After years of heartbreaks and disappointments, Joyce decided to share experiences she encountered with unhealthy friendships, that caused mental, physical and emotional pain. She wants to help the reader discern the difference between toxic friends and real friends. After a long look in the mirror, she found that sometimes we have to look at oneself and be accountable for some of the disappointing relationships in our lives.
Friendships are one of life's greatest blessings, offering us comfort, support, and love. But what happens when a friendship hurts rather than enhances our lives? Why do some friendships go so right, while others go wrong? In this illuminating book, relationship expert Florence Isaacs explores the complex bonds of friendship and the many issues that can make or break them, everything from the ideals of love, loyalty, and affection to darker feelings of competition, neediness, and envy -- as well as our own refusal to see draining relationships for what they really are. Using expert insights, instructive anecdotes, and eye-opening quizzes, Isaacs reveals what makes a friend either true or toxic, and how to tell the difference. As warm, honest, and affirming as any true friend, this book will help you say goodbye to toxic friendships and start building meaningful connections that will enrich your life at every stage. Book jacket.
A woman can always count on are her friends—right? But what if those friendships are hurtful, harmful, even toxic? Susan Shapiro Barash explores the ten types of female friends and shows you why and how women get stuck with the worst kinds, the ways to get "unstuck, and how to recognize a true friend." For example: • The Leader of the Pack—it's all on her terms • The Doormat—and why you're the one paying the price • The Misery Lover—she wants to feel your pain. Really. • The User—and why you seldom see her coming • The Trophy Friend—and what you gain from each other Provocative and fascinating, Susan Shapiro Barash looks at the bonds (and bondage) of female friendships in a new light.
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A stunning “portrait of the enduring grace of friendship” (NPR) about the families we are born into, and those that we make for ourselves. A masterful depiction of love in the twenty-first century. NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST • MAN BOOKER PRIZE FINALIST • WINNER OF THE KIRKUS PRIZE A Little Life follows four college classmates—broke, adrift, and buoyed only by their friendship and ambition—as they move to New York in search of fame and fortune. While their relationships, which are tinged by addiction, success, and pride, deepen over the decades, the men are held together by their devotion to the brilliant, enigmatic Jude, a man scarred by an unspeakable childhood trauma. A hymn to brotherly bonds and a masterful depiction of love in the twenty-first century, Hanya Yanagihara’s stunning novel is about the families we are born into, and those that we make for ourselves. Look for Hanya Yanagihara’s latest bestselling novel, To Paradise.
Friendship, cliques, and middle school drama with a heavy dose of heart--perfect for fans of Rebecca Stead! Niki Ames can't wait to start eighth grade, that all-important year before high school. She and her best friend, Ava, have shared so many plans for the coming year. But then the unthinkable happens: at gym class pair-up, Ava chooses someone else to be her partner. Niki is devastated. It's clear that Ava wants to be part of the popular group, leaving Niki behind. Niki has to decide who her real friends should be, where her real interests lie. Meanwhile, life at home is complicated. Niki's nine-year-old brother Danny continues to act out more and more publicly. Their mother refuses to admit that Danny is somewhere on the autism spectrum, but it's clear he needs help. Niki doesn't want to be like her brother, to be labeled as different. She just wants to be popular! Is she a bad sister and a bad best friend?
"WITH A NEW INTRODUCTION" "HOW COULD YOU DO THAT TO ME?" We've all had friendships that have gone bad. Whether it takes the form of a simple yet inexplicable estrangement or a devastating betrayal, a failed friendship can make your life miserable, threaten your success at work or school, and even undermine your romantic relationships. Finally there is help. In When Friendship Hurts, Jan Yager, recognized internationally as a leading expert on friendship, explores what causes friendships to falter and explains how to mend them -- or end them. In this straightforward, illuminating book filled with dozens of quizzes and real-life examples, Yager covers all the bases, including: The twenty-one types of negative friends -- a rogues' gallery featuring such familiar types as the Blood-sucker, the Fault-finder, the Promise Breaker, and the Copycat How to recognize destructive friends as well as how to find ideal ones The e-mail effect -- how electronic communication has changed friendships for both the better and the worse The misuse of friendship at work -- how to deal with a co-worker's lies, deceit, or attempts at revenge How to stop obsessing about a failed friendship And much more The first highly prescriptive book to focus on the complexities of friendship, When Friendship Hurts demonstrates how, why, and when to let go of bad friends and how to develop the positive friendships that enrich our lives on every level. For everyone who has ever wondered about friends who betray, hurt, or reject them, this authoritative book provides invaluable insights and advice to resolve the problem once and for all.
