**Reconnecting 2015**

[knightofswords]

Hello this is the thread inspired by the recent NY making friends thread, for anyone who feels a lack of RL friendships for whatever reason, and wants to do something about it.

My personal aim for joining this thread would be to end the year with a few more genuine friendships, even if they just stay online. So if any of us needs support or encouragement or a shoulder to cry on or just a virtual , we know where to come.

Here's to a great year.

I'm not sure...I can see stuff on my newsfeed from it but I don't know if other people can. FB privacy settings are just so convoluted

Here we go - this clarifies it. Posts cannot be seen by any one except members. Anyone can see who's in a closed group and see the group description. A secret group is basically invisible to everyone except members.

@Play - I've got some de-cluttering done and it's strangely satisfying. If I've enough energy left, I'll come on over and get it sorted.

To be fair though, the Unfuck your Habitat app is mostly to blame for the sudden urge to get on top of things. I'm competitive sometimes so trying to beat the clock gives me a giggle, as does the swearing

Aristotle have sent you a PM

Can I join in too? I do have a few mummy friends and a friend from my old work place who I do socialise with occasionally, but sadly my older friends disappeared whilst I was pregnant with boy #1...and now boy #2 has arrived! I also keep in touch with a few people on FB.

Like a lot of others, Christmas/new year has really hit home how lonely I felt for me, my husband and our boys. We don't have big extended families, so I think that played a part in feeling like billy-no-mates family :-/

Ps - I've requested to join the mn social group :-).

Can't find the FB group either. Would love to join though. Can someone post a link to it please?

awitch good on you! I'm going to get that app. Really need to get a grip and get sorted. Productive day here, had my first ever run (well mainly walk but I tried), got all the stuff ready for work etc and built a bat cave . So good all round! aristotle can I pm you too. I can't work fb

Hang on, just managed it!! Yey request sent

Hooray! Nice to see you all joining.

I've messaged you too AristotlesTrousers!

A bit late to this thread but I would like to join too. Have a five month old dd and although I am meeting people through a nearby baby group, my driving phobia makes it hard to do an awful lot. We moved back to the uk from the states two years ago for dh's job and although I get on well with some of my work colleagues, I don't have any close friends. Family are 500 miles away too unfortunately, which is a real shame as we are very close in a non geographical sense! I do get lonely, especially when dh travels overseas for work.

Can I join please? Apart from seeing relatives on Christmas day I have not socialised with anyone over Christmas. For various reasons my DP and I spent it apart and I've had a lot of pj Mnetting days. I work full time and don't have any children and while I do have a couple of RL friends I don't see them often as they are busy with their children etc and I don't want to intrude/push a friendship on them. I get comfort from knowing I'm not the only one in this boat!

Hi mrsmilkymoo Must be hard with DH away. Can sympathise re the driving. I do manage it, but get quite nervous still.

Hi Littlestrickle I know how you feel - I hate to intrude on my friends too, though I have the opposite problem in that I have DC and they don't! I always think they surely must have better things to do than see me, which I know is silly, but I still hold back all the same.

Let us know if you can't find the fb group.

I think FB may take a while to get new groups listed in the search. I couldn't find it this morning but have just sent a request now.

Just bumping this up for anybody feeling depressed at having to go back to work/school/nursery/sahp this week and feeling alone.

Just wondering what things you've tried to make new friends and what's worked or not?

Pre-kids I did evening classes but didn't make any friends through them but most people were pleasant enough. DH made almost all his friends and social circle pre-kids through his athletics club. We're no longer local to that though and even if we were, he has nothing like the amount of spare time to train now that he had before, and so wouldn't be so involved and doesn't feel he can establish himself in the same way at a club where we now live. He's lonely too and cos he works FT he doesn't even get the 'mum' interaction I get on my days off. We don't have regular babysitters handy as not much family near us and those that are can't help much due to ill health.

Since having kids, DH tried a social night at a local climbing club for about a year. The club wasn't in the easiest location but he made one friend there who he got on v well with but he moved away about a year later which was such a shame. DH never really made any more friends so stopped going.

He's now trying tennis but while the club is local and welcoming, most involved are either single 20-somethings, people with much older kids or retirees. He enjoys playing but any social side beyond that hasn't developed.

I'm hoping to give either a local community choir or a book club a try. And I've joined a couple of local meetup groups but haven't been to any yet. I might even try to start a new, language-based one!

Sent you a message Aristotle !

Inconceivable I think meetups is a good start! And my Mums friend has made loads of friends through joining a choir.

Can I join too please? I realise it's late in the day though...

I have a couple of close female friends who are local and who I see reasonable regularly, but other long term friends have sadly become more like acquaintances as our lives have changed paths - understandable to an extent as I never had children and most of them did.

Some of the couples friends I had when with ex have drifted away when we got divorced which I guess is the norm. I am in a happy relationship with my DP, but he doesn't have many friends and we are both very keen to expand our social circles both together & individually. We're both keen walkers and so I'm hoping to join a local walking group but have never really done anything this pro-active about finding friends (at 48!!) so am feeling a bit anxious which I realise is a bit daft!

I would just like a few friends who we could go walking with &/or meet for drinks/dinner every so often.

This thread has come at perfect time for me - will read the whole thing later.

I haven't read the whole thread but can I please join, I'm a 41yo single mum of 4yo ds with sn and have no help at all from his father so the only time I have to socialise is when ds is at school. I have a couple of rl friends but don't see them very often and would love to make new friends.

knight I have sent you a pm with my Facebook name and have also sent a request to join your Facebook group.

I would really like to join too if that's ok?
I'm a single parent of 3 DC under 6. I don't live near any family or friends as I relocated and have struggled to form friendships up here due to ex being erratic with contact and me having hardly any free time.
I have started seeing a guy who has a lovely close bunch of friends and although he's started to introduce me to them, it's made me realise even more what I'm missing!

Can I join in too please.
I'm far from being a social butterfly, have a couple of amazing friends who live the other side of the world and really struggle to make decent friendships/connections and im not really sure why

Hi all. The facebook group is called MN Social. Let us know if you can't find it. It's a closed group so you have to request to join or have somebody add you.