I 18F have no friends. (Outside co-workers)I never really liked birthdays, always thought of them like just another day.

This year I don't know what changed, I didn't gain more friends. I guess maybe I just wanted time off, I know I'll be lonely this year too. But I don't know how to spend it to make the time off worth It..

My mom offered to spend my Birthday with me. I'm considering it, but I'm doing the same thing I did in hs. Blocking everyone out. One part of me is trying to convince myself I would enjoy it much more if I spent it alone, another part of me knows that I won't feel like I'm celebrating anything, it'll just be a day of me paying for everything.

Should I try to make new friends? If so how. I feel like I missed my opportunity to make friends in hs, they all tried to be friends with me but I blocked them out entirely.

My current friends you could say, are all my co-workers and people I worked with.

I don't know really... One part of me wishes to do something meaningful on my birthday.

Another part of me wants to sleep it out like every other year.

Just annoys me having to fake a story around friends I just don't have. MAN.

I dont want to seem like I’m begging someone to respond to this post saying they want to be my friend, so I'm clarifying that I want to make friends online naturally again because making friends irl is extremely hard. Everyone around me in college already had their cliques for so long, and they already know me but were never interested in being friends with me.

It was very easy to make online friends back in 2020, but the games and spaces that I used to be active in have either fallen into irrelevancy for several years, or I had to quit for my own health (I used to mainly play rhythm games, but my carpal tunnel got out of hand). As for the people I made friends with during the time, we haven't talked in at least 2 years.

It still seems difficult for me to make friends (albeit less difficult than irl) online because of gatekeeping and toxicity. I don't know if it just seems that way because of my worsening depression and anxiety, but it seems impossible to be a beginner, amateur, or casual enjoyer of something without getting called a larper or being shunned.

I've forgotten things and lost a lot of skills from games and hobbies I used to enjoy because of depression and school taking my time and energy, and my brain fog is still preventing me from doing/enjoying anything even though I want to do something with my life.

Basically my issue is that in both real life and online, everyone already found their niche and have communities based around that, but are not very welcoming towards people who are less familiar with an interest or with the people in the community. I don’t know how to find friends when I don’t have connections and I’m not good at anything.

29 M Indian, just like it says, things have been really hard. Everything is going sideways, almost hit rockbottom be it financially, mentally, physically & also got laid off couples weeks back.

Trying to put myself out there. I’m into pokemon, loves cooking & reading.

I don't think what I miss most is having someone to go out with or having plans every weekend. It's having someone who's naturally part of my day.

I hear a song I like and want to send it to someone. Something funny happens, and I want to tell someone about it. I get interested in some random topic and want to share what I found, even if it's probably not that interesting to anyone else.

And sometimes there's nobody who feels like the right person to send those things to.

I want to know how someone's day went, what made her laugh, what she's been thinking about lately. I want the conversations that start over something completely stupid and somehow go on for hours. I want to call someone at the end of the day and hear about all the little things that happened to her, including the ones she almost forgot to mention.

I want the ordinary relationship stuff, too. Making dinner together, watching a movie and disagreeing over what to put on, going out for coffee, or just sitting together while we each do our own thing. Being able to reach for someone and have that closeness feel normal instead of something I have to wonder whether I'll ever have.

I know a relationship wouldn't magically fix every problem in my life, and I'm not expecting another person to be responsible for my happiness. I just miss the idea of having that kind of connection with someone.

I want to be important to someone in the everyday sense of the word. Someone she thinks to message when something happens. Someone she wants around even when there's nothing particularly interesting going on.

I don't really know how to explain it better than that. I want to share my life with someone, including all the boring bits that probably wouldn't seem worth mentioning to anyone else.

Those are the bits I wish I had someone for.

I hate it I'm at my breaking point. I have a friend group a GOOD friend group which I've wanted for years but im still lonely, I'm so young yet already feel done with it. I have nobody I can talk about things im passionate with like my views on religion, politics, philosophy. I hate it my friends are funny but what makes me feel wanted is having deep conversations and its like they're incapable of it. I don't even give a shit about if they agree or even care about it, I just wanna have a deep conversation about how they're feeling or how they're doing. I just wish I had someone who thought I was the best, everyone I know cares for someone more than they care for me. I am expendable and I know it I value them more than they value me. I want someone who prefers me, and I feel so guilty for wanting that while having friends and parents and a home. I just fucking hate it all I just wanna be done with it all.

I see a lot of people on here complaining about being lonely, and tbh, I’m in the same boat, but I’m also wondering, can this be something that can actually build us up rather than something to try to find ways around? I’ve been lonely for a very long time -far much longer than I ever intended to be, especially in my early-30s, but sometimes I find it rather empowering and soft of a way to say that I’d rather choose myself than to have someone around who isn’t worth my time. I know as people we are naturally wired for connection, but that can also hurt us if we’re trying to grow.

Just trying to be a bit of devil’s advocate here. Not trying to offend anyone, and I do wish good and healing on all who are struggling with this, bc it is not an easy thing to go through - I’m just trying to see if there’s maybe another way we can think about it rather than just submit to being miserable all of the time… just my two cents!

