Why do friend breakups hurt so much?

We all know that getting over romantic relationships can take time, sometimes weeks, months or years. Many poems, songs and film scenes have been dedicated to expressing the pain of dealing with such situations. But friendship heartbreaks don’t tend to get so much attention, even though they can hurt as much, or even more!

Well one of the main things is that there’s a template for ending a romantic relationship. It’s a rite of passage really. But that simply doesn’t exist when it comes to friendships. It’s way more blurry when it comes to pinpointing exactly how or when a friendship starts and ends. We kind of expect it to last forever, so it’s a shock to the system if it doesn’t. Most of us would struggle to know how to firmly but respectfully put an end to a friendship when we need to.

What are the main differences between these two types of breakup? What’s the best way to end a friendship then? In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!

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A podcast written and realised by Joseph Chance.

First broadcast: 30/7/2023

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