AITAH for not feeling bad after a +6 year friendship ended?
Backstory:
I (F23) met my best friend (F25), or someone I considered family, years ago in college. We’ve been through a lot together financially, physically, and mentally. We both have very similar careers and share similar values.
Now to the present:
About two months ago, both of us were going through some things. I was dealing with a death in the family, unemployment, and issues at home (toxic family). She was also going through something at work and working on her mental health. During those two months while we were both struggling, I started to realize I wasn’t hearing much from her. We usually talk every day. At first I didn’t notice because of everything going on, especially with the funeral in my family. But I tried to stay in contact as usual—I called, texted, and sent videos. Most of the time I either got no reply, or a “I’ll call you later,” but she never did. This was all out of nowhere, especially since we both value communication.
Throughout that time I asked if she was doing okay. The few times she actually called or texted, it was mostly a dry apology over and over again for not talking. Sometimes my concern would just be redirected back to me. At one point she even called me secretive after not hearing from her for two weeks.
She would say things like:
“I’m sorry, I didn’t talk to anyone.”
“I’m sorry. I know this probably made you feel like xyz because of what I did.”
“i’m not feeling like myself.”
Another thing that bothered me was that during the entire time she wasn’t interacting with me, she was still watching my location. She would ask me when, why, or what time I was going to—or didn’t go to—a particular place. I brought this up because it made me uncomfortable, especially since she openly said she wasn’t feeling like herself and was distant from everyone.
Which leads to the past week:
After countless dry apologies and me expressing my concerns, I finally got a text from her saying that she couldn’t be the friend she should be right now. She said she needed to focus on herself and understand how her actions impacted me and our friendship, and that she understood wherever things might go from here. In response, I told her I understood. I also said I was sorry I couldn’t be much help and that I’m here for her, but I can’t sit around waiting indefinitely.
Later, I asked if she was getting back together with her ex. That was the fastest response I got from her in those two months. She denied it and asked why I would think that. She also said her message wasn’t meant to imply “forever” about our friendship. But to me, it feels that way, because it’s not fair for me to stay vulnerable waiting for someone when I don’t know if I’ll ever have my friend back. Yes, I know she’s going through things, and so am I. But when I asked her if I had treated her the way she treated me during these past two months, would she still want to be my friend, and all her answers were “no.”
So, AITA for not feeling bad after our 6+ year friendship ended?
Posted Mar 5, 2026, 4:53 PM UTC