What are the consequences for my teenage daughter of not having friends?

Adolescence is a crucial time when friendships play a vital role. If someone has few or no friends and compares themselves to peers with larger social networks, they may feel lonely. Loneliness is the subjective feeling that arises when the quantity and quality of one's social relationships don't match what one would like. Therefore, it's important to understand how your daughter experiences this situation. Perhaps she doesn't perceive any imbalance because she has the quantity and quality of social relationships she desires and doesn't feel lonely or experience it negatively. This is a crucial first step in understanding the situation.

A second point to consider is that, generally, having friendships with peers during adolescence is positive. But perhaps your daughter hasn't found people with whom she shares interests and motivations, people she trusts. You can always suggest activities that allow her to meet new people outside her usual circle, people with whom she shares interests and motivations. Keep in mind that our social networks change over the years, which is why we can all feel lonely at certain stages of our lives, even with many friends.

It is important to be aware that loneliness can be both a cause and a consequence of other situations . For example, a person who is bullied at school may feel lonely because of this bullying; that is, the cause of the loneliness is not a lack of friends but the bullying itself. There are personal situations that increase a person's vulnerability and can even lead to social isolation: eating disorders, addictions, other mental health disorders, disabilities, being a victim of violence, and migration. Your daughter is probably not experiencing any of these situations, but it is another factor to consider. Because if another problem is behind this lack of friends, it is important to identify it as soon as possible.