So, I’m the only single one in my friendship group and that means I’ve become a kind of ‘listening ear’ to all their marital troubles. I know that they need someone to talk to and vent of course – and I try to help but some of the situations are so grim and repetitive that I’m just running out of things to say. For example:
Friend 1 – LTR, happy but partner not interested in marriage or children. She ‘talked him round’ and is basically doing all the childcare alone now, he has just checked out
Friend 2 – married but DH doesn’t work / struggles to find work and has gambling issues so they struggle, she carries all the financial responsibility and is knackered
Friend 3 – LTR and waiting for a ring for 10 years, bf laughs it off, she won’t press the issue
I find myself repeatedly saying things like “Have you talked to him about it?” and “Can’t you tell him to pull his socks up a bit?” but they never do anything, it’s like the situations are so static that it’s “just the way it is”, the weekly moan. They never think that maybe they’ve just reeled in a dud fish and could actually throw it back. Being single isn’t great but I couldn’t imagine being stuck in these situations and I’m getting tired of being a sounding board.