In the days following the passing of fashion designer Kate Spade and chef Anthony Bourdain the “check on your strong friends” posts have resurfaced across social media platforms. While the intentions of these posts are meant for good, I don’t agree with the concept of having “strong friends”. It’s amazing to me how we’re suddenly so laser-focused on checking on our strong friends, but I can guarantee most don’t ever take the time to check on their weak friends either. From what I gather, the strong friend is the person that serves as a listening ear but rarely discloses their personal battles. The strong friend also seems to handle tough situations without batting an eye. Truth is, we’re all strong in someone’s eyes, but none of us are as strong as we appear. It’s easy to say you never know what someone else is going through, but how often do you stop and actively listen to someone else’s story and not judge them for it? We talk about the importance of self-care and mental health, but we want people to suck it up and deal at the same time. We’re quick to label someone as depressed (a word we use […]