The how part is much too difficult to answer. There are so many variables about the situation on your friendship that play important parts in making the decision of how.

But as for do you - yes, you do. Staying quiet will get you nothing but more frustration and stress. The fact that you've already stated you can never trust them again and you no longer believe they are your friend means that you don't really have anything to loose.

If you don't confront them, you may have an artificial relationship on the surface, but it will never be a true friendship again. You'll always be reminded of the betrayal every time you see them, causing yourself more stress.

If you do, on the other hand, one of three general things can happen, in my opinion...

1) They react badly and the two of you have a blow out. While this sucks at the time, it also means that everything is out in the open and you don't have to fake being friends forever. The betrayal and ending of the friendship has already been done. At least you can both acknowledge what has happened and move on independently.

2) They react well and see your point. Sure, your friendship will change and will never be quite what it was. But again, everything is out in the open, and at least you can be amicable with one another if and when you see each other. And who knows, maybe things will get better over time.

3) There is a whole different situation surrounding the betrayal, and things aren't exactly as they seemed from each of your points of view. There are at least two sides to every story, and maybe once everything is on the table, the situation is not as bad as it initially seemed to be. You could both end up strengthening your friendship and fully understanding each other even more than before.

Best case scenario - you understand each other and become better friends.

Worst case scenario - you lost a friend and as much as it hurts, you'll move on with time.

But if you say nothing, you automatically get the worst case scenario, with the added stress and discomfort of having to fake it or have a huge grudge every time you see or think of them.

Keep in mind, one of the definitions of confront is 'to meet face to face' - it doesn't have to be negative, although that's the common connotation. And never dive in while you're still angry or very emotional about it. Give yourself some time to calm down and think about it logically. Maybe it won't even be an issue after that!

That's my two cents, for what they're worth...
Source(s):
Personal experience (both confronting and not)


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