Sometimes, you and a friend may not click the way you once did.Whether you've grown apart or the relationship has become toxic, at some point, you may need to break up with a friend.Here, three therapists weigh in regarding signs it's time to end a friendship.At some point, you may feel that you and a friend don't connect anymore, whether you find you have less in common or feel they're treating you differently lately and are subtracting from your life more than adding to it.Like a romantic relationship, you may know it's not working out, but when it comes time to breaking up with them, it's easier said than done. However, sometimes, there are signs it's time to dump a friend."We crave connection and to build a pack around us," Kailee Place, licensed professional counselor (LPC) at her private practice, Shifting Tides Therapeutic Solutions, in Charleston, South Carolina, told Business Insider in an email. "We may have different groups of friends that serve different purposesfrom friends who enjoy going on adventures to ones who may indulge our homebody sideand healthy friendships allow us to be authentic, comfortable, and loved."Place said the common theme in working friendships is having a friend who leaves you feeling supported and cared for. "Occasionally, friendships go sour, and it's incredibly hard to cut off a friend, but keeping a toxic friend around is draining," she said. "In the long run, it's better to cut ties, and find people who appreciate and support you."To Place's point, if you're not sure whether or not to cut someone out of your life, here are 9 signs it's time to end a friendship, according to therapists.SEE ALSO:7 hard truths about adulthood my 20-year-old self would never have understood1. The friendship is consistently one-sidedAny type of relationship should be a two-way street, whether it's a platonic, familial, or romantic one. But if you find that a certain friendship is consistently one-sided, it may be time to say goodbye."If you're pouring energy into someone who isn't giving you the same treatment, it's not a mutual friendship," Place said. "If you are finding your friend only pops up when they need something or they are going through a hard timebut often go silent or provide very little in your time of needit's time to say bye to this friend."2. They betray your trustTrust is a big part of any kind of relationship, and once it's gone, it's hard to recover."In friendships, there are minor and major betrayals that injure trust," Melody Li, an Austin-based licensed marriage and family therapist (LMFT), relationship specialist, and co-founder of the Austin Counseling Collective, told Business Insider in an email. Li said if it's a minor incident and the injuring friend shows regret and a plan to regain trust, the injured friend may give them another chancewith caution. "However, major betrayalslike seducing the friend's significant other, cheating, or stealing moneyare red flags," she said. "That relationship may not be worthwhile to reexplore at all."3. They don't keep your secretsAlong the lines of being able to trust your friend, you want to make sure that they keep private things private, according to Jill Whitney, a licensed marriage and family therapist (LMFT) who writes about relationships and sexuality at KeepTheTalkGoing.com. "You need to be able to trust your friends to respect your confidences," she told Business Insider in an email.Many things you talk about won't be especially private, she said, and then it's probably fine for your friend to share those things with other friends. "But when you make it clear that you don't want a specific thing shared, any decent friend will honor that," Whitney said.See the rest of the story at Business Insider
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