40 Brutal Stories Of Friendships That Ended In The Most Unhinged Ways

Bored Panda reached out to therapist Priya Harpaul, LMHC, to understand why friendship breakups hurt so deeply and what we can do to ease the pain of the fallout. Harpaul is also a mental health educator and the creator of the Instagram page The Therapy Notebook, where she shares advice on coping skills and relationships of all forms and sizes—so for more insights, be sure to check it out.

According to Harpaul, there are several reasons why friendship breakups can feel especially painful. “With romantic relationships, a certain level of heartbreak and rejection is to be expected and anticipated. We don’t typically prepare for ending friendships,” she explains. “And it’s easier to understand when romantic relationships don’t work out due to compatibility issues, but with friendships it can be harder to process why it didn’t work out.”

“Friends can also be a major source of emotional support when romantic relationships go wrong or when life happens,” she adds. “And there may not be a sense of closure or understanding of what went wrong. Society also tends to minimize the end of a friendship, which can invalidate the grieving process and make it seem trivial when it isn’t. Our friends are our chosen family and the end of a deep connection deserves to be grieved.”