It’s sad, but true…

Some people we consider friends have a tendency to weigh us down with their emotional needs.

And it can eventually lead to a lot of hard feelings!

In this story, a woman wrote about why she decided to put some distance between a friend who was being a bit too needy for her liking.

Get all the details below.

AITA for telling a friend I need some time before entering a heavy conversation?

“I have a long-distance friend. We used to be a lot closer, calling and texting frequently, and it was pretty 50/50 on who reached out first.

Now, October 2025.

I had just moved because my partner and I discovered mold in our spare bedroom caused by a leak from the upstairs apartment.

That room held all the supplies for my partner’s small business, which is his only job and something I help with part-time.

October is our busiest month, and my friend knew that.

While I was juggling a long commute, moving, and work, this friend messaged saying they would be in my state in four days time. They would be staying with their mom two or three hours away with no car.

Things are kind of hectic over here!

Feeling like they deserved support, I tried to be honest. I told them that because it was October and I was dealing with mold, moving, and work, I wouldn’t be able to give them a full day of attention.

However, I invited them to come to a show that I and several mutual friends were part of so they could still see me. I also apologized and acknowledged that I knew spending time together would probably be important for them during a breakup.

They said they understood, came to the show, and everything seemed fine.

Fast forward six months.

Oh, no!

The new job I had just let me go, and a huge situation in my friend group had me dealing with constant emotionally draining conversations.

Two or three days after I lost my job, this friend texted asking to talk. I told them I had a lot going on and wanted to give them my full attention but didn’t feel capable of doing that yet. They said it was fine and that there was no pressure or timeline.

About two weeks passed.

The friend group issues got worse, and I was doing DoorDash while applying to jobs nonstop. The day before orientation for a new job, this friend texted again saying I was a bad person for not reaching out and that I didn’t care about them.

What the…?

That upset me because they had told me to take my time. I explained that I wasn’t ready yet and that they could have asked for reassurance or a timeframe if they needed one.

Instead, they doubled down and brought up their trip from six months earlier, accusing me of making excuses not to see them.

I responded, explaining how hurtful and unfair that was, that they were centering their feelings, waiting six months to bring it up, and dismissing serious issues in my life as excuses.

I also said it bothered me that I had told them twice I wasn’t ready to talk, yet they forced the convo anyway.

Their response was: “Too long didn’t read.”

That snapped me.

I replied, “Wow, Grow up. I hope you find someone willing to coddle you since you apparently need it.”

I know that wasn’t the nicest response, but was I wrong for saying I wasn’t ready to have that conversation yet?”

Check out what readers had to say about this.

This person shared their thoughts.

Another individual said she’s to blame.

And another person said this is her fault.

You have to set boundaries with some folks, or you’ll get weighed down with their problems.

If you liked this post, you might want to read this story about a teacher who taught the school’s administration a lesson after they made a sick kid take a final exam.