"It sounds like those friendships have ended. You've demoted the people with whom you went to high school (or they demoted themselves) to longtime acquaintances. I'm not making judgments here: It's clear they let you down, and you'd hoped for more from them-I'm not suggesting you not be hurt, or resentful that they're turning their attention to you now, when they need you."
"It's asking a lot of people in their late teens and early 20s to expect them to empathize with the one friend who has young children. No doubt it never occurred to them to offer to babysit-and surely, they had no advice or wisdom to pass along, nor could they commiserate."
A woman who started her family early while her high school friends pursued other activities feels hurt by their lack of support during her parenting years. Now that these friends are having children and seeking her advice, she wants to distance herself from those relationships without ending them entirely. The response acknowledges that these friendships have fundamentally changed into acquaintanceships due to differing life stages. It recognizes the writer's valid hurt while noting that young adults without children typically lack the capacity to empathize with parenting challenges. The advice suggests accepting that these relationships have naturally evolved rather than attempting to maintain boundaries that may come across as punitive.
#friendship-dynamics #life-stage-differences #parenting-support #social-relationships #resentment-and-boundaries
Read at Slate Magazine
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