The Friendship Doctor

Top 10 friendship dilemmas of 2010

Dr. Irene S. Levine | Posted 11.17.2011

Friendships, even very good ones, typically change over time. But the "rules" or etiquette on how to best adapt to a changed friendship are often murk...

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When your 'platonic' friend just isn't into you...

Dr. Irene S. Levine | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: The Friendship Doctor, Women, Just Friends, Living News, Male-Female, Cross-Sex Friendship, Email, Friendship Advice, Platonic, Breakling Living News, Romantic, Friendship Expert, Male Friendship, Cross-Gender, Relationships, Breaking New, Betrayal, Living, Healthy Living News

QUESTION Dear Irene, I have read and been told by female friends that when a man is friends with a woman and all of a sudden wants to take it to a r...

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Men of A Certain Age: The Real Bromance Behind The Scenes

Dr. Irene S. Levine | Posted 05.25.2011

The groundbreaking TNT comedy-drama, Men of A Certain Age, returns for a second season on Monday, December 6 at 10AM (9PM central). Starring Ray Ro...

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When you've co-signed a lease with the roommate from hell

Dr. Irene S. Levine | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: Sharing, The Friendship Doctor, Living News, Friends, Relationships, Friendship Advice, Breaking News, Texting, Roommates, Texts, Friendship Expert, Residential Advisor, Ease, Reframing, College, Arguments, Living, Communication, Healthy Living News

QUESTION Dear Irene, My roommate and I are both in 3rd in university and have been friends since high school. We've been living together for only t...

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Can you pause a friendship?

Dr. Irene S. Levine | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: The Friendship Doctor, Friendship Pause, Depressed, High School, Brag, Ambivalence, Friendship Sabbatical, Friendship Advice, Group, Toxic Friendship, Low-Self Esteem, Moving, Irene S. Levine, Showing Off, Healthy Living News

QUESTION Dear Irene, I have a group of girlfriends, basically six of us, who've known each other since high school. Anyway, I got very close with th...

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Should a mom worry about her daughter making friends?

Dr. Irene S. Levine | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: The Friendship Doctor, Worried Mom, Kid?S Friendship, Normal, Living News, Relationships, Social Butterfly, Friendship Advice, Children?S Friendships, Teacher, School, Plays With Younger Children, 7-Year-Old, Tomboy, No Sleepover, Living, Daughter Has No Friends, Healthy Living News

QUESTION Dear Irene, My 7-year-old daughter, soon to be 8, seems to be having some problems, and I am not sure how concerned I should be. I have two...

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Path: The "less social" approach to TMI?

Dr. Irene S. Levine | Posted 05.25.2011

Like the seasonal flu, we all get a touch of social media fatigue from time to time. Whether it's Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Foursquare or something...

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My one-sided friendship: How can I get her to stop IM-ing me?

Dr. Irene S. Levine | Posted 11.17.2011

QUESTION Hi Irene, I'm in an awkward situation with a friend and I'm at a loss about how to proceed. We've been friends for about 6 years. We met ...

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Friendship by the Book: 'Dump 'Em' by Jodyne L. Speyer

Dr. Irene S. Levine | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: Letting Go, The Friendship Doctor, Sarah Silverman, Boundaries, Jodyne Speyer, Dump ?Em, Relationships, Humor, Friendship Advice, Breaking Up, Book, Breaking Living News, Living, Friendship by the Book, Healthy Living News

It's never easy to end a relationship---whether it's with a hairstylist, babysitter, boss, lover or a friend. That's because we get attached to the pe...

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Disappearing Acts: Should you think the best or assume the worst?

Dr. Irene S. Levine | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: Friend, Contact, The Friendship Doctor, Ambiguous, Doesn?T Response, Living News, Relationships, Ambiguity, Breaking News, Irene S. Levine, Friendship, Initiating Contact, Non-Responsive, Interpreting Friend?S Behavior, Birthday Card, Reciprocity, Initiator, Breaking Living News, Healthy Living News

QUESTION Dear Irene, It is hard to know if lengthy silences and withdrawals by friends are because they are trying to dump you or because they are ...

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My teenage daughter feels like an outcast: What should I do?

Dr. Irene S. Levine | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: Friendship, The Friendship Doctor, Friends, Lonely, Teenage Friendships, Bullying, Teens, Anxiety, Friendship Advice, Scars of Bullying, Teenage, Relationships, Living, Breaking News, Breaking Living News, Healthy Living News

The effects of bullying can be long-lasting QUESTION Dear Irene, My daughter is 14-years-old. She is very bright and is in the top 1/3 in all her ...

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Gambling on a Friendship

Dr. Irene S. Levine | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: Support, Gambling, The Friendship Doctor, Wedding, Living News, Giving Advice, Risking a Friendship, Intergenerational Friendship, Addiction, Friendship Advice, Age Difference, Relationships, Fiance, Living, Healthy Living News

QUESTION Hi Irene, I am a 52-year-old woman who had a very close friendship with a young girl in her late 20s whom I worked with for about two year...

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Change of Plans? My BFF Fell in Love With My Roommate

Dr. Irene S. Levine | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: Friend, The Friendship Doctor, Living News, Time, Relationships, Guy, Threesome, Dumped, Friendship Advice, Jealousy, Friendship, Feeling Left Out, Friendship Expert, Trip, Roommate, Shafted, Boyfriend, Breaking Living News, Healthy Living News

I'm 22, and my best friend Allie and I have been friends for 11 years. She has never been good at balancing things, and now with a boyfriend and best friends in two different cities, she's predictably having trouble.

