"Enjoyment: Real friends enjoy each other's company. If being together rarely brings a smile, this likely isn't a friendship at all-just a distraction. Mutual Respect: Friends respect one another, shown in both words and actions. Friendly teasing is fine only when it doesn't cross into humiliation or mean-spiritedness. Interest: True friends value and invite each other's insights, even when they disagree."
"Unfortunately, not every friendship is healthy. Some are toxic. These friends create constant drama, sap your energy, diminish your confidence, and frequently leave you in a state of anxiety. With few exceptions, these relationships are not good for you. It's best to push these harmful relationships out of your life. But drawing the line between a healthy and toxic friendship can be difficult. Most of our friendships have rough edges."
Healthy friendships increase joy, strengthen immune function, and can extend lifespan while providing deep satisfaction and emotional support. Toxic friendships create persistent drama, drain energy, erode self-confidence, and often cause anxiety and harm. Distinguishing normal friction from genuine toxicity can be challenging because most friendships have rough edges. Healthy friendships commonly include enjoyment, mutual respect, interest in each other's perspectives, goodwill, and reciprocal sacrifice. These relationships foster connection, meaning, community, engagement, belonging, and a calming, helpful presence that people look forward to spending time with. They provide practical help and emotional reassurance during challenges.
Read at Psychology Today
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