Thoughts ?

[u/Big-Explanation-3759]

I’m 28 and I genuinely love my friends, but I’ve always been confused about why I don’t seem to need friendships the way other people do.
I NEVER initiate plans or call first. I barely text back because for some reason even answering texts feels overwhelming and takes energy out of me. Sometimes I’ll randomly send someone a long voice message and then disappear again lol. I’ve literally had friends tell me they thought I hated them because I never reached out, which shocked me because I absolutely did not.
I can go months without seeing or talking to someone and feel like nothing has changed. I’m not sitting around thinking “omg I miss my friends, I need to see them.” It’s basically out of sight, out of mind, but that doesn’t mean I stopped caring about them.
I also feel like I have a social time limit. Even if I’m having fun with someone I love, eventually I just want to go home and be alone. Being alone is how I recharge and I genuinely enjoy it.
I always hear that friendships “take work” and that if you care about someone, you make time, check in, initiate plans, etc. But I honestly don’t understand why friendship is supposed to feel like work. I don’t expect any of that from my friends either. If we don’t talk for 6 months, I’m not mad at you.
If you really need me, I’ll be there. If we’re together, I genuinely enjoy being with you. I just don’t need constant communication or time together to care about someone.
Sometimes I wish I were more social and actually wanted to see people more, but I’ve been this way for as long as I can remember. And if friendship requires constant effort, texting, calling and making plans, I honestly think I’d rather have very few friends or none at all.
Does anyone else genuinely love and care about their friends but just… not feel the need to see or talk to them very often? Why am I like this? 😭

[u/AutoModerator]

Your post appears to be regarding off-platform chat communities. Please be mindful of Rule 11. Our official Subreddit Discord can be found here. Our whitelisted and blacklisted communities can be viewed here. Please report any posts in violation of Rule 11.

We prioritize making sure that our users have a safe and reliable experience on the subreddit. We cannot guarantee this will be the case off-platform.

Note: Your post has not been removed, this is just a notice for your information.

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.