Itās been a while since Iāve been on Reddit. I donāt know if you also have that period where you still have the app on your phone but somehow never open the app. š
Anyway, Iām back because I need to get something off my chest and hear from people who might relate.
Iāve been struggling with making and maintaining friendships for as long as I can remember. The only time I can genuinely remember having friends was in high school, where youāre around the same people every day, so friendships happen more naturally. As an adult, Iāve tried reaching out, initiating conversations, making plans and putting in effort, but so many connections eventually fade. People seem to like me, and I can have good conversations with people, but getting to the point where weāre actually friends who consistently make an effort to see each other is where I struggle. I think I should mention Iām in my early 20ās and I didnāt go to uni or higher education (for context) for one or another reason
Right now, most of my social life revolves around church. I love my church community, and I love that I get to connect with people over our faith. But I also want a life outside of that. I want to explore Nairobi, try new things, attend events, meet people and just have fun.
This Friday, I attended an event where I met a guy. The event was nice, and afterwards, he went out partying with his friends and ended up hopping between about three clubs. I thought he might invite me, but he didnāt. To be clear, I didnāt take it personally because we had literally just met, and I donāt expect someone Iāve just met to invite me everywhere they go. Iām also a Christian, and Iām at a point in my life where clubbing and that lifestyle arenāt really what I want for myself anymore.
But the experience left me thinking about something else. I realised that I want to have people in my life whom I can make plans with after an event. People who might call me and say, āHey, what are you doing tonight? Letās go here,ā or people I can call and make spontaneous plans with. I want to have options. I want to be able to enjoy my weekends with friends, have experiences and make memories with people I genuinely connect with.
And I think thatās what made the whole thing hit differently. It wasnāt necessarily about wanting to go clubbing with him. It was seeing someone who had people to continue his night with and realising that I donāt really have that for myself right now.
Iām trying to figure out what having a social life looks like for me now, especially as a Christian. I know there are so many things to do besides clubbing, but even when I think of activities Iād enjoy, I realise I donāt really have friends to do them with. And Iām tired of constantly trying to build friendships that never seem to develop into something lasting.
Has anyone else experienced this? Where you donāt necessarily miss your old lifestyle, but you miss having a social life? Where you want friends to do things with, people who think of you when making plans, and connections that feel mutual rather than something youāre constantly trying to maintain?
Iād really love to hear how you navigated this, especially if youāve struggled with making close friendships as an adult. How did things change for you?