You May Actually Weep While Reading About How These People's Friends Changed Their Lives
This article includes brief mention of suicidal thoughts.
We recently asked people in the BuzzFeed Community to tell us about friends who have changed their lives. The responses we received had me wiping away tears. Here are some of my favorites:
1."I'm only 24, but I'm very good friends with a 74-year-old I used to volunteer with."
"He reminded me a lot of my grandfather who lived three hours away but was my biggest support. I reminded him a lot of his daughter who unfortunately died when she was only in her early 30s, and he didn't have much other family. We started talking more outside of volunteering. During the pandemic, my then-boyfriend/now-husband and I checked in on him and picked up his groceries and other items so he wouldn't have to be exposed to so many germs. He supported me all through my student-teaching, letting me practice lessons with him and proofreading my master's project. We still go to see my college's theatre productions every few months, go to movies, go to baseball games, grab food, and talk regularly. He loves having someone to keep him young and active, and I love having someone who I can rely on to be supportive. He even came to our wedding when my husband and I got married last summer. He volunteers with my third-grade class at my new school. My students love him! We have a great friendship, and I am so happy that we have each other."
—Anonymous
2."I met two friends through one of my previous jobs."
"At the time, I’d only known them for less than a year, but they took me and my three children into their home to help us escape from my then-abusive ex-husband. With their help, I was able to break away permanently from a long-term abusive relationship where my children and I were miserable, unhappy, and fearful. I feel blessed to have met them at that point in my life and feel indebted to them and their husbands forever."
—Anonymous
3."My friend Gail."
"Due to trauma in my youth, I do not desire to date. I've been alone for 15 years, and I am 43. Due to being solo, there are times when a 'conventional' person would rely on their partner. There is this one moment that always sticks out in my mind. My grandfather had passed away. It was during his wake when his eulogy was being read that my mom was consoling my father, my brother was hugging his girlfriend, and all my cousins and relatives were paired up with their spouses holding each other and listening to the speaker. I felt completely alone in a room filled with those who loved me most. Then I felt someone sit next to me and wrap an arm around my shoulder. It was my friend Gail. It was the most needed hug in the universe at that exact moment. Needless to say I melted into tears of grief and happiness. I have never felt alone since then. That is the power of showing up for a friend in need."
—Anonymous
4."My best friend I met when I was 18."
"I grew up with an emotionally abusive mother who did her best to instill in me low self-confidence and low self-worth. My friend Jeff was the first friend I ever had who treated me like an equal. His positivity, and my getting new friends, slowly but surely taught me how to be confident after growing up in fear. Jeff and I have been best friends since, and I turn 60 in December. His impact on me was life-changing and reset the course of my life in a positive direction that still remains today."
—Anonymous
5."After my mom died, my friends came from all over the country to attend the viewing and provide support."
"They just dropped whatever they were doing and came. Every time the doorbell rang, I cried."
—Anonymous
6."The woman who has slowly become my best friend."
"I struggle with significant social anxiety, and a lot of that stems from bullying, exclusion, and humiliation as a child. The woman who has slowly become my best friend is the opposite of this in every single way. I was not used to someone treating me kindly, both to my face and behind my back. The way she treats me and cares about me finally helps me believe that I am worthy and lovable, valuable, and enough. No other 'friend' or even most of my family has treated me with such regard or made it clear that our friendship has no conditions or strings. It's unlocked a level in my life that I didn't know was missing, and it's truly made such a difference in who I am and how I live."
—Anonymous
7."My best friend honestly changed my life."
"When my mental health was in a rough state, he’s the only reason I got through it. Before I met him, I was about to commit suicide. It’s hard to explain. I wouldn’t be the person I am today without him!"
8."I never realized friendship could feel so beautiful and life-altering until I was in university."
"I befriended a girl and, a couple of months later, another two girls, and we became a gang of four, never to be broken. What made these friends feel different from others is how we are not focusing on just hanging out. We actually help each other during major life stages: We send each other job advertisements, attended weddings, one of them is pregnant, and we are there for her every step of the way. One is struggling with fertility struggles, and we are there as her sounding board when she gets tired and needs to vent. We send each other money whenever someone is short on some payment. We fought with our professors for the sake of another's GPA. It's been eight years of friendship for us, and I hope we get many, many, many more years together. So yeah, these friends maybe did not change my life drastically by giving me a kidney or something, but they have been there for me when I was lowest in my life. They have taught me how friendship can be more than just people to hang out with. It can be a source of comfort and support."
9."My childhood besties who are still the loves of my life."
"I like to say that they are my soulmates, and anyone else is just a bonus. We’ve lived, loved, and fought through so many things, but through it all, our friendship has always shone through. We just love each other genuinely for who we are. I’m a better version of me because of them. Friends for over 20 years."
10."My best friend since we were 7 years old."
"He is the nicest, most caring, most supportive person you will ever meet. He and I still share this sixth sense, this knowledge that if either of us said ‘help’ the other one would come running as fast as they could. He’s the platonic love of my life, and my soulmate in every sense of the word. We have watched and supported each other through coming out, through transitions, through ex-boyfriends and ex-girlfriends, and stupid messy breakups, and fights with our parents. There is nothing I wouldn’t do for him, and I know he feels the same. We’re best friends for life, and I can’t begin to express how deep of an impact our friendship has had on me. People will say that the greatest love stories are romantic, but they’ve never met us. Lu, if you’re reading this, know that I love you more than life itself, and I can’t believe I found you so early in my lifetime, because every single second I spend with you is one I treasure forever."
—Anonymous
11.And finally, "I have a few good friends who got me through the transition of divorce."
"The joke in our group is that the longer you know me, the more angry you remember me being."
If you have a story about a friend who has changed your life, share it with us in the comments below, or via this anonymous Google form.
Responses have been edited for length/clarity.
The National Alliance on Mental Illness helpline is 1-800-950-6264 (NAMI) and provides information and referral services. GoodTherapy.org is an association of mental health professionals from more than 25 countries who support efforts to reduce harm in therapy.
