be healthily sensitive. tell them you're hurt when you're hurt. describe what hurt you. no silent treatment and passive aggressiveness. be honest. don't compromise your emotion. don't bottle it up. weigh the issue. understand and maybe, forgive.
One of the driving forces for bottling it up (for me) was a fear of retaliation. If I told someone I was hurting and why, especially if they were a cause of it, I was terrified they would either use it against me or turn it on me somehow. Mostly because it kept happening any time I did.
And here’s the biggest lesson I learned.
If someone does do that, they’re not your friend. They probably never were. A friend will be willing to work with you, talk through it, and not retaliate. You deserve friends who are willing to listen when you say you’re hurt. Who you can trust to not turn on you. Heck, the sort of friend who can tell you that you’ve hurt them without making you feel like a monster.
Friendship is communication. And you deserve people who understand you. Don’t settle for anyone who makes you feel any different.
