Friends are supposed to be your strength and courage in trying times, not the ones who pull you down.
Friends are everything, aren't they? You can always trust them with your deepest darkest secrets, you can call them at 3 a.m without hesitation. They are the ones you can rely on any day for emotional support, make you feel happy, and make you feel like you're never lonely.
According to Healthline, friends, and companions can help in lowering one's mental and physical health, reduce the risk of depression and high blood pressure. In fact, they can lengthen one's lifespan too.
But sometimes, some friends can have an adverse effect on you. Friendships that are toxic can sometimes bring you down mentally and emotionally instead of encouraging you to be a better person. Recognizing a toxic friendship is not easy but here are a few signs to help you figure out how to avoid them.
If you're there at every step for your friends but when it comes to giving you support either emotionally or financially, they're nowhere to be found, it's a clear sign that they are the takers. According to Women's Health Magazine, if the pattern of your giving keeps repeating, the friendship is not sustainable.
Healthy competition is fine between friends but when it comes to your friends always making a point to get ahead of you and making it quite obvious while doing it, that is a sign that they are jealous of you and there's no room for jealousy between friends because you and them, both have to work together to uplift each other every day. Real friends always celebrate each other's success, not the other way round.
Sometimes making up stories can go a little too far with some friends. And sometimes, these stories are a sign that your friend is a liar and so cannot be trusted. When these people suffer from low-esteem, they try to impress through lying. There are days when you need them the most but they come up with an excuse, those are the days when you feel let down. But what you should remember is that there are people in this world you can rely on with eyes closed. These friends are not one of them.
These friends are great at blaming everything on others and making them believe that they're responsible as well. According to Her.com, they initially make you feel special but later leave you to survive on your own in all the messes that they created. They never accept their fault and always act as if they can never do anything wrong. Your best bet to stay out of their traps is to run as far away from them as possible.
As humans, we all have opinions and views about certain things but there are people who not only have opinions but like to dismiss your with an argument every time, whether it's valid or not. Those are the ones we call the "know it alls." These friends can be quite overwhelming to be around because no conversation ends without an argument. You should at no point feel emotionally drained because of people who're supposed to bring joy in your life. If you know someone like this, understand, that this friendship is toxic and a lot of hard work.
There are friends who go high and low to make you feel like they're genuinely sorry for something that they did wrong, then there are those who blurt out "sorry" in the first instance they get. These are the friends who think the word itself can do the magic but they forget that you have to feel it to mean it. According to Healthline, apologies that end with a "but" are not honest because if they really mean it, they would not try to justify their actions but care more about how you felt about it.
A person should never try to change someone into themselves or others. If your friend is trying to change you into something you're not, it's not good. Every individual is different and should be respected and accepted the way they are. If someone's really your friend, they would probably wait for you to ask for suggestions and then give their opinions.
References:
https://www.healthline.com/health/toxic-friendships#signs-and-traits
https://www.womenshealthmag.com/relationships/a25939904/signs-of-toxic-friendships/
https://www.her.ie/life/7-kinds-of-toxic-friends-and-how-to-break-up-with-them-349996
