Best Friend Moving Away: What Should I Do?

Spend quality time together

Spend as much time as you can with your friend before he or she moves. Here are some ideas on what to do before the move:

• Do your favorite activities with your friend such as playing a favorite sport, camping, fishing, or dancing.

• Hang out over the weekends and watch movies, take long walks in the park, or just chat at home.

• Go out for a meal at your favorite restaurant or for a drink at your favorite bar. Request the owner to play your favorite songs. Visit all your favorite places and refresh the memories.

• Take lots of videos, photos, and voice recordings. They will keep you going when your friend is gone.

Give your friend a special send-off

Find a special way to express your feelings to your best friend and give them a special, heartfelt goodbye that both of you will remember for long. Here are some ideas:

• Throw a goodbye or farewell party: you will have lots of fun but you may also cry at some point. The jokes and smiles you share in that party will add on to the good memories. Just take your favorite drinks and foods, play your favorite songs, and remember past funny events during the party.

• Put it all down in a goodbye letter to express all your love and care for your friend.

• Give him or her a warm embrace, say your last words in his or her ear and then say "see you soon" instead of saying "goodbye".

Give your best friend a handmade gift

When facing a best friend moving away, you can make some DIY gifts which can express your feelings better than those bought from stores:

• A photo album with pictures and captions that capture the special moments you spent together.

• An item that expresses your friendship such as a book, a jewel, a CD with your favorite songs, or a piece of art.

• Anything that he or she will need in the new home, like a lamp for bedroom table.

• Make your best home-made food, design funny cards, write a poem, knit a scarf, or paint something.

• A package of many items that have special meanings to both of you, like a pair of earrings, a meaningful football, nail polish of certain color, a video game you played together.......

Support your friend until he or she moves

It is hard to say goodbye to a friend but you need to be supportive because it might be worse for him or her. Your friend has to plan, pack, and live in a new community. Lend a hand to your best friend, as moving away needs a lot of emotional and physical help:

• Offer a listening ear whenever your friend needs to talk because he or she may be upset, sad or stressed about the move. Let your friend express his or her frustrations. Do not keep reminding your friend of how much you will miss him or her because it will add on to the stress.

• Show your friend that you are happy about the move and wish them good luck. Look for ways to make him or her excited about the move such as things to do in the new home.

• Help your best friend pack, sorting out which to take to the new home and which to leave behind. You can also help contact a logistics company and move luggages when the last day comes. 

Talk to other friends and family

Your friend who's going to move away is most likely overwhelmed and stressed about the move, so do not add your sadness to his or her stress. Instead, seek support from your family members and other friends. Share your feelings about your friend’s move with them.

• Seek someone’s permission before you start talking about your feelings. Let the person know you need to share your feelings about the upcoming move.

• Talk to an empathetic person such as a close mutual friend or a kind mature relative. Go to someone who you trust and have talked to before when you were going through hard situations.

Communicate regularly

The move will change everything including the means of communication but your deep love remains the same. If you stay in touch, you will pick your friendship right where you left when you see each other again. You two can stay in touch via so many ways, like: 

• Long phone calls

• Text messages

• Regular video calls on Google or Skype

• Social media like Facebook, Tweeter, etc.

• Play the same games on mobile phone apps

• Postcards and letter

• Emails

• Regular visits

Keep yourself busy

Start spending more time with your family and other friends. Alternatively, look for new activities or hobbies to keep you occupied.

• Look for ways to fill the time you spent with your friend in a week. For instance, if you went out every Friday night, call some other friends to keep you accompanied, like having dinner or watch movies together.

• Strengthen your relationships with your mutual friends. They might also be missing the same person as you do and will appreciate you for reaching out to them.

• Find new interests and hobbies to pass time, like hiking, dancing, painting, cooking, etc.

Give yourself time

Adjustment takes time. You will feel odd after a best friend moving away. You may not know how to spend your weekends after that or who to turn to after a stressful day. Such feelings are normal. Do not try to hasten the healing process. Allow yourself to adjust naturally and take all the time you need to get over the move.