Few things in life have as big an impact on our happiness as good times spent with friends. Numerous studies show that close relationships with friends are vital to our physical health too, with loneliness linked to reduced life expectancy and a host of health issues.

But what if the number of people you count as friends is shrinking, or you find yourself wanting to spend less time socialising. Is that just a normal part of aging?

A recent study found that as we age we become choosier about how we spend our time and with whom. Our tendency as aging humans is to weed out friendships that aren’t emotionally fulfilling because we know time is running out.

“With self-reflection and increased wisdom comes the realisation that we really should maximize the amount of good relationships we have and not spend so much time on the ones that aren’t good,” says clinical psychologist Dr Andrea Bonior, professor of psychology at Georgetown University.

There is however a growing issue because the result of this is fewer friends and, as a result, less time spent with friends, and if we don’t make new friends, it can be a problem.

GFS Perth has been enabling Friendship for almost 140 years. Check our socials or Events Calendar. #FriendshipRevolution