I’m 27M. I’ve been in the same friend group for years, about 8 guys. They’re not bad people. They show up for my birthday, hype me up when I have wins, and one of them asked me to be a groomsman. But since day one I’ve been the one who gets ripped on. A lot of it is about my looks and my body, and how I’m “too sensitive.” When I opened up to one of them privately and said the dynamic was getting to me, he called me a victim and said getting ripped on is “just being a man.” Since then I keep my guard up around all of them. I leave hangouts drained. My jokes never land with them, but everyone else’s do. Outside this group, people treat me with respect, so I don’t think the problem is me. On top of that, the guys’ girlfriends have never really let my girlfriend in. She was the only one not invited to a bachelorette trip, even though another girlfriend who lived farther away when she joined the group became part of their inner circle. My girlfriend asked me not to confront anyone, so I haven’t. This is my only friend group, and I’m about to go on a bachelor party trip with them. I love these guys, but I don’t feel like an equal around them. How do you handle being the punching bag in a group you still care about? Has anyone stepped back from an old friend group without fully cutting them off? TL;DR: I’ve been the target in my friend group for years, I’m outgrowing it, and my girlfriend gets left out by their partners. I don’t want to lose them, but I don’t feel respected. What would you do? submitted by /u/Haunting_Height_3943
Originally posted by u/Haunting_Height_3943 on r/AskMen