Are we still friends?
I (18F) have a childhood friend I met about 10 years ago at school. Since then, we became best friends—almost like sisters. We liked the same things, had similar opinions, and just naturally got along really well. We never really had major fights or conflicts.
During the pandemic, I changed schools. Even though we didn’t see each other much anymore, we still texted every day, and honestly, it felt like we became even closer.
The thing is, she’s autistic and has always struggled socially. I’m also somewhat neurodivergent (my doctor suspects I might be autistic too), and I’m very introverted. So for most of those 10 years, we were basically each other’s only truly close friend.
I had other friendships over the years, but I never opened up to anyone the way I did with her.
Things started changing around 4 years ago when she began going through personal issues. She never really told me exactly what was happening, but I knew she was taking antidepressants. I always tried to check on her and be there for her, even though she rarely opened up to me. That hurt a little, but I understood it was probably a sensitive situation.
The bigger problems started about 2 years ago, when she basically stopped replying to my messages. I used to text her almost every day—sharing random thoughts, things that happened during my day, trying to keep our connection alive—but her replies became dry, short, or sometimes nonexistent.
I tried not to take it personally because I knew she was struggling with depression.
But recently I found out that she stopped taking her meds and has made new friends at her school. And now I honestly don’t know what to think.
Part of me feels hurt and wonders if she only stayed close to me because I was the only friend she had at the time, and now that she has other people, I’ve been left behind.
I still care about her a lot, and we’ve been friends for 10 years, so I’m not sure if blocking her would be too extreme. Maybe she still likes me but just doesn’t see me as a close friend anymore?
Would it be worth trying to keep this as a low-maintenance friendship, or am I just holding on to something that’s already over?
I really miss having someone to talk to every day.
(I asked ChatGPT to correct my text cause I’m not fluent in English hope there is no problem with that)