What’s worse than breaking up with your long-time romance? Breaking up with that best friend. They’re by our side in good times and bad. They’ve seen the best of us and they’ve seen the worse of us. They believed in us when we couldn’t quite believe in ourselves. They laughed with us until 3 in the morning. And, now? It’s all history.

There comes moments in our lives when we say good-bye to things that we thought were permanent. Unfortunately, too many of us can apply this theory to our friends. So, how does one survive the infamous bestie break-up?

Stay off social media, or at least, their’s.

You don’t have to stay off your Instagram forever. However, there are some precautions you should take. Let me warn you, you’re not going to want to do these things. It will make everything feel more permanent. However, I’m more focused on your healing process, not their’s, and you should be, too.

Unfollow them on Instagram. Delete them from Snapchat. Head to Facebook, click on “Friend”, and go for “Unfollow Posts”. Unfollow them on Twitter. Stop typing in their name. It’s important during the beginning to remove their presence so you don’t distract yourself with their life and you live your’s.

Veg out.

A friendship break-up is painful. Whether it happened over time or blew up all at once, you need to time for self-love and care. Dedicate yourself to soothing rituals (here are some suggestions and here is a way to pamper yourself). Watch funny movies. Listen to sad music. Take time to go through the grieving process. Don’t rush yourself. You have all the time and space you need to heal.

Pack your calendar.

Don’t pack to the point of overwhelm, but it’s time to get out there! Schedule time with all of your other friends. Meet up for coffee. Go shopping. Have a movie marathon. Host a brunch. There are lots of things that you can do with all your friends that are still present in your life.

Added bonus: Reach out to people who you have been interested in befriending. These can be the people that you’ve been too shy to approach, but believe are great people. Now is your chance!

Cherish.

Actively work on coming to a place of gratitude about your previous friendship. This is not a 24-hour deal. This takes time. There will be days where you feel like you can cherish those memories and feel no emotional attachment. There will also be days where you miss them terribly or find yourself feeling resentful. Both cases are normal. However, work to cherish the memories of the friendship of a fond moment in time and great part of your history, instead of what “could have been” your future.