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"Junior year was the year I went from having four  best friends to no best friends. I knew it was over in November, but because I was desperate to remain a part of any clique, I turned what could have been as painless as ripping off a band-aid into a slow, gruesome process. The night before taking the SAT, my mom ripped off the band-aid. The group was scheduled to meet at California Pizza Kitchen  for dinner, but I didn&amp;#039;t want to go. Earlier that day, one of my friends announced that a dress code would be in effect: I had to wear my pink polo shirt, and I was not allowed to wear my green dangly earrings. I told my mom the new &amp;quot;rules,&amp;quot; and she was enraged. That night they called my home phone to ask when I could join them. All four were on speakerphone. And my mom answered. &amp;quot;Molly would love to come to dinner,&amp;quot; my mom cheerfully chirped. &amp;quot;But her pink polo isn&amp;#039;t clean. Sorry!&amp;quot; Crying, hysterics, screaming, and lots of &amp;quot;My life is over!&amp;quot; ensued. What had transpired was completely irreversible, and the rest of junior year felt like a teen movie: me rerouting my way to class so as not to run into one of them, feeling physically incapable of being in areas like the cafeteria and library, and seeing them huddled at the top of the stairs, staring at me. When you are 16, walking down the hallway without a friend feels worse than walking down the hallway naked. Making new friends in high school? At the time, running a marathon on flaming coals seemed an easier task. By senior year I had mastered the &amp;quot;brave face&amp;quot; act. I was used to having no one to confide in but my parents and sister, which made me appreciate my family more than any 17-year-old is supposed to. My parents did everything they could to help me get through high school without enduring more pain. At first I was completely embarrassed by the fact that much of my social life involved going to the movies with my little sister, but now I believe many girls have some pretty icky high school experiences. I look back now, an incoming college junior, and know that what my mom did was necessary. The only thing more painful than my junior and senior years would have been sticking with that group. My college friends are the best friends of my life\u2014and that is because they respect me. Dr. Phil has it right when he says you teach people how treat you. No one will hand over respect. You have to demand it. I learned never to let people walk on me, and that I would rather have no friends than friends who treat me like dirt. This means that when my friends do something I don&amp;#039;t like, I don&amp;#039;t let it simmer until the comments becoming so degrading I erupt into a fit of tears. I speak up at the first sign of a problem. A simple, &amp;quot;Don&amp;#039;t roll your eyes at me,&amp;quot; or &amp;quot;Please don&amp;#039;t talk to me like that,&amp;quot; is enough. You will not lose friends by being a strong-willed a confident person. You will gain friends by standing up for yourself and helping other people do the same. If you are going through an experience like mine, do not lose hope. If you do everything possible to retain your personality and dignity, you will emerge a confident, empowered young woman. You will genuinely believe you can make it through anything\u2014and you will have no qualms passing on mediocre friends in favor of the best. Every girl deserves nothing but the best of friends who will support her through everything. So thank you to Danielle, Chelsea, Olivia, Dana, JuJu, everyone in Delta Gamma and the best friend of all time, my little sister Anna! How do you deal with the claasic &amp;quot;mean girls&amp;quot; at your school? Have you ever been forced to find a whole new group of friends? How do you know if your friends are right for you? XOXO Molly Fedick Editorial Intern "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.seventeen.com/life/a10909/daily-kiss-surviving-a-friendship-break-up/>