two closest friends may have gradually become close with each other so you barely realized that the friendship shifted from a threesome to a twosome.
Have you tried to plan an activity with these friends? Sometimes when someone feels left out, taking charge by inviting friends to a movie or other activity can help. Or, if you feel like the relationship with these friends isn’t salvageable, are there other acquaintances you could ask?
Most friendships start off as acquaintances, so you probably have potential friends amongst your classmates. The best thing you can do is keep being friendly without being overly enthusiastic, because that might come across as neediness, which can be a turn off. Hold your head high, even if you’re feeling insecure; people are attracted to confidence. Smile and look others in the eye.
You also might want to join different clubs or school activities as a way to meet different people.
Good luck, I hope things get easier soon.
Signed, *Amy Feld
*Amy Feld, PhD, MSW has trained and worked as a child psychologist.
Disclaimer: Nothing in this or any other post is intended to substitute for medical, psychiatric or clinical diagnosis/treatment. Rather, all posts are written as the type of advice that one friend might give to another.
Category: OTHER ADVICE, Teen friendships
