Just wanted to submit something for the Shiny Riolu if that’s alright, because I know almost the exact situation they’re stuck in because I was stuck in a very, very similar situation for a long time. (This may be a little rambley because it was a very long time, from Kindergarten through my sophomore year of high school, which is why I’m submitting this through the submit box instead of ask. Hope this is okay. ^^; ) I’m not going to say any of the specific things she said to me, but I will talk about how it affected me a little bit… I’m not sure how positive it’s going to end up being but I hope it’ll help a little bit to know that you’re not alone.

If you feel it’s safe to do so, then definitely try to talk to your mother about it. If you don’t feel it’s safe (or if she doesn’t listen/refuses to believe you like my mother did…) then, well… I’m not 100% sure what the “best” way to deal with it is (if there even is one) and I’m pretty sure that some of the ways I dealt with it were not the best. Probably the least harmful one to me in the long run was pretending to be sick if I didn’t want to go see her, which, while I feel a little guilty about lying about that… she was horrible to me and that was the only way I could avoid her. She’d more or less fat shame me and make fun of my clothing, and then also more or less smashed the one thing most important to me (my writing) into the wall before stealing a lot of my ideas.

So… I guess what I’m saying here is that I know it may feel like you’re the only one who has gone through stuff like that, you’re not. I’ve had minimal contact with that friend for a while now. She switched schools in my sophomore year of high school, and a couple of years before that she got tired of trying to keep our “friendship” together (because I was dissociating literally upon seeing her face) and we started talking and interacting less and less. I’m now a freshman in college, for the record. She did try to send me one guilt trip letter, which was what finally let my mom believe what I had been saying all along, and she was NOT happy about it, and never let me be forced or coerced into hanging out with her after that. So it can get better… though for me, it took some luck and that friend being stupid enough to think my mom wouldn’t care about seeing me in tears over a letter from her. Even had that not happened, however, I still would have eventually gotten away from her at college, because here, there’s nobody who knows her. I went to a college very far from home. If I just don’t respond when she texts or calls me, there’s nothing she can do about it here.

Finally: Don’t feel guilty if you have to cut that friend off, or even slowly start interacting with him less. Yeah, people might say mean things about you over it. They certainly did with me. But it does get better- eventually, hopefully, you’ll be in a place where they can’t reach you any more. I’m kind of assuming that you’re younger than me- I’m sorry if this is wrong though. Regardless of that, I hope that something in this at least reassures you or helps you a little in some way. Unhealthy friendships like that are hard to deal with, especially if you can’t get away from them. :x Sending tons of positive thoughts and hugs (if you want them) your way.

Sincerely,