Unfortunately, people struggle from time to time. It’s not easy living as a productive, healthy, caring, socially conscious and aware person. It takes energy, and sometimes setbacks can leave us feeling somewhat put-out. We become unhappy no matter how much money we earn or how satisfied we are at work. Some people may become overwhelmed regarding the amount of issues surrounding them. This is when they can react in a range of harmful ways.
As a friend, it can be that you’ve noticed your friend is behaving oddly. However, you’re perhaps not sure how to identify what exactly is going on. This is because they care for you and respect you. They probably want to hide their problem from you. In order to be a great friend during this difficult time, such as helping them finally get the alcoholic rehab or get to the cocaine addiction treatment center they most need, you need to verify there is a problem. You want to be careful how you approach them.
With the following advice, we believe you can achieve this with care and clarity.
Social isolation
If a friend starts to isolate themselves, it could be that they are struggling to socialize or are trying to hide habits from their larger friend network. If you find they continually cancel plans for no good reason, take days to respond to your messages or seem very dismissive of you, asking if they’re okay can be important. Sometimes it could reflect a larger problem, or it could mean that your friendship is naturally coming to an end. However, it’s always best to get confirmation, and civil discussion can help.
Depressive symptoms
Depressive symptoms can often manifest themselves as isolation, as we have explored above, but they can also be found in erratic behavior, such as wanting to go out more frequently than is normal. Mood swings, aggressive bouts, unhappy ramblings, toxic social media use (such as intense political arguments on Twitter) and many other factors can suggest that your friend is in need of emotional stability. Simply asking them to come on a walk with you can be enough. However, letting them know you’re concerned can also help them realize how they’ve been acting. Depressive symptoms can come in a range of forms, so it’s best to be careful.
Shielded communication
Shielded communication can also be an indicator that they are hiding something or unhappy with their current situation. Of course, you don’t need to be nosy and know everything that’s going on. However, you can notice when they may be a little more guarded, make excuses, or they seem to be lying more than normal. Shielded communication can cause people to feel less engaged with those they care about, and it can lead to miscommunication on both sides. Mentioning you’ve noticed this might help the dialogue to open a little more, provided you are respectful when mentioning it.
With this advice, we hope you can correctly notice when a friend is in need.
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