Having a difficult time with your friendships? Hard to recognize the difference between your true friends vs your fake ones? Not sure how to avoid the toxic and dangerous friends? Wanting to find ways to enhance and strengthen current friendships? Then this is the book for you...and your friends! You won't regret it. The Friendship Quadrant will be a tool you can use in all aspects of every relationship and it will be an effective resource your entire life. "As a family therapist, this is the first book I have read that focuses solely on the power and importance of friendship. The Friendship Quadrant provides a comprehensive toolkit for all ages to navigate the peaks and valleys of interpersonal relationships. I would recommend the Friendship Quadrant to any individual looking to improve, strengthen, and nurture positive friendships as well as parents hoping to guide their children in this same process." Lori B. Morton, MS, LPC Friendship Quadrant (FQ) teaches how to choose friends wisely and how to be a good friend. It utilizes a creative "quadrant model" to help people of all ages, but especially young people, to understand how to manage expectations in relation to their friends. With this new understanding, the readers become empowered as they quickly realize that their 'friend issues' are often not their fault. With this heightened awareness their self-image naturally improves. It's important, even vital, for people of all ages to have good friends. But as young people strive to "find their way in life" it becomes exponentially imperative for them to have good, reliable friends. Poor friend choices have had devastating effects on the lives of legions of young people who forfeited a bright future because of their "friends." By the time you finish reading this engaging book, you have learned the steps to becoming a good friend yourself so that you can attract and maintain, reliable "true blue" friends throughout your life. Friendship Quadrant will deliver to each reader a powerful and practical "life" tool that is easy to learn, retain and implement. In essence, it is a "compass" that will direct the individual to greater, more enriching friendships that will deliver immeasurable benefits. When taught in the middle school or high school environment FQ principles provide an "anti-bullying" message without ever saying the word "bully." This reality is a natural result of learning and accepting FQ principles. It's important to note, that while FQ utilizes a quadrant system to teach us to choose friends wisely, it is not a "labeling system" that forever banishes a person to a quadrant that falls "below the line" (explained in the book). Instead, the book encourages the reader to embrace those that don't meet the standard of a "good" friend. It then teaches the reader meaningful guidelines that will insulate them from the negative influences these friends may have on them. In doing so, they don't become a victim during the process of providing a positive example. We believe firmly that Friendship Quadrant will have a positive impact on the lives of every person that reads it, and in some cases, it will "redirect" an individual away from a path that is leading them to misery. As the famous quote goes, "Show me your friends and I will show you your future!"
Good friends and healthy friendships are crucial to women’s well-being at every stage of life. But what happens when a friendship turns toxic? When a friend becomes hurtful or mistreats another? When a friend abandons another in a time of need? Here, Suzanne Degges-White and Judy Pochel Van Tieghem explore such toxic friendships and how women navigate the ups and downs, as well as how broken friendships can be mended and bad friendships ended. Explaining and illustrating the “rules of friendship” at various stages of life, the authors reveal what it takes to be a good friend, how to identify bad friends, and how to move forward when friendships turn sour. Vignettes of toxic friendship behaviors are shared, as well as tips on how best to respond to these rule-breaking friends in order to rebuild damaged relationships and repair a friendship’s foundation (when appropriate) and how to decide when it’s time to let go of a relationship that is bringing you down versus keeping you afloat. Information for parents is also provided, to aid them as they help their daughters navigate their friendships. We all need friends, but knowing when and how to let go can help us all be better friends—to ourselves, and also to others.
Our best friends, Twitter followers, gal-pals, bromances, Facebook friends, and long distance buddies define us in ways we rarely openly acknowledge. But as a society, we are simultaneously terrified of being alone and already desperately lonely. We move through life in packs and friendship circles and yet, in the most interconnected age, we are stuck in the greatest loneliness epidemic of our time. It's killing us, making us miserable and causing a public health crisis. Increasingly, we don’t just die alone; we die because we are alone. What if meaningful friendships are the solution?Journalist Kate Leaver believes that friendship is the essential cure for the modern malaise of solitude, ill health, and anxiety and that, if we only treated camaraderie as a social priority, it could affect everything from our physical health and emotional well being. Her much-anticipated manifesto, The Friendship Cure, looks at what friendship means, how it can survive, why we need it, and what we can do to get the most from it. Why do some friendships last a lifetime, while others are only temporary? How do you “break up†? with a toxic friend? How do you make friends as an adult? Can men and women really be platonic? What are the curative qualities of friendship, and how we can deploy friendship to actually live longer, better lives?From behavioral scientists to besties, Kate draws upon the extraordinary research from academics, scientists, and psychotherapists, and stories from friends of friends, strangers from the Internet, and her “squad†? to get to the bottom of these and other facets of friendship. For readers of Susan Cain’s Quiet and Elizabeth Gilbert’s Big Magic, The Friendship Cure is a fascinating blend of accessible “smart thinking,†? investigative journalism, pop culture, and memoir for anyone trying to navigate this lonely world, written with the wit, charm, and bite of a fresh voice.
Packed with real-life stories, biblical suggestions, proven tips, and practical steps, Dr. Gregory Jantz’s handbook will give you courage and tenacity as you take the first steps on the path toward wholeness and wellbeing. With boundaries, problem-solving, and mutual respect, find the tools to turn strained relationships into ones that are enjoyable, supportive and rewarding. In this practical counseling book, you will learn: The tell-tale signs of a toxic person The roots of toxic behavior How to evaluate whether you should hang in or move on Effective ways to deal with criticism How to focus on healthy problem-solving How to set and hold boundaries, and reclaim your life! The Deceiver. The Gaslighter. The Guilter. The Control Freak. And the Put-down Artist. They are toxic people, and they create turmoil in nearly every setting: work, home, church, school, and relationships of all kinds. Toxic people keep you off-balance; they poison relationships, they stir up discord, making you feel that you are the dysfunctional one. How to Deal with Toxic People offers practical guidance from one of today’s favorite Christian authors. 4 Key Features of This Christian Counseling Book on Dealing with Toxic Behaviors In How to Deal with Toxic People, Dr. Gregory Jantz examines the kind of behavior that defines a toxic person, the common origins of toxic traits, the ways in which a toxic person impacts the lives of others, and—most importantly—what you can do to protect yourself from toxic people. Enjoy having these key features: Simple summaries and easy-to-understand explanations Practical steps to protect yourself from toxic people, backed by science and by scripture Charts that show key information at a glance Relatable stories that show you how to apply biblical truths to your life Dr. Jantz shows you that it is possible to free yourself from the effects of toxic people in your life. In fact, it’s vital that you do so to protect and promote your own well-being. You can learn to choose healthy, fulfilling, mutually rewarding, and uplifting relationships—and to drastically limit or end those that don’t measure up. You deserve to be treated by others with respect, honor, and dignity at all times. God wants you to be free! Perfect for: Group and individual use Church library To hand to a friend Biblical and pastoral counseling
