The Rock & Roll Shrink Radio Show Episode 42 - Friendship Disparity

Let’s talk tonight about Friendship Disparity.

Most of us, likely all of us, have at some point in our lives, both wished to be closer to a friend than we realize we are, and had a person who is pushing to be closer friends with us than we want to be with them. It is an emotionally stressful, and sometimes even painful process that starts in our childhood when we first consciously start forming friendships. As we grow up, the basis for which we make friends will naturally change. As young adults and throughout adulthood, we see more disparity in our friendships, because most of us are trying to be polite and kind, and are not mind-readers, so we try to navigate our connections with others as best as we can, and sometimes we fail or misjudge them.

We will discuss healthy friendships, so that we have a basis to compare our own connections. Next, we will describe friendships that lack parity, and how typical this is. Then, we will discuss how to know when there is a problem in our relationship with someone else, from both perspectives. And finally, we will make suggestions of how to renegotiate things so that they are healthy and satisfying, again.

We will discuss:
1. Defining a healthy adult friendship
2. Uneven friendships. The normalcy of this. Old style & new Changes due to social media
3. How to tell if a friendship has gone sour. When it's you feeling left out; When you want them to back off.
4. How to handle the inequity from each side.

We'll start off the evening with some topic-relevant Classic Rock played by Dr. Mathis, followed by Classic Rock trivia, in "The Rock & Roll Shrink Recalls," followed by our topic discussion..

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