Healthy Relationships Start Here
As a young person, one is influenced by peers. One’s peers are mostly made up of friends and family who are exactly or near one’s own age. In order to fit into a group with friends and family, one must conform to the norms within that group. However, when it comes to being influenced, that does not mean that other people are telling one what to do. It means that one makes independent decisions to follow a certain style or behavior. It is understandable, though, that in every group there is one person who tries to be the leader, and she often tries to tell her “followers” what to do for her convenience. It is when this happens that one should become aware of the kind of friend this girl may be, one who is manipulative or simply one who is more organized than the rest. In society today, people are used to forming groups or cliques in order to feel somewhat secure. People have found that it is easier to go through life with a network of friends because it helps them to feel as though they are well liked. It helps to have a social life, especially when one feels that a break from work or school is necessary; it is a sure way to release stress. Having friends who are sincere and who care about one’s wellbeing is important because each person in the relationship can depend on the other. When a friendship is formed with a number of people, one should take care to identify each person’s role. One does not have to verbalize the roles, but one should be aware of them. Usually there is a “leader” in a group of friends because it is easier to depend on someone else to be the official decision-maker than to take on the responsibility for one’s self. However, it is not very healthy to have a leader who makes decisions based only on her opinions. Even though there may be a leader in a group, it is not necessary to obey or do everything she says: it is important for one to make the decision to follow or not. One can be independent when it comes to running one’s own life, but it is important to be dependant on friends when it comes to advice and opinions. When dealing with the person who is the leader of one’s group, one should be careful to tell whether she is trying to be manipulative. Being manipulated by someone is not pleasant for the other people in one’s life because one may feel that plans must be made around that friend (the leader). Doing this to other people is frustrating to them because they can end up feeling as though one is avoiding them. Manipulation must be avoided so that one can make new friends apart from the friends one already has. One must take care of one’s social life in order to be happy in all the relationships one has. It’s important to have friends, but it is also important to have barriers. One must be careful to have a social life that does not consist of someone else making decisions for one. For one to have a social life that is full of good memories, one must take care to have healthy relationships. Having healthy relationships allows one to have the confidence to form new relationships. Knowing how to form relationships and keep them healthy is important because it is something that one can teach one’s children to do when they start to form their own relationships.
