Spread the love

Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, pandas, which means now is a great time to celebrate all of the relationships in your life, including friendships. Send your best friend a card, surprise them with chocolates, take them out for dinner and let them know how much they mean to you!

But at the same time, you might want to reevaluate any relationships that aren’t serving you anymore. And according to therapist Jacy Rob, LPC, there are a few subtle signs to look out for that mean your “friends” don’t actually have your best interest at heart. Jacy recently started a thread on X discussing some of these behaviors of fake friends, so below you’ll find her thoughts, as well as many other traits that readers chimed in with.

#1

Image credits: ATMwithJacy

#2

Image credits: ATMwithJacy

#3

Image credits: ATMwithJacy

Friendship is a beautiful thing. Whether you’re still best friends with the first person you met at preschool who gave you a matching bracelet during lunch and shared their chocolate chip cookies with you or you’ve only recently found friends that you feel extremely close to, we all need some great platonic relationships in our lives.

Everyone deserves someone they can trust and call when they’re sobbing on the kitchen floor or who will go out on the town and celebrate with them after receiving a promotion at work. We should feel safe laughing, crying, being silly or even being embarrassing with our friends, and we should be fiercely protective and supportive of them as well.

#4

Image credits: ATMwithJacy

#5

Image credits: ATMwithJacy

#6

Image credits: BigTittySquirts

While we all know that friendships are important when we want someone to see a movie with or we need a second opinion on an outfit, they are much more important than that. Verywell Mind notes that solid friendships are actually beneficial to our health and wellbeing as well. Having a strong group of friends can decrease feelings of loneliness and even decrease your risk of premature death.

Living an isolated life has been linked to health issues such as high blood pressure, substance abuse, heart disease and even cancer, so having a social life is more important than many of us even realize. Plus, having friends around can encourage you to take part in healthy behaviors. For example, they might invite you out for a hike or to go see a film on an evening that you could have easily stayed in and had too many glasses of wine or binged on junk food.

#7

Image credits: ATMwithJacy

#8

Image credits: ATMwithJacy

#9

Image credits: SupaPierced

Leaving the house can be daunting or challenging when you don’t have anyone to go with you, but having a friend to join you to try that new coffee shop down the street can make a world of difference. And of course, friends can provide us with emotional support. Happiness has actually been found to be contagious amongst friends, and while a best friend is no substitute for a therapist, they can certainly help us build confidence and reduce stress. You might feel unsure about a decision or fashion choice, but after your bestie hypes you up, you’ll be on top of the world!

#10

Image credits: RapGirlsRock

#11

Image credits: ATMwithJacy

#12

Image credits: ATMwithJacy

Even if you’re in a romantic relationship, it’s important to build and maintain healthy friendships as well. You shouldn’t have to rely on your partner to be everything for you, and it’s nice to have a variety of friends. Perhaps one friend plays sports with you, while another goes to painting classes. You might bond over food with a friend who has the same dietary preferences, and you might have the same taste in music with another buddy. It’s certainly not necessary to have a huge number of friends, as having a few tight knit friendships is perfectly healthy, it’s great to not have to rely on a single person for everything.

#13

Image credits: ATMwithJacy

#14

Image credits: AmorQiAra

#15

Image credits: marrit_anneH

As important as friendships are, it’s key to remember that they’ll only benefit your life if they’re healthy friendships. There’s no point in keeping toxic friends around, and if you start noticing that you feel worse after hanging out with a friend, it might be time to reevaluate that relationship.

According to Marisa Franco, PhD, a healthy friendship is a two-way street. “When we’re only thinking about having our needs met and we’re not thinking about our friend’s needs, then the relationship is probably unhealthy,” she told Everyday Health.

#16

Image credits: EyeeCandy90

#17

Image credits: sunflowers4jen

#18

Image credits: QueenAJ_97

If you think you might be in a toxic friendship, it’s important to know what to look out for. Healthline notes that your “friends” might be putting you down, gossiping about you, apologizing without meaning it, making you feel nervous, leaving you unsettled, comparing you to other people or constantly putting themselves before you. And if your friend tries to change you, they’re not a true friend.

#19

Image credits: iam_visible2

#20

Image credits: Euphoric_Freq

#21

Image credits: ladyalexonsm

In the same way that great friendships can benefit us, Healthline explains that unhealthy friendships can negatively impact us. They might make you feel even more lonely and isolated than if you didn’t spend any time with them, they can increase your stress, they can leave you feeling unsupported, they can decrease your self-esteem, and they can leave you questioning if their toxic behavior is actually your fault.

#22

Image credits: ATMwithJacy

#23

Image credits: OhYouAreSoWrong

#24

Image credits: kimikoko73

Healthline notes that toxic friends might deserve a second chance, if you really love and care about them, but often it’s best to just cut them out of your life. If the friendship has gotten to a point where you can only see the negatives and maintaining the relationship is draining you, don’t be afraid to set boundaries. Take care of yourself, and consider reaching out to other friends or acquaintances who you’d like to be closer to. Making friends is hard, but finding people who truly understand and value you is always worth it.

#25

Image credits: RapGirlsRock

#26

Image credits: lookatyellowgem

#27

Image credits: UnoriginalFeen

We hope the responses on this list aren’t reminding you of friends in your own life, pandas. But if they are, please remember that you deserve to have friendships with people who make you feel loved, appreciated and accepted. If you feel like you’re a burden to them or you feel worse after seeing them, perhaps you don’t need them in your life after all! Keep upvoting the replies you agree with, and then if you’re interested in checking out another Bored Panda article discussing friendship, look no further than right here!