None of us are supposed to stay the same forever. We’re supposed to learn, grow and practice discernment in order to navigate life with wisdom. We’ve all accepted that as an unarguable truth. When we finally undergo self-improvement and evolve personally, weird things start to happen–people who once supported you through your struggle shrink to the background when things improve in your life.
Why does this happen? Research from Northwestern University analyzed the phenomena, as summarized by Ashley Lyles in Psychology Today. Over several studies, individuals thought about how their friends, loved ones and partners had evolved.
They indicated how much previous or anticipated support or resistance they had prior to those behavioral shifts. Analysts then had the participants self-assess how clear they were about their self-concept.
The analysts found that, when people had lower clarity about their