Toxic Friends and the GED® Test

You’ve decided to sign up for GED® classes. You might feel a little nervous about it, but you’re proud to take this first step for your education. What happens when you tell your friends and family?

Hopefully they support you. Studying for the GED test can be tough. It can be a long journey, and positive people will keep you motivated when you need a boost.

However, you might find out that not all the people in your life are supportive.

When new students signed up for classes at Seeds of Literacy, we would ask them what their goals were. We’d also ask them what three things would help them reach their goals, and what three things might make it harder to reach their goals.

Sometimes, students would write “friends” for what would help them. The funny thing is, they would also write “friends” on the list of things that would make reaching their goals harder.

Not everyone is a good kind of friend. A relationship that is harmful is called toxic.

Toxic friends or sometimes even family are people who are supposed to make you feel good, but instead they make you feel bad. They might be making you feel that way on purpose, or they might not know they’re doing it.

Think about who will support you and reach out to them about the big step you’re taking to get your GED diploma. Also think about who might not be supportive. Try to think of the things they say as a reflection of themselves, and don’t take it as something that reflects your worth. Lots of times, someone will tell you that you can’t do something because they think it’s too hard for themselves to do.

Maybe you have a friend who also needs take the GED test. He might see you signing up for classes, and that makes him think about his own life. He might be scared that he won’t be able to pass the test. To make himself feel better, he might tell you that passing the GED test isn’t important, or make fun of you for trying. Even though he’s saying those things about you, really they are about him.

It’s not always easy to listen to people say things like that and not take it personally. If you want to focus on earning your GED diploma, though, you need to be able to draw a line at times.

That doesn’t mean that every criticism is coming from a bad place. If a friend tells you that you should study more, or that maybe you should wait to sign up for GED classes until your child care is sorted out, those may be things you want to think about.

Don’t ever doubt that you can pass your GED test! Knowing who the positive people in your life are can help. If you feel like you have too many toxic friends or just need more support, tutors and teachers at your GED classes can help. At Seeds of Literacy, we offer free one-to-one tutoring from people who will encourage you.

And always remember, no matter what, you can be your own biggest fan.

Find out how to sign up for free GED classes at Seeds of Literacy. We have locations on the east and west sides of Cleveland.