People Drift Apart: Five Ways to Deal

Let's face it. Most people in your life will go away. They will seemingly cease to be. Sometimes you'll have a falling out, or a bad breakup. Sometimes they or you will side with someone else on an important issue, and the division will just be there. Other times, it's a seemingly slow drift. One that both people can acknowledge, but neither can help. These are five ways to cope with that.

1. Learn To Let It Go: It's hard. The hardest way to do things. However, letting things go is also the healthiest. When both people can realize that they just don't have much in common anymore, or they just don't want to be friends anymore, they can safely and painlessly "break apart." This is true for all relationships. Usually this is an understood notion, rather than anyone saying "We should just go our separate ways."

Pros: Healthy way to drift without animosity.
Cons: You may be doing it without animosity, but they may not feel the same way.

2. Try To Force It Right: You can always try to force it right. Spend as much time together with the person as possible, doing things that can be considered "bonding." It shows an effort to maintain a relationship. Make sure you see each other everyday. Talk to each other, not just over the Internet, but on the phone.

Pros: If the other person is willing, this will either make it right or you'll tend to learn to let it go
Cons: If they don't want to, you'll just end up annoying them, making the separation permanent.

3. Give up: This is different than learning to let it go. Giving up is a lethargic way of letting go. "Whatever," you might think, or perhaps "I don't even care anymore." It's really sad to everyone around, including the person you are giving up on. Perhaps he or she does not want to give up.

Pros: If both are willing to give up, then it's done right there. You won't get angry by giving up.
Cons: If the other person notices you are giving up, and does not want to, then that person is going to be mad. Very mad.