Dear Dish-It, I Want a Best Friend

Advice For Teens About Friends

Dear Dish-It,
I'm 15 and I don't make friends easily. I only have three friends and they aren't my best friends. I really want a best friend that doesn't care what I look like or how I dress or anything like that. I want a friend who just accepts me for who I am. It is really hard to find a best friend these days. I feel like I wanna kill myself because my friends don't care about me. Can you help me?
blackrose11377

Dear blackrose11377,

As I'm sure you already know, there is no magical best friend store where you can go and pick out the perfect person to hang with. Becoming best friends with peeps often takes a lot of time and hard work. You have to put in the effort to really get to know people - their interests, dislikes, probs, etc. There is a friendship formula that always seems to work: you + a peep with similar interests and goals = a good friendship. But you can't work on that formula until you sort out what your own interests, likes and dislikes are. Only then can you find someone who shares them. You need to start accepting who you are before others will begin to accept you. If you can't seem to make friends at school, why not join a group or team outside of school? There are tons of people out there waiting to meet you, so instead of feeling sorry for yourself, go out and track down that best friend you've always wanted.

Dear Dish-It,

My best friend's parents are getting a divorce. I'm in 5th grade and we are going to middle school next year. We have been getting in fights and I don't know what to do. Help!
ShopYoung1

Dear ShopYoung1,

I have a feeling that your best friend isn't angry at you but is just having a hard time dealing with what's goin' on with her 'rents. Let her know that you're there to talk if she needs to get things off her chest and hopefully the next time she has something on her mind, she'll talk to you instead of picking a fight. It takes two to tango, so if you avoid fighting back, your friend will have no one to argue with. Although she may not show it, your friend needs you now more than ever before. Try to be the bigger person and show her the love, even when she doesn't seem to deserve it. Good Luck!

So, ya gotta burnin' question? Need some love directions? Thinkin' 'bout stuff like depression, sex,how ya feel 'bout YOURSELF (that's called "self-esteem"), boyfriends, girlfriends, losin' old friends, bullyin' or peer pressure, but too scared to ask the parents? Don't be scared to Dish-It here. Send all of your questions to deardish@kidzworld.com But 'member, if ya hang out in Chat with other Kidzworld members who know ya by your 'username', ya might wanna use a secret nickname when ya write in. That way no one'll ever know it's you. And, just in case ya don't know, Dish-It gets a lotta letters everyday, and she can't answer 'em all. So keep checkin' the column cuz she's prob'ly answerin' somethin' very similar to your question while you're out doin' somethin' else. K? And Thanks! Ya keep her outta trouble. Oh! And if ya've got words of wisdom you wanna share, we'll dish 'em up, too.

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