I Was Everyone's Unpaid 'Therapist Friend' – Then I Learned This Hard Truth About Friendship

I don’t remember a time when my mum didn’t confide in me. I was her emotional support system, her confidant, her closest friend. She was a single parent and I became her sounding board. She shared her problems, fears and daily struggles – not the watered-down version most kids get, but the whole, raw, unfiltered story. 

As I grew older, I slowly became aware that this wasn’t how most mother-daughter relationships worked. But for us, it was just normal.

“Thank you for listening to me rabbit on,” she’d say...