Q&A for How to Break Up With a Fake Friend

Train yourself to get out of the "There's only one" mentality. Thinking that there's only one person out there for you, either with friendships or romantic relationships, can put you into a scarcity mindset. You might not find someone who is exactly like your friend, but there's definitely more than one person out there for you to be friends with.

It's likely time to reconsider the friendship and possibly distance yourself from someone who doesn't reciprocate your feelings.

Ending a friendship with a letter is not ideal, as it lacks the direct communication of a face-to-face conversation. It's better to meet in person, explain your feelings calmly, and avoid accusatory language by saying, "I felt..." instead of "You were...". Hearing their response in person can also help you understand their feelings better.

Let them know it's not appropriate and that if they have something to say about you, they should say it directly to you. Stay calm, polite, and use kindness in your approach. Avoid putting your mutual friend in an uncomfortable position by saying, "If they are talking about me, I prefer not to hear it."

If a fake friend is spreading harmful rumors that could get you expelled, talk to a teacher, school counselor, or principal promptly. Choose an authority figure you trust to discuss the situation, which can help mitigate any damage caused by their lies.

You should gradually distance yourself from her and limit your interactions. If she asks why, explain that her actions caused you to lose trust, and you no longer wish to maintain the friendship. If she apologizes, consider forgiving her, but remember her previous behavior.

If you’re concerned that the fake friend might reveal your secrets to your new friend, consider sharing this information with the new friend first. By controlling when and how your new friend learns about it, you maintain some control over the narrative. Even if you're anxious about revealing this information, it's likely to be more accurate and better received coming directly from you.

To move on from broken friendships, focus on spending time with your other friends and engaging in fun activities like going to the movies or having a sleepover. While it might be hard to completely eliminate your worries, keeping yourself distracted can help you feel better, and over time, those concerns will fade.

You should be honest about your feelings. Whether in person or through a kind letter, let them know you're not interested in a friendship and don't appreciate them invading your space. Be civil to avoid confrontation.

Gradually reduce your communication with her until you no longer interact. Eventually, she will likely move on and focus on someone else. This approach worked for me in a similar situation.

You can always bring out the good side of her in your conversation. Start by giving her a compliment so that you won't sound too critical of her. For example, if you want to tell her that she's bossy, you can say, "Hey, I really think that you have great leadership skills, but sometimes you can be a little too controlling." If you can't think of a way to do it using this method, you can always tell her that you're not trying to criticize her or be mean before saying what you wanted to say. No matter what, stay calm, and keep reassuring her that you're not trying to pick a fight.

Just tell her you don't want to be friends anymore, or slowly start avoiding her. There's no need to try to convince others that she's rude or fake. It will just sound like you're badmouthing her. Just keep your distance from this girl, most likely everyone else will figure out who she really is soon enough.

Just tell her the friendship isn't working. If she gets mad then she didn't want to be with you any longer but hates that you said it to her face.

Not necessarily. Everybody has bad moments where they aren't as nice as they could be. If this is just occasional, be a good friend and ask her what is wrong. If she is rude often, it might be that she is not as good of a friend as you want her to be, and it might be best to move on.

Ignore them. Don't do anything rash like DM them harsh things or post things about them online. It's best that you just let this little problem take its course before it becomes a big problem that you can't extinguish. Once you think it's over, try to talk it out with your new friends. If they ignore you, just drop them altogether.

You shouldn't assume that a lack of time automatically makes someone a fake friend. There could be personal issues, family matters, or work commitments that prevent your friend from meeting up. It's essential to consider these possibilities before making judgments.

Talk to your friend and express that you shared your secrets with her because you trusted her. If you have strong suspicions, you might mention that trust goes both ways, but it's crucial to approach the conversation with honesty and the intent to resolve the situation peacefully.

Make new friends! This way you won't have time to hang out with that friend anymore. But you could also talk to your friend about this, for me this worked out really well and I'm better friends with my best friend than I was before, so this could work out for you just the same.

Tell them how disrespectful that is and how angry it makes you. If they continue to do it, stop being friends with that person. They clearly aren't interested in engaging with you.

Hang out with another group of friends, and if she tries coming close to you avoid her. Block her on social media and block her number, this way she may get the idea that you really don't like her.

If your fake friend is your only friend, then why not try making friends? It's always good to make more friends. But make sure they're also not fake friends, or else, it'll repeat all over again.

Talk to a teacher or guidance counselor at school and tell them how you are feeling, and maybe ask your teachers to keep an eye on this former friend when they around you. Try not to worry too much, you're doing everything right and this will probably blow over soon.

First, try to get to know her, she might be a really nice person and the two of you could actually became real friends. If she turns out to not be a nice person, you could tell your mom and she will probably understand. If her friends are real, they should accept that even when you aren't friends with someone else's daughter.

You could try talking to this person about their behavior. Just calmly, politely say something like, "You know, I really don't appreciate you saying/doing that. If you want to continue being friends, I need you to be a little nicer." If this doesn't work, just be polite and civil when you have to see them, and ignore them when they're not being nice.

The best way you can find out is to ask her yourself. Ask how she views her friendship with you and others. Tell her that you want to spend more time with her, but feel that you're pushed aside even when you two have made plans. Be prepared for her to push back and deny these things, but if you feel like she isn't being truthful or willing to own up to her mistakes, then you might want to find another friend to spend your time with.

Even if it isn't your fault, apologize and tell him how you feel. Tell him you don't want to give up on your friendship. Things might not go back to normal right away, but if he accepts your apology, you can start rebuilding the trust.

You shouldn't punish yourself. That is never the answer. Think about what you've learned from this experience. Maybe you would't make the same choices next time? Sometimes it's okay to tell little white lies to spare a person's feelings, so if you did that, don't be too hard on yourself. If you're really upset, talk to someone about how you're feeling, like another friend, a parent, a counselor, etc.

When I realized that my father is a liar, that he'd been cheating on my mother since forever and that nothing he says is sincere, he didn't stop being my father. Sure, their relationship ended, but I clearly remember feeling free after my realization. I could simply ignore anything he said or did and smile and think my own thoughts. Of course it's OK to push people out if you want to, but you don't have to do so in order do stop their bad influence. Just realizing that the person is a bad influence can be enough to stop the person from influencing you.

This girl is not your friend. Stop talking to her if you can. If she uses stuff against you, respond with something like "Hmm, fascinating..." then pull your phone or your homework out and act like you're super into it.

End it anyway. Don't stay in a friendship with someone who mistreats you because you're afraid of a little awkwardness. You have ever right to end this friendship and you definitely should. If her mom asks you what happened, tell her the truth!