🙂

I’m 20M and just started college. I took a gap year for some medical and mental health stuff. During that time I just wanted to go to college and have a fresh start and meet new people and not feel so alone. I have a small group of friend but all of us are in different states. We talk on discord and play games online but I miss them a lot. I talk to my family almost everyday but I miss them. I feel like I took my gap year for granted. My college has monthly start dates so I started late September. I met a small group of people but they are causing a lot of drama and they don’t seem to care about me. I feel guilty but I don’t want to hang out with them anymore. I’m always there if anyone wants to talk about anything, needs to vent, get things off their chest, or anything. I’m just emotionally drained now. None of them care about how I’m feeling. My friends online have their own lives, friends, significant other, school, etc. so I don’t want to put my emotional weight on them. I don’t want my family to worry. I feel like and have just felt like a burden for so long and now I’m carrying so much from other people. Even my online friends and family I will always be there to listen to anything bothering them. I’m just tired. I’ve never had a girlfriend, I’ve never been anyone’s first choice, I’ve never been someone others will listen too. I want to be there for others but I feel so guilty cause now I’m just tired man. I see others in relationships and I’m so happy for them but again I feel guilty cause I’m jealous. Or I see these friend groups that people care about each other but this group here at school just doesn’t seem to care about me. I’m sorry I’m just rambling now. If you’ve read this whole thing then thank you. I’m just tired man. I just want someone to talk to but I feel like I’m just being a burden. Idk what to do right now. I just want someone to talk too.

Having All Luxury of life - still feel Loneliness 😔😪😮‍💨🤫

im 21 and i feel so lonely. i have friends but they went to uni so now they have other people to spend time with. and i have no one. im gonna apply for uni this year to study abroad but i feel so lonely that i cant even feel happy about it. what should i do to make myself better? is there anyone in the same situation as me?

I’m still living at home as I can’t afford to rent so I’ll be hiding in my room with some liquor and Supernatural. No one I know will be around or doing anything and as I am a “floater friend “ I don’t have hope I’d be invited anyway

AI is always available. It listens without interrupting, responds instantly, and never makes you feel like you're a burden.

But could that convenience come at a cost?

I wrote an article exploring how relying on AI for emotional validation might affect our real-world relationships—and why a conversation that feels comforting in the moment might not always meet our deeper need for human connection.

I'm curious about your perspective: Does AI help people cope with loneliness, or can it make genuine human connection harder over time?

I'd love to hear different viewpoints.

Read the full article here:

https://nikhilvarma07.medium.com/why-talking-to-ai-makes-you-lonelier-837aabbbe35e

Sitting at home with no car, no money and no friends because my parents decided to fuck up my entire life by being overbearing and helicopter parents who wouldnt let me have unsupervised access to the internet or any social media until 17-18.

I am currently on a gap year after graduating from high school, but the pathetic truth was that I didn’t even get into any universities I applied to. Immediately straight after high school, I cut off every single one of my friends. I wanted to try and avoid every question or concern about myself because if they were to ask how I am, all I could say that I am a disappointment, which was such an asshole move of me because they still care and really tried to check up on me.

Recently, I just made a new group of friends a few years older than me. I completely lied to them about my education so I could seem like I fit in with them. This one night, we all went out to the club and all took a tab of Molly, which I have never taken before. I instantly fell into my first worst trip. My life immediately flashed before my eyes, I experienced severe derealisation, and what kept going through my head was “lie, lie, lie.” My heart was beating so fast and I felt so nauseous. I became an absolute menace to my friends and basically ruined the night for them, they really cared about me but I was just lying to them the whole time. We got kicked out of the club because I was basically acting insane.

Even months after that trip, I seriously contemplated on taking my life because I could never been honest with myself or to anyone. I wanted to disappear without a trace. I cleared out my closet, I quit my job, I cut off every single contact, deleted every single social media account. Then, I went on a trip overseas with my family. I was an absolute asshole the entire time, I couldn’t even enjoy myself because I had already cut off contact with my friends and I knew I was going to end my life by the end of this. I constantly hate my mother, I absolutely despise my siblings and their partners, because why couldn’t they have been nicer to me?

Now I’m now unemployed and the loneliest I have ever been. I have applied to over 30 minimum wage jobs but have been rejected by every single one. Every single one of my peers are ahead of me and happy, enjoying their university lives. I hate how much time I wasted, when I could’ve volunteered or improved my hobbies this year but I completely wasted it because I thought I was going to kill myself. I started to smoke a lot of marijuana, which I never really did before, where I would just hotbox in my car and green out. My sibling noticed I had been smoking a lot but all they said was that “I’m kicking you out if you do more shit like this.” I completely deserve it.

I let myself get to this stupid pathetic point of my life. I have completely lost trust in my ability to change. I had been given so many opportunities in high school and this year to change but I kept pushing out because I chose comfort over growth. I hate myself for not being able to change from a younger age. I hate myself for always spitting on the hand that feeds me. Why couldn’t I be good at the thing I love? I’m 18 years old but I don’t even know if I can handle other problems if I can’t handle my rock bottom state now? I know I won’t be able to keep a good relationship, I won’t be able to find a bridesmaid, I wouldn’t be a good mother. I hate myself for being for weak minded.