While your boyfriend seems to have all the fun with his friends, are you sulking over a fight or cancelling plans with your group of friends? Does your relationship leave you with little time to even drop a text message to your friend? This may be true for some girls, as they find it difficult to balance "friendship and a relationship".
For those who can’t do the "balancing act" well, they regret missing out on the "gossip and chit chat" sessions with their friends.
Says Shilpi Gupta, a first year college student, "I realise how much fun I miss out on when my friends go out, while I’m only thinking about my relationship. Most of the times, I drop my plans with friends if my boyfriend and I have had a fight. It leaves me in a bad mood. Sometimes, I feel stuck between the two. And when my friends put up their pictures on Facebook, and I see how much fun they had, it makes me feel lonely and I get upset."
But some leave no stone unturned to keep in touch with their "girlie gang" and have all the fun that they used to before getting hooked.
Akanksha Goel, 18, is dating a guy for the last four years, and though she initially had problems managing a relationship and friends together, she is now well-equipped. "When we were in school, the only time I was free was on Sundays, so when I started dating Vaibhav, I only used to spend all my time with him. That was when I moved away from my female friends. Now in college, we try and meet as often as we can. And girls should always take time out for ‘girlie fun’," she says.
Interestingly, there are some who make the "rules of relationships" clear to their boyfriends much in advance. Some girls just don’t want to miss out on all the gossip sessions with their girl gang, even if that means missing out on secret dates.
Smiles Richa Nathani, a Class 12 student, "When my friends and I plan something or go for nightouts at my best friend’s place, my boyfriend often asks me to hang out with him. But I put my foot down as I will never compromise on my time with friends. We chat, talk about things that you can’t share with your boyfriend."
Shruti Badyal
The Asian Age