This week on Honest to God, we’re tackling friendship: the good, the bad, and the ugly. Starting off where it all began (with crippling childhood social anxiety and a deep-set hatred of birthday parties), we’ll journey along the winding road that humbled me into someone worthy of those I get to call my friends today. We’ll encounter betrayal and emotional exhaustion, relational growing pains and painfully awkward attempts at being social, hyperfixation and hypocrisy, poorly ordered priorities, and an unwillingness to trust as we grow in understanding of how to be the kind of friend that we, ourselves, want and need.

On today’s episode, I realize it’s okay to walk away from places we’re unwanted, to not be scared of investing effort into a relationship, and to stop assuming everybody’s love languages are the same as mine. From first kisses to girl dates (iykyk), we’ll talk through strategies for maximizing confidence and minimizing panic while attempting to make new friends. Guarding your heart, taking full accountability for mistakes, resisting the urge to overshare, and finding comfort in silence are among the many skills sharpened along the way. By the end, we’ll have a better idea of how to leverage intentionality to help others blossom, even as we use boundaries and invitations to help our dearest friendships go the distance.

If Charli and Lorde could work it out on the remix, we’re working it out on this podcast.

Follow the Podcast: @honesttogodpod on Instagram & TikTok

Connect with me: @alyssakattan on Instagram & TikTok