So, Should I Just Keep Watching My Friend Mess Up?

It is all about perspective-and boundaries, says our advice columnist, therapist Minaa B.

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Dear Minaa,

One of my best friends from college and I are still close, but our friendship has changed a lot over the past few years. I think part of it stems from her spending most of the pandemic alone and feeling isolated. We talk a lot about how frustrated she is with her dating life and how she has recently taken steps to ensure that she can be a parent without a partner. Lately, she's been playing with the idea of starting IVF soonish-and she just turned 30. In my opinion, she's getting a bit ahead of herself. Another change: she's making an effort to stand up to toxic people in her life and let them know how they have wronged her. Now, most of our conversations centre on how she plans to call them out or on rehashing these bad interactions over and over again.

While I am happy to see she's taking charge of her life, I am worried she is creating new problems that will have a negative impact on her mental health. I should say that she does see a therapist regularly, takes mental-health-related medication, and, in theory, prioritises her emotional well-being. But even so, her overall personality has shifted to become more negative and generally angry at the world. It has gotten to the point where I have been thinking about spending some time away from her.

Honestly, I think she is getting in the way of her own happiness and that's hard to be around and upsetting to witness-but is it my place to say anything? If not, what can I do to support her?