These 4 Words Could Resuscitate Your Strained Friendship

Many experts believe the quality (and quantity) of our friendships begin to deteriorate after the age of 25.

That age feels really specific — but it makes sense because that’s when most of us begin to have more responsibilities and less free time. Maybe we’ve found a romantic relationship or a career or we have children and that limits our ability to invest in friendships in ways we could when we were younger and more carefree.

Regardless of why it happens, the idea that our friendships become less of a priority as we age is pretty bleak, especially since we know how important they are to our overall health and happiness. There has to be a way to preserve the magic with our besties, right? That’s why we — Raj Punjabi and Noah Michelson, hosts ofHuffPost’s “Am I Doing It Wrong?” podcast — turned to journalist and friendship expert Anna Goldfarb for tips and tricks to keep our friendships strong.

Listen to the full episode by pressing play on the player:

Goldfarb confirmed that keeping solid friendships as an adult can be challenging, largely because life gets extremely real — especially in situations where one party goes through something overwhelming and life-changing.

She went through this herself when her sister had kids and suddenly had less time and attention to offer Goldfarb.

“I’m not feeling the love. She’s not reaching out to me,” she said. “I’m doing so much for her, but I don’t feel like she can match the energy I’m putting in and a lot of resentment was building up.”

Goldfarb, the author of “Modern Friendship: How to Nurture Our Most Valued Connections,” discovered that when new responsibilities strain a friendship, strong and coherent communication is key.

In these situations, she advises us to