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Help! My friend has become too needy

Dr. Irene S. Levine | Posted 11.17.2011

QUESTION Dear Irene, My best friend has become overly dependent on me. She's been living in another state for the last few years but we see each oth...

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Having "the friendship talk" with your teenage daughter

Dr. Irene S. Levine | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: Friend, Teen Friendships, The Friendship Doctor, Daughter, Living News, Relationships, Friendship Advice, Breaking News, Friendship, Friendship Expert, Drama, High School, Mom, Moms, Parents, Communication, Teens, Breaking Living News, Healthy Living News

QUESTION Dear Dr. Levine, My daughter is in high school has had problems keeping friends since elementary school. From what I have observed when her...

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When anxiety looms over a close friendship

Dr. Irene S. Levine | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: Friend, Cbt, The Friendship Doctor, Mental Health, Obsessive, Relationships, Friendship Advice, Difficulty Making Friends, Anxious, Jealousy, Breaking News, Friendship, Short-Term Therapy, Close Friend, Possessive, College, Roommate, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, Insecurity, Campus, Jealous, Best Friend, Possessiveness, Anxiety, Living, Breaking Living News, Clingy, Healthy Living News

QUESTION Dear Irene, I am a college sophomore and have had relatively few close friendships. I'm okay with not having a lot, but have always wanted...

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Less than perfect friendships

Dr. Irene S. Levine | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: The Friendship Doctor, Boundaries, Relationships, Personality, Honesty, Imperfect, Advice, Perfect Friendship, Reader Q & A, Friendship Expert, Competitive, Expectations, Brag, Work, Inconsistent, Insensitivity, Living, Breaking Living News, Healthy Living News

Friendships are rarely perfect; they come in more flavors and textures than Ben & Jerry's ice cream. Sometimes, coming to terms with a less than perfe...

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A Conversation with Gail Caldwell: On the loss of a close friend

Dr. Irene S. Levine | Posted 11.17.2011

The death of a close friend is extraordinarily painful, made that much more difficult because bereaved friends typically evoke little sympathy and sup...

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Her friendship suffers a sudden death

Dr. Irene S. Levine | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: Friend, The Friendship Doctor, Living News, Relationships, Hot Potato, Friendship Advice, Irene S. Levine, Death, Funeral, Friendship, Dropped Me, Too Busy, Best Friend, Living, Communication, Reader Q & A, Sudden, Healthy Living News

QUESTION Dear Irene, I have a friend that I felt was my best friend. She was in my wedding and we were pretty much attached at the hip. She called m...

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I can't believe she defriended me!

Dr. Irene S. Levine | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: The Friendship Doctor, Austin Considine, Trust, Relationships, Defriend, Breaking News, Friendship Advice, Facebook, Irene S. Levine, Unfriend, Social Media, Frenemies, Defriending, New York Times, Frenemy, Technology, Breaking Living News, Living, Healthy Living News

This week, I received an email from another writer who reminded me that she had once defriended me on Facebook. We both belong to the same professiona...

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The dirty little secret most women don't talk about

Dr. Irene S. Levine | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: Friendship, Women, The Friendship Doctor, Friendship Expert, Relationships, Downgrading a Friendship, Broken Friendship, The Friendship Blog, Mend a Broken Friendship, Forgive, Friendship Advice, Friendship Problems, Living, Breaking Living News, Take a Break, Irene S. Levine, Communication, Healthy Living News

Despite the romanticized myth of BFF, the hard truth is that most friendships don't last forever. In fact, research suggests that when it comes to fri...

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Relating to a Friend in Crisis

Dr. Irene S. Levine | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: Dying Relative, The Friendship Doctor, Boundaries, Living News, Long-Distance Friendship, Relationships, Loss, Irene S. Levine, Death, Stress, Friendship Expert, Anger, Sensitive to Criticism, Crisis, Timing, Offering Support, Living, Healthy Living News

QUESTION Dear Irene, My friend and I are very close and she's recently been under a lot of stress. A family member is dying and she is caring for...

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Let's Take The Long Way Home: A Memoir of Friendship

Dr. Irene S. Levine | Posted 11.17.2011

It's rare that I gush over books but I fell in love with Gail Caldwell's newest book: Let's Take The Long Way Home: A Memoir of Friendship (Random Hou...

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7 Tips for being an unequivocally B-O-R-I-N-G friend

Dr. Irene S. Levine | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: Friendship, Friend, The Friendship Doctor, Friendship Expert, Boring, Living News, Relationships, Humor, Boring Friend, Self-Centered Friend, Friendship Advice, Incessant Talker, Irene S. Levine, Friendship Tips, Breaking Living News, Boredom, Healthy Living News

Here are seven simple tips to nip a new friendship in the bud or to sabotage an existing one: 1) Do it her way Abrogate all responsibility for the f...

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Friendship and Loss: When the loved one who dies is a friend

Dr. Irene S. Levine | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: Friendship Dies, The Friendship Doctor, Depression, Living News, Relationships, Friendship and Loss, Friendship Advice, Death of a Loved One, Loss, Advice, Death, Reader Q & A, Signs and Symptoms of Depression, Friendship Expert, Sympathy, Death of a Friend, Alzheimer?S Disease, Breaking Living News, Healthy Living News

QUESTION Dear Dr. Levine, My dearest best friend of 35 years died in March. She had Alzheimer's disease, so it had been several years since I was a...

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